Author
White nationalism gets a hearing in the Republican House
Xenophobia is the original offense of the Trump era. The former president launched his campaign in 2015 by saying of Mexican migrants, “They’re bringing drugs. They’re bringing crime. They’re rapists.” It was a gross mischaracterization of facts, but the nativist message resonated with a Republican base primed by far-right media figures to despise non-white immigrants. […]
Oversight will never fix what’s wrong with policing
Memphis has a police oversight board. This might seem surprising, since after local officers barbarically beat Tyre Nichols to death last month no police department in the country seems more in need of oversight. But the Memphis Civilian Law Enforcement Review Board has been in existence for almost 30 years. What’s not surprising is that […]
Colorado Republican leaders sideline El Paso County chairwoman in contentious meeting
Leaders of the Colorado Republican Party on Monday voted to appoint a “neutral” person to oversee the El Paso County Republican Party reorganizational meeting and elections in less than two weeks. The extraordinary vote signaled that a majority of state party officials do not trust Chairwoman Vickie Tonkins of El Paso County to run the […]
Fee exceptions for journalists proposed for Colorado public records law
Press advocates are proposing state legislation that would make exceptions for journalists in the fee schedule of Colorado’s public records law. Reporters in the state have long asserted that the costs of obtaining public records are often too high and hinder their ability to inform the public about government business. “It’s just prohibitively expensive for […]
Colorado Republicans in crisis
We learned this week that a group of El Paso County Republicans have made extraordinary allegations against their own county party chairwoman, Vickie Tonkins. The most disturbing charges involve physical intimidation. “Most recently, at the special central committee meeting, we were told we should be put in front of a firing squad and shot,” they […]
Emails offer inside glimpse of Colorado GOP showdown over embattled county leader
“It’s absurd that you would double-down on your attempts to tip the scales in favor of one side over another,” Vickie Tonkins wrote in an email to Kristi Burton Brown on Monday. Burton Brown, chairwoman of the Colorado Republican Party, about three hours earlier had written to Tonkins, chairwoman of the El Paso County Republicans, […]
A speech that put NIMBYs on notice
Roughly a third of the way into the annual State of the State address delivered by Gov. Jared Polis on Tuesday before the Colorado General Assembly, he said, referring to the state’s housing crisis, “We need more flexible zoning.” And with those words, along with the larger position Polis staked out on housing, he put […]
Integrity of Republican leadership in El Paso County questioned by state party officials
The leadership of Vickie Tonkins, the divisive chairwoman of the El Paso County Republican Party, will be up for discussion during an upcoming special meeting of the state party’s Central Committee. The virtual meeting, planned for Jan. 31, was called by Colorado Republican Party Chairwoman Kristi Burton Brown in a Monday email, obtained by Newsline, […]
Former Colorado public defender, sentenced in revenge porn case, faces attorney discipline
A former Colorado public defender who pleaded guilty in a revenge porn case now faces misconduct allegations in the state court that disciplines attorneys. Christopher Melichar was a state public defender at the time he is alleged to have engaged in professional misconduct, according to a complaint obtained by Newsline. The complaint was filed last […]
Theocrats in the Colorado Capitol
Not two hours into the opening of the Colorado General Assembly this week, a group of Republican lawmakers made it clear that they’re at the Capitol not for the purpose of governing but rather to disrupt and evangelize. The vote for House speaker had long been a bipartisan, unanimous affair in which the minority party […]
Conservative activist Aaron Wood enters race for Colorado state GOP chair
Aaron Wood, a conservative activist based in Highlands Ranch, on Monday announced his candidacy for the top leadership position in the Colorado Republican Party. The current chair, Kristi Burton Brown, announced last month she would not seek a second term. The party suffered historic losses in the November elections, failing to win a single statewide […]
Disorder is all Republicans have to offer
At all levels of government, in every branch of government, Republicans increasingly stand only for disorder. The Constitution establishes the U.S. as a nation of laws. Democracy demands that the public good is elevated over personal interests. American government functions only when elected leaders follow rules, respect norms and act in good faith. Yet the […]