Blog Archives

Udall and Bennet were among the 15 Democrats who opposed the measure

WASHINGTON — Four months after hinting they would support a ban on semi-automatic weapons, Colorado’s two Democratic senators voted no on a legislative proposal designed to do just that.

“(I)t went too far because it would also have banned certain hunting rifles and even some shotguns,” Sen. Mark Udall said in a press release. “If this bill had been more carefully crafted to only ban weapons designed for the battlefields and keep them out of the hands of the criminals and the mentally ill, I would have supported it.” Read more »

Tipton’s bill would allow the development of hydropower on as many as 373 existing man-made Bureau of Reclamation sites

WASHINGTON — Rep. Scott Tipton bill to produce hydropower from small canals and ditches sailed through the House of Representatives last week, picking up strong Democratic support after the Cortez Republican struck a compromise on a key environmental provision.

The legislation would allow the development of hydropower on as many as 373 existing man-made Bureau of Reclamation sites, 28 of which are in Colorado, that possess the capacity to generate 5 megawatts or less. Read more »

The legislation does not address the problem of those who refuse mental-health treatment

WASHINGTON — A bipartisan bill to help school officials and the public identify symptoms of mental illness in students and others sailed through a Senate panel Wednesday.

The Mental Health Awareness and Improvement Act passed without opposition in the Senate Education, Health, Labor, and Pensions Committee. Read more »

The federal grants were included in the $792 billion stimulus package Congress approved in 2009

WASHINGTON — Boulder County received $25 million and the Colorado Energy Office $9.6 million from the federal government to help conserve and reduce energy in homes and businesses. But a federal audit found that the agencies mishandled some of the programs, failing to oversee sub-contractors and follow federal rules. Read more »

Bennet has faced criticism for his reluctance to allow unscripted media interviews

WASHINGTON — On the day before the U.S. Senate recessed for two weeks, Sen. Michael Bennet emerged alone from an elevator off the Senate floor at 3:20 p.m.

Walking past a knot of reporters, the Colorado Democrat was asked his position on Sen. Dianne Feinstein’s proposal to ban semi-automatic weapons.  He broke his stride for half a second and acknowledged the questioner yet his face remained expressionless and businesslike. Read more »

The politics of gun control may prove tricky for Sen. Mark Udall (D-Colo.)

WASHINGTON — Governor John Hickenlooper’s remark that attempts to approve an assault-weapons ban in Colorado have been difficult highlights the tricky politics of the issue for officials elected statewide, especially for Senator Mark Udall, whose left-of-center position has exasperated allies and enemies alike. Read more »

Only 11 percent of Americans said they support polygamy, according to a May 2011 Gallup poll (Shutterstock image)

WASHINGTON — Same-sex couples are not the only ones who want government recognition of their relationships. Those in polyamarous relationships do too.

Loving More, a national non-profit organization based in Loveland, Colo., plans to release a survey next month of 4,000 self-identified polyamorists that shows more than two-thirds would choose concurrent or multi-partnered marriage if it were legal. Read more »

Colorado’s congressional delegation expressed sympathy to Tom Clements’ family, and gratitude for his public service

WASHINGTON — A 2006 memo that became public as part of the WikiLeaks saga warned that “violence, even terrorism” against Americans could occur as a result of the conviction of Saudi sex offender Homaidan al-Turki.

The leaked 2006 cable from the State Department Deputy Chief of Mission in Riyadh, Michael Gfoeller, includes his remarks with a close and longtime friend of al-Turki’s. Read more »

Officials indicated most of the aliens were illegal immigrants either convicted of or charged with a non-violent felony such as theft

WASHINGTON — The federal government released 34 aliens from its immigration detention facility in Aurora, Colorado last month due to what they say are budget constraints.

The detainees were from Colorado and Wyoming, according to Barbara Gonzalez, a spokeswoman for the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency. The nationalities of the individuals were not immediately clear.

Read more »

Some Democrats are gloomy about the prospects of major gun-control legislation passing through Congress

WASHINGTON — Even some liberal Democrats are gloomy about the prospects for major gun-control legislation in this Congress. Only hours after a Senate committee approved new restrictions on semi-automatic weapons and magazines, an outspoken House Democrat expressed doubt that the lower chamber would approve similar measures.

Rep. Jerrold Nadler of New York, who received a zero rating from the American Conservative Union in 2010, indicated that President Obama made a revealing comment about the fate of gun-safety bills in Congress during his hour-long visit with House Democrats at the Capitol Thursday afternoon. Read more »