Wednesday, May 17, 2006

The President's Blues Coyote Gulch does not believe that President Bush's approval ratings in the polls will necessarily translate into Democratic (or third party) victories in November. Too much can happen between now and then. The swift boats might set sail. A candidate could shut his hand in a car door prior to a debate where he wears the wrong color suit and come off poorly. A candidate's campaign can be coopted by a strong third party that siphons off votes leading to a loss. So it is from this skeptical point of view that we present a map based on the President's approval. Thanks to NewMexiKen for the link. Category: 2008 Presidential Election 7:00:39 AM

Immigration The Moderate Voice: "Signs of an emerging, sometimes angry split among conservatives over the immigration issue can be seen on some weblogs - Some readers of a popular conservative weblog hurl the angriest, worst adjective they can at it: 'moderate.'" Category: 2008 Presidential Election 6:50:33 AM

NSA surveillance Here's an opinion piece from Lawrence H. Tribe about the NSA surveillance. From the article, "The Fourth Amendment's guarantee against unconstrained snooping by Big Brother -- made bigger by an onrush of information-trolling technology that few foresaw in 1979 -- is bipartisan. It is a guarantee that cannot tolerate the pretense that numbers called from a private phone, unlike the conversations themselves, are without 'content.' That pretense is impossible to maintain now that the technology deployed by NSA enables the agency to build a web with those numbers that can ensnare individuals -- all individuals -- just as comprehensively and intimately as all-out eavesdropping. "Even if one trusts the president's promise not to connect all the dots to the degree the technology permits, the act of collecting all those dots in a form that permits their complete connection at his whim is a ''search.' And doing it to all Americans, not just those chatting with Al Qaeda, and with no publicly reviewable safeguards to prevent abuse, is an 'unreasonable search' if those Fourth Amendment words have any meaning at all." Thanks to TalkLeft for the link. Category: 2008 Presidential Election 6:48:13 AM

Iran shelling Kurds in Iraq? The Independent: "Shell craters and dead branches torn off the trees by explosions mark the places in the mountains of northern Iraq targeted by Iranian artillery firing across the border in a serious escalation of the confrontation between Iran and the US. Frightened villagers, whose farms cling to the sides of the deep valleys below Kandil mountain, ran for their lives as Iran opened fire on Iraqi territory for the first time since the US invasion in 2003. Local officials said about 2,000 shells were fired in four hours...Asked why the shelling had taken place, Saida Sirt, the commander of the PKK guerrillas in Kandil, said: 'The Iranians wanted to send a warning to the Americans, the Kurdish parties and ourselves.'" Thanks to Andrew Sullivan for the link. Category: 2008 Presidential Election 6:40:40 AM

Education From today's Denver Post: "An education advocacy group released a poll Tuesday showing that education is the top issue for likely voters, according to a news release. The poll, of 1,408 likely voters done for Great Education Colorado, showed that 43 percent named schools as their top priority in November's gubernatorial and legislative elections. 'Coloradans expect the next governor and legislature to work together to provide better funding, small classes, and well-trained teachers so that all of our kids can thrive,' said Liane Morrison, a Great Education Colorado parent, in a statement. The poll's margin of error is 2.6 percentage points." Category: Denver November 2006 Election 6:29:45 AM

Romer for State Senate? From Peter Blake's column in today's Rocky: "Mayor John Hickenlooper has decided to intervene in the three-way Democratic primary in Senate District 32. He and wife Helen Thorpe are hosting a fundraiser for Chris Romer, son of the former governor, at their LoDo digs Friday evening. 'Contributions limited to $400 per person,' cautions the invitation. Romer is petitioning onto the primary ballot. His rivals, Mello and Rep. Fran Coleman, were put on the ballot during the Denver Democratic Assembly in April." Category: Denver November 2006 Election 6:19:34 AM

Holtzman or Beauprez for governor? Rocky Mountain News: "Marc Holtzman on Tuesday became the first gubernatorial contender this season to air statewide television ads, three days before Republicans choose a candidate at the party assembly and three months before voters choose one in the primary election. Holtzman and U.S. Rep. Bob Beauprez, the other candidate for the GOP nomination, also traded sharply worded letters Tuesday debating the merits of Holtzman's drive to petition his way onto the primary ballot. In the 60-second TV ad, Holtzman stands before his campaign bus and talks about his opposition to Referendum C, the measure that voters passed last fall allowing the state to keep surplus tax revenue for roads, schools and health care." Here's a link to Mr. Holtzman's ad from CBS4Denver.com (thanks to the Rocky for the link) Denver Post: "Gubernatorial candidate Marc Holtzman on Tuesday rejected a request by his opponent, fellow Republican Bob Beauprez, who asked him to drop out of the race if he doesn't get enough support to automatically make the primary ballot. In a letter, Beauprez urged Holtzman to accept the "will of the delegates" at Saturday's GOP convention and not petition onto the Aug. 8 ballot if he fails to collect the required 30 percent of the delegates. The convention, attended by about 3,000 delegates, nominates GOP candidates. Holtzman dismissed the request and said he plans to continue campaigning until the August primary, regardless of what happens Saturday. He said Beauprez has not participated in "meaningful debates" that would allow voters to clearly understand the two candidates' positions...A candidate must get more than 10 percent of the delegates in order to petition on the ballot. Holtzman isn't taking any chances. He is launching last-minute, statewide TV ads starting today and continuing through Friday." Category: Denver November 2006 Election 6:11:41 AM

Immigration Here's an article about the immigration bill in the U.S. Senate from the AP via the Rocky Mountain News. They write, "Supporters of immigration legislation are predicting they will pass a Senate bill giving millions of illegal immigrants a path to citizenship. Critics of the legislation aren't giving up, saying they'll continue to try to reshape it. Sen. Jeff Sessions, R-Ala., planned to offer an amendment that would erect more fencing along the nearly 2,000-mile U.S.-Mexican border, an idea similar to one passed in December by the House. But in a win for supporters, what had been considered a poison pill provision before Easter was softened Tuesday by two of the bill's biggest critics and the defeats of two other proposals considered killer amendments left bill supporters smelling victory... "The bill authorizes additional spending on border security, a guest worker program, an eventual opportunity at citizenship for most of the 12 million illegal immigrants in the country and tougher enforcement of laws prohibiting hiring of illegal workers. Senate passage appears likely by Memorial Day. Opponents of granting legal status to most of the nation's estimated 12 million illegal immigrants planned other amendments but said the big fight will occur when negotiators try to merge the Senate bill with the House's enforcement-only legislation... "Bill backers defeated two amendments that would have gutted the Senate bill. In votes that crossed party lines, the Senate rejected 55-40 a requirement that the border be secured before other immigration changes are made. They also voted 69-28 to scuttle a Democratic amendment to exclude foreigners and recent illegal immigrants from a new guest worker program. The Senate also approved on a voice vote an amendment reducing the number of foreigners who could participate in the guest worker program annually from at least 325,000 to no more than 200,000. Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., also won approval for his proposal to add 1,000 more Border Patrol agents this year, 100 helicopters and 250 power boats." More coverage of the Senate bill from the Rocky Mountain News. They write, "An immigration reform package survived its first big test in the U.S. Senate on Tuesday when supporters beat back an attempt to require secure borders before Congress considers legal status for millions of illegal immigrants. By a 55-44 vote, the Senate rejected a proposed amendment by Sen. Johnny Isakson, R-Ga. It would have blocked a proposed guest worker plan and other controversial immigration provisions until after federal officials prove they have stemmed the flow of illegal immigrants across U.S. borders. It was an attempt to forestall a plan some conservatives view as "amnesty" and move closer to the enforcement-only immigration approach that passed the House of Representatives late last year. Colorado's senators were on opposite sides of the debate. Sen. Wayne Allard, R-Loveland, co-sponsored Isakson's amendment because he considers border security a 'mandatory first step' in immigration reform, spokeswoman Angela de Rocha said. Sen. Ken Salazar, D-Denver, successfully argued for an alternative amendment that simply requires the president to determine that a national security need exists before a guest worker plan and other immigration reform measures are implemented. Salazar's amendment passed by a 79-16 vote, with Allard among 13 Republicans and three Democrats opposed. Isakson, who at one point called Salazar's proposal "smoke and mirrors" to justify a guest worker plan, ultimately joined the majority. Salazar portrayed the result as a good sign that a bipartisan coalition was holding together to support a White House-backed plan, which includes border security provisions along with the guest worker proposal... "The pending Senate bill is expected to be tested by various amendments over the next week. It already includes provisions advocated by Allard to close a loophole in the U.S. visa system and ban advocates of terrorism from entering the country." Category: 2008 Presidential Election 6:06:30 AM

The snowpack is rapidly melting around the state and may be gone by the middle of June, according to the Rocky Mountain News. Here are the readings for May 16th: "Statewide - 52; Upper Colorado Basin - 67; South Platte Basin - 74; Gunnison Basin- 32; Arkansas Basin - 52; Upper Rio Grande Basin - 29; Animas-Dolores-San Miguel-San Juan Basin - 28; Yampa-White Basin - 55." Category: Colorado Water 5:51:18 AM

Preferred Options Storage Plan Here's an opinion piece about the Preferred Options Storage Plan (PSOP) from the Pueblo Chieftain. They write, "Sight unseen, the latest version of legislation to authorize a study of expanding reservoir storage will be unveiled Thursday to the board of the Southeastern Colorado Water Conservancy District. Even though some members of the board have not seen the new draft, proponents of the Preferred Storage Options Plan, or PSOP, reportedly will push for an immediate vote on the bill. Yet it's a dead certainty that Harold Miskel, a former Colorado Springs Utilities executive who chairs the district's PSOP committee, knows exactly what's in it. PSOP proponents are impatient to have Congress take up and pass the bill to authorize a feasibility study of expanding Lake Pueblo and Turquoise Reservoir. Most of the additional water under storage would be destined for Colorado Springs and Aurora, which isn't even in the Arkansas River Basin but has allies within the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation for Aurora's claim to the use of Fryingpan-Arkansas Project facilities. Mr. Miskel can count on all five El Paso County votes, including his own, and is trying to line up least three other votes to win bill approval from the 15-member Southeastern District board... "What's the hurry? PSOP, as a plan, has been under development for more than a decade now, and the Southeastern District board members, as well as the public, deserve a chance - and ample time - to examine the latest version before any bill of such importance is rushed to Congress." Category: Colorado Water 5:42:34 AM

Farm disaster on the South Platte Rocky Mountain News: "The city of Boulder and its allies received their first look Tuesday at a proposal designed to protect their share of the South Platte River while allowing water-strapped farmers to restart their irrigation wells. City officials, however, said it would take several days to review the proposal, which would bring more than 10,000 acre-feet of new water supplies into the South Platte River Basin to help the farmers whose wells have been cut off. At the same time, lawmakers from the affected region, frustrated that no solution has been found in the weeklong crisis, said they will hold a noon news conference today in Gilcrest to highlight the well owners' plight." Category: Colorado Water 5:34:43 AM

© Copyright 2009 John Orr. Last update: 3/14/09; 8:13:26 PM.