By Rand Paul
Obama acts as though we no longer have a Constitution
Independent voices from the TWT Communities
Colorado Gov. John W. Hickenlooper has positioned himself as a problem-solver who steers clear of extremes, but sitting on his desk are three gun control bills that threaten to redefine his image and even his political future.
No state may be better positioned to enact sweeping gun-control laws this year than Colorado, but as state Democrats are discovering, nothing is every easy when it comes to the firearms issue.
In the eyes of many of his strongest supporters, Mitt Romney actually won Monday night in Boca Raton by losing his foreign-policy debate with President Obama.
President Obama has practically made Colorado his second home, making numerous appearances over the past two months and heavily outspending the campaign of Republican rival Mitt Romney on television advertising in the Denver media market.
After sweeping Colorado voters off their feet en route to a rousing victory in 2008, President Obama is suddenly finding those same voters playing hard to get.
It came as something as a shock last weekend when the Obama administration abruptly reversed its position on ballot security by agreeing to let states check suspected illegal voters against a federal database.
Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker's ability to fight off a concentrated Democratic recall challenge on Tuesday has instantly thrust him into the picture as a possible vice presidential pick for Mitt Romney, giving the low-key Mr. Walker the edge over rivals such as the more voluble New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie.
President Obama made the case for his proposed defense cuts Wednesday in his commencement speech at the Air Force Academy, calling for a leaner but better-prepared military ready to deal with a range of threats.
The Colorado Republican State Convention kicks off Friday, but don't be surprised if Rick Santorum's delegates aren't quite ready to party.
Colorado's Proposition 103, the biggest tax-increase proposal of the off-year November election, was headed to a sound defeat early Wednesday, an indication that voters still expect government to solve its economic woes with spending cuts instead of revenue increases.
Any pol will tell you that there's no good time to try to sell a tax increase to voters, and that a period of deep economic uncertainty is even worse — unless that pol is Colorado state Sen. Rollie Heath, who insists there's no time like the present.
With some scathing words for his critics, Colorado Republican Party Chairman Dick Wadhams dropped his bid for a third term this week in the face of a challenge from state Sen. Ted Harvey, who said he aims to return "authentic conservative leadership to the party structure."
Technically, he's no longer a Republican, but Tom Tancredo's decision to run for governor as a third-party candidate may have made him the most electable conservative in Colorado.
The Republican juggernaut lost a bit of its steam once it hit the Rocky Mountains, with Democrats and Republicans largely splitting the key contested races for governor and Senate, and Colorado Democratic Sen. Michael Bennet pulling out a win in a race that was only called late Wednesday.
Candidates of all political stripes are latching on to the tantalizing reality that a huge - and growing - chunk of voters will cast ballots well ahead of Election Day.
"The people dealing directly with the price problem are a relatively small group, and they're less likely to vote in a nonpresidential year," Mr. Ciruli said. "This measure is going to be decided by nonusers."
"He endorsed this. He may regret it now, but he did endorse it," said Mr. Ciruli. "He's the kind of guy who wants to be universally appreciated, but this issue is going to cost him some votes. I just don't think it's going to be that many."
