Referendums C and D
Early voting starts tomorrow in Denver .
The Denver Post is running an article detailing the results of a recent Referendum C poll [October 16, 2005, "Outlook for C, D unclear in poll"]. From the article, "After enduring months of raging debates and nasty television commercials, court battles and publicity stunts, Colorado voters are still split on whether to support ballot measures that would let the state keep more tax money. Heading into the final weeks before the Nov. 1 election, the race remains too close to call, according to a poll commissioned by The Denver Post. But the poll uncovered several bad omens for backers of the ballot measures: too many undecided Republicans, slipping support in the Denver suburbs and a majority of voters who say they'd accept across-the-board budget cuts."
The Denver Post editorial staff is urging voters to pass Referendums C and D in today's edition [October 16, 2005, "Referendum C is for Colorado; vote 'yes'"]. They write, "The Colorado Economic Recovery Act - popularly known as Referendums C and D - has been debated at high decibels for months now. It is the rare fiscal measure that inspires such intensity and indeed, there is much at stake. The Denver Post believes the referendums will help Colorado avoid a fiscal train wreck. We urge voters to step in and point the state forward by voting 'yes.'"
Diane Carman weighs in Referendum C in her column in today's Denver Post [October 16, 2005, "Regardless of vote, you pay for C,D"]. She writes, "Most of us would rather listen to even the worst of the overwrought paid actors on political commercials than read our 'blue book' voting guide. But early voting already has begun, so it's past time to start taking this issue seriously."
Al Lewis looks at the support for Referendums C and D coming from business interests in Colorado [October 16, 2005, "Big business hungry for C, D passage"]. He writes, "Both sides in the debate over Referendums C and D use scare tactics. Opponents warn of an unrestrained spending spree that will end in fiscal disaster. Proponents say that without this money, Colorado would become an intellectual and economic backwater. What's scary to me, though, is so many economic development organizations, chambers of commerce, trade associations, companies and business leaders are pushing for a "yes" vote on the Nov. 1 ballot for what is essentially a tax hike. It's as if businesses across the state are standing up and shouting: Tax me."
Fred Brown is worried that both supporters and opponents of the Referendums are not being honest with voters [October 16, 2005, "Voters deserve whole truth"]. He writes, "Neither side has been entirely truthful in this campaign, but the opposition clearly has committed more crimes of omission and distortion than the pro side. The opponents have an entirely different definition of 'tax increase' than most people. They never admit that Colorado is one of the lowest-taxing states in the country, or that state taxes actually have been reduced in recent years. And they make it sound as though all tax refunds - not just the TABOR refund - will vanish if Referendum C passes. Yet the pro-referendum side hasn't done much with these points either. And when it has - as in defending itself against the 'no refunds' whopper - it tells only part of the story."
John Andrews is urging voters to reject Referendum C in his column in today's Denver Post [October 15, 2005, "Retain fiscal guardrails"]. He writes, "The battle over C and D is more than a referendum on spending. Even if the ballot issues lose, after all, the state general fund will still grow 23 percent by 2011. Most people wouldn't consider that a starvation budget. Yet this debate over moderate growth of government with stable taxes, versus rapid growth of government with higher taxes, also raises deeper questions."
Category: Denver November 2005 Election
7:04:41 AM 
|
|
