Saturday, October 14, 2006

Statewide candidate forum Here's a report on a statewide candidate forum from the Longmont Daily Times-Call. They write, "Weld County Sheriff John Cooke, who stood in for Suthers, said he's known his fellow Republican since Suthers was a Colorado Springs-based district attorney who 'really wanted to put the bad guys away.' But Democrat Fern O'Brien, the Gunbarrel resident who wants to replace Suthers as attorney general, said she'd use her 'real-world perspective' as a businesswoman and private-practice attorney in 'protecting all Coloradans to the fullest extent of the law.' Said O'Brien: 'As your attorney general, more than anything else - whether you are a Democrat, a Republican or unaffiliated - I will be a strong, proactive leader who will be your advocate, protecting children and the elderly, protecting consumers and businesses, and safeguarding our land, air and water.'[...] "The two candidates for secretary of state, meanwhile, separately touted the backgrounds each man said would benefit Coloradans if voters choose him to be the state's chief elections officer. 'I want to reduce the influence of money' in campaigns and elections, Democrat Ken Gordon said. Gordon, who[base ']s currently the state Senate majority leader, added that he wants to improve voter turnout because 'I want the values of the American people to become the laws of our country.' Republican Mike Coffman said: 'What I will bring to the office of secretary of state is leadership,' a quality he said he[base ']s demonstrated in his military service, as a businessman, in the Legislature and in his current post as state treasurer. That, Coffman said, would include carrying out his responsibilities with the same 'honor and integrity' that's drilled into and expected of the nation's servicemen and women... "Republican Mark Hillman and Democrat Cary Kennedy, who are vying for the chance to be the next state treasurer, each promised to be a conscientious guardian of the taxpayers' dollars. Kennedy said she's running to 'make sure Colorado has responsible fiscal policies' and pledged to disclose information about the status of state government investments and finances." Category: Denver November 2006 Election 9:51:30 AM

Ritter or Beauprez for governor? The Rocky Mountain News is running a report from their Q&A session with Bill Ritter and U.S. Representative Bob Beauprez. They start out with, "Colorado's gubernatorial candidates - Republican Bob Beauprez and Democrat Bill Ritter - both say, if elected, their administrations would be mindful of the impact of oil and gas drilling on Colorado's land, wildlife, air and water quality, as the state rides the energy boom. But their approaches appear very different. For example, Beauprez would not change the severance tax rate while Ritter would consider increasing it. Oil and gas companies pay severance tax on their production. On the issue of split-estate - in which a property's surface rights and mineral rights are owned by different parties - Ritter would change the process of negotiations while Beauprez believes the system works well. Through the end of July, Beauprez received $9,500 from 29 individuals who work for oil and gas companies, compared with Ritter's $4,550 from 10 donors." Read the whole article for some good detail. Category: Denver November 2006 Election 9:38:11 AM

© Copyright 2006 John Orr. Last update: 11/1/06; 7:46:42 AM.