(CENTENNIAL) – U.S. Senate candidate Jane Norton today became the first Colorado candidate to sign the Colorado Energy Forum’s Energy Leadership Pledge, thereby vowing to fight for the thousands of men and women who count on Colorado energy development for family-sustaining jobs.

“President Obama, Secretary Ken Salazar, and Senator Michael Bennet have pursued and supported a Federal energy policy whereby government bureaucrats pick winners and losers, and Colorado has suffered as a result,” commented Norton. “This week’s news that Grand Junction experienced the largest percentage drop in jobs of any metro area in the nation is an example of how Washington’s overregulation of oil and gas development has cost Coloradans jobs.”

The jobs data, which was released this week by the United States Department of Labor, showed Grand Junction losing 7.7 percent of its employment over the last year. The Greeley area, which also relies heavily on natural gas production, lost nearly six percent of its jobs, far worse than urban areas such as Denver and Colorado Springs.

“Washington has tried to spend their way out of this recession, and it has failed miserably,” continued Norton. “It’s time that our leaders embraced an all-of-the-above domestic energy strategy as a great way to create jobs and move our nation toward energy independence. That’s what I’ll do if elected to serve, and that’s why I was proud to be the first Colorado candidate to sign the Energy Leadership Pledge.”

The pledge commits Norton to supporting the exploration and development of domestic energy resources, and opposing policies, rules, taxes, and legislation that would hamper Colorado’s economically-essential energy industry.

--Submitted to The Watch by Jane Norton for Colorado

Tells Farm Bureau That Proposed Tax Hikes Will Hurt Agriculture Jobs

(DENVER) – Stressing that farmers and ranchers would be hit hard by Democrat-sponsored tax increases now under consideration by the state Legislature, gubernatorial candidate Scott McInnis today said the top priority for state government now and in the future must be job creation and economic recovery.

In remarks this afternoon to the Colorado Farm Bureau legislative conference, McInnis underscored his "Jobs First" plan, which will view all budget actions through the prism of whether they help or hurt job creation. 

"Our farmers and ranchers work hard and live on razor-thin margins in the best years," he said. "Raising taxes in tough times will leave deep wounds in the agricultural community, without a doubt. These families, and our state, deserve better. I will take a different approach that puts jobs first, because that is the only way Colorado will see lasting economic recovery."

McInnis, a fourth-generation Coloradan whose family has farming and ranching roots, reiterated his call on the Denver Mayor to join with him in opposing the Democrat plan to raise taxes by ending certain tax exemptions. McInnis invited the Mayor to accompany him in person to the State Capitol to unite against the tax increases. The Mayor has not responded.

"I'm frankly disappointed that the Denver Mayor can't seem to make up his mind about whether he is for or against tax hikes that farmers, ranchers – and other sectors of the business community – say will kill jobs and make our state less competitive," McInnis said. "You can't have it both ways, as leaders a stand needs to be taken as I have done with my Platform for Prosperity. Since the Mayor's silent, I have to assume he's for the tax hikes."

--Submitted to The Watch by Scott McInnis for Governor

GOP Senators are wondering when “enough” will finally be enough for Democrats who continue to raise taxes on hard working Colorado families and small businesses.

“Democrats have a strong history of bleeding taxpayers and businesses for more money, while promising the extra revenue will be ‘enough’ to satiate their spending addiction,” said Sen. Shawn Mitchell, R-Broomfield.  “However, we have seen that it is never enough.”  

Democrat leaders browbeat a series of tax increase though the House last week.  The measures were introduced in the Senate today and would raise taxes on Colorado families and businesses to the tune of $335 million.

“It’s like a bad case of déjà vu,’” Mitchell said.  “Every day Colorado wakes up to the same thing over and over again: Democrats raising taxes.”    

Last session, Gov. Bill Ritter and legislative Democrats passed $1 billion of tax increases, promising the extra revenue would be enough to balance the state’s budget.   At the time, Republicans questioned what happened to the revenue from Referendum C, a 2005 statewide tax increase that pumped an estimated $3.6 billion into state coffers.

“This is government telling the public ‘do as I say, and not as I do,’” Mitchell said.  “Everyone else has been tightening their belts, now it is time for government to do the same.”

The first four tax increases will be heard in the Senate Finance Committee tomorrow at 1:30pm.    

 

-- Submitted to The Watch by Rachel Boxer, Senate Minority Press Secretary

Today, I am pleased to announce my Ten Percent Plan as the first step toward bringing fiscal responsibility back to Washington and economic growth to America. For the last 30 years I have run a small business and, as any business owner will tell you, to be successful you need a sound budget and sensible spending limits. We must expect the same from our elected leaders in government. It’s time to say “Enough!” to John Salazar and Nancy Pelosi. It’s time to say “Enough!” to wasting our taxpayer dollars on trillion-dollar “stimulus” boondoggles. As your next United States Congressman, I will push for common sense solutions such as my Ten Percent Plan that will cut government and get our economy back on track.

First, let's reduce non-defense discretionary spending by 10% across the board. We've heard for years the same, stale promises from our elected officials about how they will save us billions of dollars by cutting out waste, fraud, and abuse in government. Meanwhile, spending and taxes go up and the size of government swells. There's no question there’s plenty of waste in government but the truth is, as long as the money continues to flow in, government will find a way to spend it. It makes little sense to keep saying "Here's more money, but THIS TIME be more careful." If we want to see responsibility we need to turn off the spigot of dollars and force government agencies to budget and prioritize. We do it in our homes and businesses everyday. Let's start holding our government to the same standards.

Next, we need to reduce the tax on capital gains to ten percent. At the end of this year the current tax rates will expire and we will face the biggest one-time tax increase in history. Cutting taxes on the gains earned from investments is a proven method for increasing investment.  Let’s encourage people to invest in new and innovative ideas that will fuel economic growth and job creation at a time when we could use that investment the most.

And third, let’s eliminate business tax deductions and loopholes by moving to a flat 10% federal corporate income tax. Special interests and politicians may not like the idea of a flat tax because it takes away their power, but there is no better way to encourage companies to invest in jobs here in America. High corporate taxes simply incentivize companies to send jobs overseas; let's take away the incentive to send jobs that could be done by hardworking Americans on our shores away to cheaper locales. I'll take that over the special interests any day.

A ten percent cut in non-defense discretionary spending; a ten percent capital gains tax; and a flat ten percent corporate tax with no deductions and no loopholes. It's simple and straightforward and focuses on economic growth through private investment and a lighter tax burden. John Salazar's disastrous trillion dollar stimulus failed on all three. We just can't afford to trust John Salazar and Nancy Pelosi with our hard-earned dollars any longer.



--- Submitted to The Watch by Scott Tipton

The political mud slinging in the governor’s race started well before Bill Ritter made the decision to not seek reelection because he knew he was going to have to make some very unpopular decisions in the next year…especially in this time of fiscal crisis. Candidates from the Right and Left are willing to say anything to get Your vote.

The same goes for candidates seeking to represent Colorado in the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives.

As a writer for The Watch Newspaper, my email in-box is inundated with political press releases from all candidates seeking victories next November. Some of these press releases are informative and some are really dumb. Some will make you laugh and some will have you shaking your head in disbelief.

Being a small regional newspaper, The Watch has never had the space to run each and every one of these political press releases and this blog is my attempt to get those press releases out to the public in their original form, complete with spelling errors, false statements and the like.

It is my hope that you will read these press releases (as blog posts here) and will become a part of the political conversation in this upcoming election. I will post political releases when I get them and as often as I can.

What candidates say in front of TV cameras and microphones may not always be the same thing their press people are saying. Feel free to leave comments and keep me posted on any suggestions for improving this blog. Without anything further, I will begin the posting.

—-Gus Jarvis

CENTENNIAL) – Following President Barack Obama’s unveiling of a record-shattering, $3.83 trillion budget, former Lieutenant Governor Jane Norton today asked Coloradans to challenge appointed Senator Michael Bennet to vote ‘no’ on the President’s proposed $1.56 trillion deficit – a number representing nearly 11 percent of the United States economy.

Norton commented, “The fact that President Obama has proposed to more than triple President Bush’s record-setting budget deficit of $454 billion in only two years demonstrates how out-of-control Washington DC spending has become.

“Senator Bennet has talked a lot recently about reining-in out-of-control Federal deficits, and the President has given Michael Bennet the chance to stand up and put some teeth behind those words. I’m asking Coloradans to call Senator Bennet and urge him to back-up his talk with a ‘no’ vote on any budget that doesn’t reduce the spiraling deficit and reign-in wasteful earmark spending.”

Coloradans can reach Governor Ritter’s appointed Senator at (202) 224-5852.

---Submitted to The Watch by Jane Norton for Colorado

Claims made by gubernatorial candidate Scott McInnis during a campaign event in Windsor on January 27th are more than just misleading.  McInnis reportedly told attendees in Windsor that military basing decisions during the past year have cost thousands of jobs in Colorado, and that a bi-partisan bill blocking the sale of state-owned lands to the Army is to blame. [Coloradoan article]

Department of Defense, Army, and Air Force decisions during the past year, have affected Colorado Springs and other military locations nationwide.  For example, Secretary of Defense Robert Gates canceled the planned creation of three additional brigades, which would have been part of the Future Combat Systems that was trimmed down. [govexec.com daily feed article].

One of those brigades had supposedly been slated for Fort Carson yet last April the Army decided to relocate Division West headquarters to Fort Hood in Texas, which only resulted in the relocation of about 300 hundred people, [Army.mil news release 09] and in May the Air Force decided to locate its Cyber Command in San Antonio, Texas, rather than in Colorado Springs. [San Antonio Business Journals]

McInnis tried to imply that those decisions were prompted by a bill enacted last summer (with broad bi-partisan support BTW) but his implications don't hold water.   He was referring to HB1317, which blocks the state from selling land to the Army for the expansion of Pinon Canyon.  But McInnis is wrong on two important points:

1. HB 1317 was signed into law in June, after the basing and troop-strength decisions had been made, so it is unlikely that it had any influence upon those decisions. And

2. the basing decisions did not cause a loss of jobs in Colorado. In fact, the military population has grown in the state. For example, during the past four years Fort Carson has experienced its largest population growth since it was founded in 1942  [Carson.Army.mil News Release June 26, 2009]

Published reports in fact indicate that Fort Carson has actually grown by several thousand troops, and that the Army has received millions of dollars to fund new construction.  For instance, the base added 6,500 soldiers of the 4th Infantry Division headquarters and its 3,800-soldier 1st Brigade Combat Team [Fort Carson blog]

According to Fred Crowley, senior economist at the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs, these additional troops created about 5,000 new jobs in Colorado Springs. [Colo Springs Business Journal]

 

So, McInnis' claims are completely wrong and in fact Colorado has become ever more dependent upon the military and federal dollars.  However, the majority of true conservative Republicans as well as Democrats and Independents all over the country understand that throwing tax payer dollars at local economies does not resolve the economic downturn.  Instead it robs dollars from people and businesses that create stable productive private sector jobs.

McInnis continues to spout non-truths and misconceptions, and if allowed he would nationalize land and steal jobs from the southeast Colorado economy.  His "job math" does not include the jobs he would destroy in southeast Colorado by expanding Pinon Canyon and tying those federal subsidized dollars to the military does not make them effective or necessary.  Our military should not be an economic tool for politicians and southeast Colorado shouldn't be allowed to be sacrificed let alone because of some make believe scheme by Mr. McInnis.

--Submitted to The Watch by The Pinion Canyon Expansion Opposition Coalition

RNC To Begin “Carefully Screening” Candidates For Adherence To Conservative Values

Will Republican Candidates Continue Running To The Right To Pass Test?

In “an unprecedented” move this weekend, the Republican National Committee adopted a litmus test for candidates at its winter meeting in Honolulu, calling for Chairman Steele to “carefully screen” candidates for their adherence to core, conservative principals before granting them support.  The move is expected to force out liberal and moderate Republicans and push candidates further to the right.

With even the conservative Washington Times calling the RNC’s litmus test, “a highly conservative document,” the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee is calling on Republican Senate candidates in Colorado to say whether they will embrace the new litmus test by running even further to the right or break with party leadership and refuse to take certain positions simply to gain RNC support?     

“With the Republican Party imposing a stringent, far-right litmus test for candidates, will Colorado Republicans embrace or reject it?” said DSCC Press Secretary Deirdre Murphy. “These candidates will need to be careful not to pull a muscle bending over backwards to gain favor with the fringe of the party. Now it’s time for Colorado Republican senate candidates to come clean and tell voters where they really stand.”

Washington Times: GOP leaders adopt litmus test of values for candidates

Ralph Z. Hallow

February 1, 2010

http://washingtontimes.com/news/2010/jan/30/gop-leaders-enact-values-litmus-test-backing//print/

In an unprecedented move, the Republican National Committee on Friday unanimously called on its chairman, Michael S. Steele, to "carefully screen" candidates for their adherence to conservative values before granting them RNC financial help.

The resolution specifically calls on the national chairman to take into account the voting records and statements of all GOP candidates for evidence that they support the "core principles and positions" of the party's national platform, widely regarded as a highly conservative document.

"The brilliant part of the resolution is that it is tied to the party platform ... that has been thought out, debated and passed unanimously at our national convention," North Dakota GOP Chairman Gary Emineth told The Washington Times after he and his fellow RNC members passed the resolution.

There has been intense infighting for more than a month over the wording and the desirability of the resolution, even though it has no legally binding effect on Mr. Steele or on the chairmen of the GOP House and Senate campaign committees. But it does stipulate that candidates who fail the screening should not receive money and other campaign support from the RNC or its sister committees.

The resolution also calls on Mr. Steele and leaders of the House and Senate GOP campaign committees to deny financial and other support support to "candidates who clearly do not support the core principles and positions" of the national platform as adopted at the 2008 Republican National Convention.

The resolution was written and rewritten in contentious and sometime loudly acrimonious closed-door meetings of members representing various factions on the committee, including the 24-member Republican National Conservative Caucus headed by Indiana RNC member Jim Bopp Jr. and another faction representing Mr. Steele.

Jubilant conservatives on the 168-member RNC -- the party's national governing body -- called passage of the resolution a "historic" step designed to make it difficult for Mr. Steele and future party leaders to help finance the campaigns of liberal Republicans.

"The importance of resolution's passage now is that it shows we have taken steps not only to welcome tea-party activists and other independent, small-government champions but also to solve problems within the GOP that caused many of them to abandon the Republican Party," said Morton Blackwell, a veteran RNC member from Virginia.

Opponents of the resolution disputed its importance and uniqueness. "This is not historic, nor is it binding," said Mississippi RNC member Henry Barbour, the nephew of Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour, a former RNC chairman who is revered by most Republicans.

"I also think it is important to note that this resolution was not amended. This resolution urges the GOP to be careful not to fund anymore [Dee Dee Scozzafavas], but that was an exception," said Mr. Barbour. "The resolution still gives the funding discretion to the RNC Chairman and state party leaders where it belongs."

Mr. Steele is the former Maryland lieutenant governor who touts himself as staunchly profile and also helped found the liberal, pro-choice Republican Leadership Council before deciding to run for RNC chairman. Given to major gaffes and distracting controversy, he has not been a favorite of some conservatives on the national committee ever since his sixth-ballot election a year ago.

The resolution's passage represents the first time in memory that a philosophically conservative faction has not been crushed by the national party leadership. "Heretofore there hasn't been any instruction to the national chairmen as to how to allocate their committees' resources that's the big difference," said Mr. Blackwell.

Crafted by Texas RNC member Bill Crocker, the resolution combines aspects of Illinois RNC member Jim Bopp's two earlier proposed resolutions.

One tagged as the Reagan resolution would have required that a candidate agree with at least 80 percent of the GOP's "core principles and policies" as laid out in the party's national platform. Many members regarded a fixed percentage as both unseemly and impractical.

The second proposed Bopp resolution would have imposed "accountability" on candidates who receives RNC help and required them to return to the RNC any financial help if the candidate bows out of the race and endorses a Democrat.

With Republicans seemingly on a roll after election victories in Massachusetts, New Jersey and Virginia and prospects of major seat pickups in the House and Senate come November, a motion that New Jersey RNC member David A. Norcross once contemplated introducing was dropped altogether.

The abandoned motion would have directed Mr. Steele to stop touring the country to promote his book, redirected all proceeds from book sales to the RNC, and it would have banned speech-making for personal financial gain.

Most RNC members thought the motion would have embarrassed Mr. Steele and given the Democrats ammunition against the Republicans in this fall's elections.

State party officials attending the RNC annual winter meeting in Honolulu said the resolution would make it unlikely a Republican chairman would support liberals such as Pennsylvania Sen. Arlen Specter, who bolted from the GOP last year to become a Democrat, and Dee Dee Scozzafava, the New York state lawmaker who won RNC financial support for a U.S. House seat.

Opposed by "tea party" activists and other independents, as well as by conservative Republicans, Mrs. Scozzafava quit last November's contentious race for New York's 23rd congressional district seat and endorsed her Democratic former opponent.

--Submitted by Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee