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Tuesday, April 19, 2005
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Mike Littwin doesn't think Mayor Hickenlooper will run for governor [April 19, 2005, "Littwin: Don't count on top-5 mayor seeking higher office"]. From the column, "When I asked Hickenlooper about the governor's race, he said, 'I'm not considering it.' Which is not - you may want to note - the same as saying he wouldn't consider it. 'I've been trying to be pretty emphatic about it,' he said. Which is not the same as emphatically saying he will not run. He's tempted. People who know him tell me he's tempted. There's a scenario here if you think of Hank Brown and the CU job. Begging is a strategy that can work - in politics as well as dating - and many Democrats are going to beg Hickenlooper to reconsider considering. But my guess is he won't do it. And it's for the same reason that makes him such a tempting candidate. He hasn't been mayor for even two years yet. When he ran for mayor, he did it for a reason - which was not to be the governor. He's a non-career-politician who could be a non-career-politician- mayor-for-life. OK, 12 years, but close enough in political terms. If he turns away from his day job and runs for governor, he risks becoming just another attractive, but vulnerable, politician - and in his case, with very liberal stands on social issues. What he risks is losing the magic of what we'll call the Hickenlooper Experience. How many other mayors drive a hybrid car?"
Category: Denver November 2006 Election
7:22:11 AM 
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The Colorado House voted 46-19 to refer the budget compromise to voters for the November ballot, according to the Rocky Mountain News [April 19, 2005, "Budget proposal headed to voters"]. The measure will be Referendum C on the ballot. From the article, "Referendum C is designed to help the state dig out of the recent recession, when revenues dropped and lawmakers curbed spending increases and eliminated programs. Colorado's economy is rebounding. But TABOR keeps government spending from bouncing back as quickly, a provision lawmakers call the 'ratchet effect.' Because of that, state economists project a budget shortfall of nearly $800 million through 2010, at a time when the state is scheduled to refund an estimated $3.1 billion to taxpayers. Keeping the refunds for five years would essentially let government spending catch up with the state economy, proponents say. The referendum would earmark the additional spending for health care, education, some pension funds and transportation, including a $1.7 billion bonding package that Democrats will announce today."
Here's the coverage from the Denver Post [April 19, 2005, "Budget reform heads to ballot"].
Category: Denver November 2005 Election
7:10:49 AM
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© Copyright 2005 John Orr.
Last update: 9/8/05; 10:52:04 PM.
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