Coyote Gulch

Friday, September 5, 2003

2004 Presidential Election
There was a debate last night amongst the Democratic presidential hopefuls in Albuquerque. Here's a story from the AP [September 5, 2003, "Democratic Rivals Focus Barbs on Bush"]. Here's a link to Mike Littwin's take on the debate from his column in today's Rocky [September 5, 2003, "Littwin: Democrats gang up on Bush, not Dean, at debate"]. Says Littwin, "The way to the Democratic nomination, Dean has shown, seems to be by positioning yourself as far from Bush as possible. (Notably, Sen. Joe Lieberman, the candidate closest to Bush on Iraq and taxes, is also the one who went after Dean the hardest. The crowd gasped when Lieberman suggested that Dean's trade policy would mean that 'a Bush recession would be followed by a Dean depression.' Dean quickly responded, but that was basically it for fireworks.) There were two themes for the debate. One was the Hispanic vote, which is particularly significant here in New Mexico. There were several questions on immigration issues, although with little differences among the candidates. The PBS broadcast was offered in Spanish and English, and most of the candidates tried speaking Spanish, although Spanish teachers everywhere were probably wishing they hadn't. Dean was the most fluent, while North Carolina Sen. John Edwards got off the best line, saying the 'only Spanish (Bush) speaks when it comes to jobs is hasta la vista.' And, for the second theme, all of the candidates went after Bush in plain English, especially on Iraq. It's clear by now that Iraq has become the issue of the early campaign. And the timing, in this case, was good for the Democrats, with Bush on the defensive now that he's had to go to the United Nations and ask for help. With each casualty, with each story about how much money the occupation might cost, the stakes seem to be growing in this debate."
Coyote Gulch was impressed by Carol Mosely Braun. She seemed to be the most comfortable candidate and she used her time well articulating her vision for healthcare and trying to present a positive upbeat theme. It will be interesting to see if she can drive some of the conversation around the election.
Here's the coverage from the Denver Post [September 5, 2003, "Debating Democrats united against Bush"]. From the article, "Hispanics are the fastest-growing minority in the country. While a recent study showed a growing number are becoming swing voters, as a group they still lean toward the Democratic Party. Many of the candidates used a few key Spanish phrases and tailored their answers for the Hispanic community. Immigration was a hot question, especially the issue of amnesty for undocumented workers. All the candidates asked about the policy agreed that workers who have been in the country for a certain number of years, worked and paid taxes and refrained from criminal activity should be granted amnesty."
5:27:56 AM

Denver November 2003 Ballot
The State moved forward the final language for the three statewide issues on the November Ballot yesterday. Their Blue Book explaining the initiatives will go to press next week after a four and a half hour meeting yesterday according to the Rocky Mountain News [September 5, 2003, "Blue book language finalized"]. Here's a short listing of the ballot measures from the Rocky [September 5, 2003, "Ballot issues for Colorado voters"]. Here's the coverage from the Denver Post [September 5, 2003, "Amendment 32 called illegal tax hike"].
Denver voters will be voting on the three initiatives in addition to other items like peacefulness, charter changes for Career Service, DPS bond issue, mill levy increase, and school board members in November.
Here's a short article on the DPS Bond issue and mill levy increase for arts education from the Denver Post [September 5, 2003, "DPS bond issue characterized as tax hike on ballot"].
5:03:22 AM

2003 Denver Mayoral Transition
Mayor Hickenlooper has appointed two new cabinet members. Kim M. Bailey was named Manager of Parks and Recreation. From e-mail sent to City employees, "A veteran of the nationally renowned Chicago Park District, Kim Bailey will bring her parks management experience and expertise west as Denver's new Manager of Parks and Recreation."
The mayor also name Luis A. Colón as the Manager of General Services. From the same e-mail, " Luis A. Colón, An accomplished executive with a strong background in strategic planning and process analysis and reengineering, Luis Colón will bring his proven experience in operations management, performance measurement and cost reduction initiatives to his new position as Manager of General Services."
Here's a story on the appointments from the Denver Post [September 5, 2003, "Mayor adds 2 more outsiders in filling parks, services jobs"].
4:45:07 AM

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