Tracking what's destroying Colorado
A curated collection of bills, news, and resources about Colorado politics and policy
A curated collection of bills, news, and resources about Colorado politics and policy
Colorado political news, elections, state legislature, and government updates.
90 articles tagged with "Politics"
This X post from @concernedforco highlights the massive influence of non-governmental organizations (NGOs), dubbed the "Fourth Branch" of government. It cites staggering figures: $14.1 trillion in NGO assets, $303 billion in annual government grants, 12.5 million employees (the third-largest workforce), $1.9 billion in dark money for the 2024 elections, 99.5% government funding for Episcopal Migration Ministries, and over $2 billion in damages from the 2020 riots. The post quotes Benjamin Franklin's warning about preserving the republic and urges readers to explore an linked article on these unelected, unaccountable entities wielding immense power like a shadow government.
In a letter to constituent Mark, Rep. Brittany Pettersen (D-CO) expresses outrage over the recent killing of Renee Nicole Good by an ICE agent in Minneapolis, blaming President Trump's "lawless, anti-immigrant agenda" for terrorizing communities and lacking oversight. She criticizes ICE for detaining legal residents and convicted criminals alike, often without criminal histories, and highlights the emotional toll on families. Pettersen touts her sponsorship of legislation requiring ICE agents to operate unmasked and in marked vehicles, her vote against additional ICE funding or authority, and her call for DHS Secretary Kristi Noem's resignation or impeachment over failed oversight in Texas border operations and FEMA search-and-rescue efforts.
The 2025 U-Haul Growth Index highlights Texas reclaiming the top spot for net migration gains, with Southern states like Florida and North Carolina dominating the leaderboard. While Colorado squeaked into the top half at 23rd place with a modest net gain—up from a dismal 40th in 2024—this masks a deeper crisis. Despite the slight uptick in U-Haul data, broader migration studies from United Van Lines and others reveal Colorado as a top outbound state, hemorrhaging middle-class families due to skyrocketing costs and failed policies. This right-leaning analysis zeros in on the root causes: progressive overreach that's turning the Centennial State into a cautionary tale of economic and social decay.
Colorado's newly introduced SB26-005 creates a civil cause of action allowing anyone injured during immigration enforcement to sue participants—including potentially private citizens who provide tips to ICE—if a U.S. Constitution violation is alleged. Sponsored by Democrats like Sen. Mike Weissman and Julie Gonzales, the bill ignores federal supremacy on immigration and could chill public cooperation with deportation efforts. As of January 15, 2026, it's under consideration in the Senate Judiciary Committee, part of a broader Democratic push to regulate and obstruct federal immigration actions amid Trump's mass-deportation policies.
An X video post by Angela Rose tours Fort Morgan, Colorado, focusing on the Cargill meat factory where a significant portion of workers are Somali, with most Somalis in the town employed there. She details a 2015 incident where Somali employees demanded to leave the production line in groups of 11 for prayer breaks on the clock, but the company negotiated for 2-3 at a time; unsatisfied, 200 staged a 3-day walkout, leading to firings and a discrimination lawsuit where 138 were awarded $11,500 each (totaling around $1.5 million). Rose contrasts welcoming American small businesses with what she describes as shady, unclear Somali-owned stores, and criticizes Colorado's policies like taxpayer-funded abortions and gender-affirming care as hypocritical favoritism toward certain groups. In a follow-up post, Rose updates that the Somali population estimate of 2% is outdated—from 200 people in 2005 to around 1,200 in the late 2010s, now comprising over 8-9% of Fort Morgan's population—and expresses concern for preserving the historic downtown's beauty.
An X post highlights Colorado State Representative Lorena Garcia's path to power: appointed rather than elected, endorsed by the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA), and her nonprofit seeing a massive revenue spike post-appointment. The poster criticizes this as a "bait and switch" tactic contributing to the state's decline, noting that one-third of Colorado's reps are appointed via vacancy committees.
A citizen journalist account, @dobetterdnvr, posted an urgent safety alert for women in Denver following a violent attack on a female jogger near Broadway and Louisiana avenues on January 7, 2026, around 6pm. The unknown male suspect tackled, strangled, and attempted to abduct the victim, who fought back and escaped with help from a Good Samaritan. The post highlights police delays due to underfunding and understaffing, urging anyone with information to contact Denver Police, and emphasizes the need for safer neighborhoods.
The X post by @logiclives criticizes Denver Public Schools for issuing nearly $1 billion in Certificates of Participation (COPs), with $850 million in principal outstanding, to fund projects without voter approval. This tactic, also used by the state government, circumvents Colorado's Taxpayer's Bill of Rights (TABOR) by treating the obligations as leases rather than debt, leaving Denver taxpayers on the hook for about $2,000 per person. The post warns that Democrats are exploiting this loophole to enable unchecked spending and urges resistance to any efforts to weaken TABOR.
In 2026, Colorado's bloated state welfare programs face deserved federal crackdowns after shocking revelations of fraud and inefficiency. From HUD paying housing benefits to 221 deceased individuals and thousands of ineligible recipients, to a $40 million Medicaid scam targeting seniors with unnecessary tests, SNAP funding battles amid administrative failures, and hospitals drowning in uncompensated care partly from surges in uninsured migrants — these scandals highlight years of lax oversight draining taxpayer dollars and rewarding abuse.
Children's Hospital Colorado and Denver Health have suspended all medical gender-affirming care for patients under 18, including prescriptions for puberty blockers and hormone therapy, though neither performed surgeries on minors. This decision follows a U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) referral for an investigation into Children's Hospital Colorado, which threatens the hospital's Medicare and Medicaid funding—critical for serving hundreds of thousands of children. The hospitals described the move as a response to escalating HHS actions under Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who declared such procedures unsafe and ineffective, amid a broader Trump administration push to restrict transgender youth care nationwide. Background includes a July DOJ subpoena for records, which the hospital is fighting in court. While supportive services continue, the suspensions disrupt patient-provider relationships and access to these treatments, placing Colorado at the center of national legal battles over transgender minor care.
In this X post by @logiclives (LogicandLiberty), a Colorado political commentator and podcast host, Denver's homelessness crisis is exposed as a prime example of government waste. Sharing a screenshot from a June 2025 Common Sense Institute report, the post highlights how Denver Metro hit record homelessness levels in 2025, with chronic cases growing despite shrinking unsheltered shares, while the city faces a $250 million budget shortfall prompting cuts after allocating $203 million in 2023-2024. It slams the Department of Housing Stability for failing a 2024 audit on spending tracking and accountability, questioning broader program mismanagement since homelessness rose from 2019. Dated January 3, 2026, the post has 216 likes, 73 reposts, and 21 replies, with commenters decrying NGO grift, historical flops like the 2005 "Denver’s Road Home" initiative that burned $63 million without results, and calls for audits to uncover taxpayer fraud. Replies tie it to Democrat gullibility and suggest the spending perpetuates problems for funding's sake, under hashtags like #copolitics.
In this X post by @mrosazza (Denver Fail), a conservative critic, Denver Mayor Mike Johnston is slammed as "Rocky Mountain Mamdani" for his deep ties to Venezuela amid Colorado's "forced invasion" by migrants. The post quotes how Johnston led a 2023 coalition of mayors from cities like Denver, Chicago, Houston, LA, and New York to push for federal reforms, including faster work permits, expanded TPS for Venezuelans, and more funding for integration. It accuses these cities of being voter fraud epicenters and labels Johnston a "billionaire puppet" harming Coloradans. Accompanied by an image of Johnston linked to the Mayors Migration Council, the post from January 3, 2026, has 677 likes, 305 reposts, and sparks replies blaming Democrat corruption, calling for ICE action against gangs like Tren de Aragua, and alleging ties to NGOs and hidden money.
In this X post by @GovtsTheProblem, a small-government advocate, Colorado Democrats are lambasted for turning Denver into one of America's least safe cities per WalletHub's latest Safest Cities in America rankings. Denver lands at a dismal 162nd out of 182 cities with a total score of 42.86, ranking worse than Albuquerque (154th), St. Louis (157th), and Chicago (161st) in overall safety, which factors in home/community safety, natural disasters, and financial security. The attached screenshot shows the tail end of the list, emphasizing Denver's poor 172nd place in home and community safety. Replies echo the sentiment, blaming leftist policies for rising crime, with one user noting Colorado's high violent crime rate (7th worst nationally per U.S. News), and others mocking Governor Polis while highlighting dangers like lenient laws on murderers. The post, dated January 3, 2026, has garnered over 330 likes and sparks discussion on #copolitics, portraying Democratic governance as a recipe for urban decay.
In a scathing X post, Sean Paige highlights the closure of the Colowyo coal mine in Moffat County, Colorado, effective January 1, 2026, resulting in 133 direct layoffs and potentially 437 total job losses, devastating local economies with a 43% drop in property taxes. He blasts state "green zealots" and the "climate cult" for pushing anti-coal policies that ignore soaring global coal demand (record 8.8 billion tons in 2024), especially in China and India, while Colorado phases out coal by 2030. Paige calls out silent Democratic leaders like Governor Polis, Senators Hickenlooper and Bennet, and AG Weiser for prioritizing Boulder elites over rural workers, labeling the move as economic suicide that exports pollution and imports poverty. Accompanied by an image of miners holding signs reading "expendable," "invisible," and "forgotten," the post demands a rethink to save Colorado jobs.
A Colorado conservative account highlights a staggering 306% surge in Medicaid spending on pediatric behavioral therapies from 2018-2024, linking it to potential overbilling and fraud driven by private equity-backed providers. Drawing parallels to Minnesota's exploding autism and child services fraud scandals—where billions in taxpayer dollars have been stolen through fake claims and non-existent services—the post warns that Colorado risks the same fate without urgent oversight and reforms.
Colorado families and businesses are facing an unprecedented squeeze from skyrocketing taxes, fees, and external pressures like federal tariffs. While lawmakers tout programs like free school meals and child care subsidies, the reality is a massive shift of burdens onto taxpayers—through TABOR loopholes, voter-approved hikes on high earners, and new local sales taxes. Denver households now shell out over $51,000 annually in taxes and fees, up nearly 50% in recent years, far outpacing income growth. Add in Trump's tariffs driving up costs, and it's clear: Colorado's government is growing faster than its people can afford.
The Denver Post article, published on May 15, 2025, reports that House Republicans have proposed a bill cutting federal Medicaid spending by at least $880 billion over the next decade to help extend President Trump's tax cuts. For Colorado, this could mean billions in lost funding, potentially leading to a state budget shortfall and up to 108,000 residents losing coverage, mainly due to new work requirements and reduced federal matching funds. Critics, including Democrats like Rep. Diana DeGette and Gov. Jared Polis, argue the cuts prioritize tax breaks for the wealthy over health care access, risking higher costs and uncompensated care for providers. Republicans, such as Rep. Gabe Evans, counter that the plan targets fraud and waste while ensuring Medicaid's sustainability for vulnerable populations, with spending still projected to rise annually. The bill has advanced through committee but faces uncertain passage in Congress, and Colorado officials are preparing potential responses, including a special legislative session.
In a segment on Colorado Point of View (a weekly political analysis show on FOX31 Denver and CW2), conservative analyst Michael Fields highlights how Colorado Democrats, despite inheriting a massive $3.6 billion budget surplus, overspent dramatically and are now openly discussing the need to raise taxes on residents. Fields criticizes this as fiscal irresponsibility, pointing to unchecked government spending under one-party Democratic control.
In this interview clip, Colorado Governor Jared Polis (a Democrat) discusses the tangible economic fallout from escalating U.S. tariffs on imported goods. He argues that Coloradans are feeling the pinch more acutely now than a year prior, with higher costs for everyday items like electronics, clothing, and building materials rippling through the supply chain. Polis highlights Colorado's reliance on global trade—especially in tech, agriculture, and manufacturing—and warns that these policies exacerbate inflation, hurt small businesses, and stifle job growth without delivering promised protections for domestic industries. The segment underscores a broader critique of protectionist trade strategies, framing them as a self-inflicted wound on American consumers.
In a stunning display of misplaced priorities, Colorado House Republicans, led by Rep. Brandi Bradley, proposed a straightforward bill to crack down on surging retail theft—up 6% last year with over 40,000 cases and a staggering $1 billion in losses to organized crime. But Democrats in the legislature shot it down, bizarrely claiming property crime is "decreasing" despite mountains of evidence to the contrary. Meanwhile, in the same session, they rammed through a radical bill making Colorado the first state to criminalize "misgendering" on death certificates, forcing coroners and funeral directors to list preferred pronouns over biological sex—potentially leading to absurdities like men "dying from ovarian cancer" and women from "prostate cancer." This not only tramples religious freedoms but diverts focus from real crises like business-killing theft rings. As businesses lock up basics like deodorant and families flee the chaos, this episode underscores a legislature obsessed with woke symbolism over public safety and common sense.
This report from the Common Sense Institute warns that Colorado's state legislature is drowning in a sea of excessive laws and ballot measures, passing a record 527 bills in 2024 alone—a 33% spike over pre-2019 norms and the third-highest growth nationally since 2012. Bills are not just more numerous but 51% more complex, doubling in word count from earlier years, often spawning from mandates like HB19-1261's aggressive emissions targets. Meanwhile, citizen-initiated ballot questions have quadrupled to 16 in the latest cycle, fueling a vicious cycle of policy overload. Amid tepid population growth (net domestic migration down to 7,000 in 2023 from 57,000 in 2015) and soaring living costs, this frenzy correlates with drops in key metrics: education, health, housing, infrastructure, public safety, and state budgeting. The result? Heavier taxes, fees, and red tape strangling businesses and free enterprise, eroding Colorado's once-golden appeal. The fix? Slow down, deliberate more, and prioritize data over hasty activism.
Denver City Council recently greenlit $33 million in contracts for San Francisco-based nonprofit Urban Alchemy to operate The Aspen homeless shelter and provide "community ambassador" services. The deal, pushed by former Urban Alchemy executive Jeff Kositsky—now a city deputy director—comes amid scrutiny over CEO Lena Miller's $370K salary, first-class business travel perks, and the organization's rapid expansion fueled by government contracts. Critics highlight potential conflicts of interest and past allegations of mismanagement, while supporters tout its workforce programs for formerly incarcerated individuals. The move replaces The Salvation Army and underscores Denver's ongoing $1B+ push to address homelessness.
In a blistering late-night Truth Social post, President Donald Trump demanded the immediate release of Tina Peters, the former Mesa County, Colorado, election clerk convicted in August 2024 of election interference for allegedly allowing unauthorized access to voting systems in 2021 to support debunked 2020 election fraud claims pushed by MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell. Peters, a 70-year-old cancer survivor, was sentenced to nine years in state prison after a jury found her guilty on seven counts, including four felonies, for stealing a colleague's security badge to facilitate the breach. Last month, the Colorado Department of Corrections—under Democratic Gov. Jared Polis's authority—denied a Federal Bureau of Prisons request to transfer her to federal custody. Trump lambasted Polis as a "lightweight" and "SLEAZEBAG" for the refusal, arguing Peters was "unfairly convicted" for simply "preserving Election Records" as required by federal law, and tied the snub to broader state failures like unchecked Venezuelan gang activity from Tren de Aragua. Polis fired back on X, urging Trump to ditch the attacks and focus on slashing tariffs to ease holiday costs for families, while his office noted the prosecution was led by Republican District Attorney Daniel Rubinstein in a GOP-heavy district. The clash underscores lingering 2020 election tensions, pitting Trump's narrative of political persecution against Democratic defenses of judicial independence and state sovereignty.
The Colorado Supreme Court has agreed to hear a pivotal case challenging the state's requirement that ballot measure committees disclose the names of their registered agents in all election-related communications, such as ads and social media posts. The dispute originated in 2020 when the "No on EE" committee, opposing a nicotine and vaping tax measure, was fined $30,000 by the Secretary of State's office for omitting the agent's name from its materials—despite promptly correcting the oversight after a complaint. A divided Colorado Court of Appeals ruled in August 2024 that the mandate violates the First Amendment, deeming it an unnecessary burden with little informational value, as agents are merely legal paperwork recipients, not key decision-makers. Secretary of State Jena Griswold appealed, arguing it ensures voter awareness of who influences elections, while the Institute for Free Speech, representing No on EE, contends it imposes excessive compliance costs, especially on digital platforms. The outcome could reshape disclosure rules, balancing free speech protections against transparency demands in political advocacy.
The Aurora Police Department released city camera footage of a fatal November 2025 pursuit involving a stolen vehicle that crashed into a pole at Alameda and Peoria, killing both occupants. The passenger, 41-year-old Sheena Fuentes, had been arrested in October for accessory to murder in a Del Mar Circle homicide and was out on bond; the driver, 52-year-old Manuel Tovar, boasted an "extensive criminal history." The pair fled at high speed, lost control during a turn, and died on scene. APD stressed that most pursuit suspects have criminal backgrounds (only 16% end in crashes) and reiterated their commitment to accountability, warning that fleeing endangers lives. The post sparked backlash in replies, with users slamming Colorado's "catch-and-release" policies, demanding names of judges and DAs who freed Fuentes, and linking the incident to broader state lawlessness under Gov. Polis.
On December 3, 2025, House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) issued a subpoena compelling former Special Counsel Jack Smith to sit for a closed-door interview on December 17, 2025, and turn over records related to his high-profile prosecutions of President Donald Trump. Smith, appointed in 2022 by AG Merrick Garland, led probes into Trump's alleged efforts to overturn the 2020 election and mishandling of classified documents at Mar-a-Lago, filing indictments in both cases before dropping them after Trump's 2024 victory—citing DOJ policy against charging a sitting president. The subpoena targets Smith's team's aggressive tactics, including subpoenas for phone toll records (call numbers, times, durations) from select GOP lawmakers around January 6, 2021, without content review. Smith had offered public testimony six weeks earlier, but Republicans insisted on privacy to probe sensitive details. His attorney, Peter Koski, decried the snub: "We are disappointed... the American people will be denied the opportunity to hear directly from Jack." Smith's team fired back in October, insisting their work was "consistent with... following the facts and the law, without fear or favor," and that toll record grabs were "entirely proper."
In a unanimous vote, the Colorado Title Board on December 3, 2025, greenlit Ballot Measure No. 181 for the 2026 ballot, proposing to scrap the state's flat 4.41% income tax for a graduated system with a dozen brackets starting in 2027. Backed by the left-leaning Bell Policy Center and allies like the Colorado Fiscal Institute, the overhaul promises minor cuts (a few hundred dollars yearly) for earners under $500,000 while slamming high-income individuals and businesses—especially those over $10 million—with hikes of hundreds of thousands annually. A revised fiscal estimate from the Legislative Council staff ballooned the projected revenue grab from $2.3 billion to a whopping $4.1 billion yearly, earmarked for teacher raises, plugging Medicaid shortfalls amid federal cuts, and funding childcare/workforce programs, with an audit mandate for excess funds. Proponents hail it as a fix for a $4.1 billion K-12 funding gap and looming $1-2 billion Medicaid hits, but critics like Advance Colorado vow appeals by December 17, blasting it as a TABOR-busting violation of the single-subject rule that mixes tax hikes with spending schemes, risking voter confusion and economic flight.
An X post from policy analyst Jake Fogleman (@Jake_Fogleman) slams the Colorado Public Utilities Commission's (PUC) finalized plan to eliminate natural gas from home heating by 2050, aiming for 100% decarbonization through aggressive emissions caps on utilities like Xcel Energy. Quoting a Colorado Sun article, Fogleman highlights that 70% of Colorado households depend on natural gas, which is four times cheaper per energy unit than electricity, and cites a 2024 National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) study showing heat pumps offer no net financial benefit for most gas users without heavy subsidies. The post includes NREL maps illustrating low positive net present value for heat pump transitions across states, especially for natural gas homes, even with incentives. Replies from users decry the policy as unaffordable, especially for seniors and in cold climates, accusing Gov. Polis and Democrats of prioritizing climate goals over household budgets and reliability.
A viral X post from @FreeStateColor1 blasts Democratic Gov. Jared Polis for signing Senate Bill 24-182 in 2024, which took effect in April 2025 and dramatically eased driver's license access for undocumented immigrants in Colorado. The law eliminates the two-year residency requirement, accepts expired foreign IDs (up to 10 years old), and drops mandates for income tax returns, Social Security numbers, or ITINs—sparking outrage amid skyrocketing auto insurance rates, now among the nation's highest. The post quotes Polis's own announcement of a plan to combat high premiums through better road safety and anti-theft measures, sarcastically linking it to the policy's influx of unlicensed drivers. Replies echo the fury, with users blaming the bill for rising costs, comparing it to California's insurance crisis, and calling for Republican votes to reverse the "nonsense." Proponents argue it boosts road safety by getting more drivers insured and legal, but critics see it as a magnet for illegal immigration that burdens taxpayers and hikes premiums for law-abiding citizens.
The Bell Policy Center, a left-leaning think tank, has resubmitted a proposal (Ballot No. 181) to the Colorado Secretary of State's Title Board for review on December 2, 2025, aiming to overhaul the state's flat 4.41% income tax into a progressive system with a dozen brackets for the 2026 ballot. Under the plan, earners below $500,000 would get minor cuts (a few hundred bucks yearly), while ultra-high earners ($10M+) face massive hikes—potentially hundreds of thousands more annually for individuals and businesses—projecting $2.3 billion in extra revenue to boost teacher pay, offset Medicaid shortfalls, and fund childcare/workforce programs. This follows October rejections of two similar measures for violating the single-subject rule in the Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights (TABOR), with tweaks to sidestep that hurdle while preserving core uniform-rate language. Proponents tout it as inequality-busting relief for the middle class; critics decry it as a wealth flight accelerator that guts TABOR protections and balloons government bloat.
In a decisive 9-2 vote, the Colorado Springs City Council passed a resolution opposing Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser's lawsuit against President Trump's relocation of U.S. Space Command to Huntsville, Alabama, urging collaboration over litigation. Councilman Roland Rainey, who sponsored the measure, emphasized productive advocacy, noting congressional leaders' efforts to attract new military projects to the city and warning that lawsuits could derail them. Supporters like Councilman David Leinweber called for bipartisanship to "move the ball forward," while dissenters Nancy Henjum and Kimberly Gold opposed it, with Gold citing insufficient prior notice. The lawsuit, filed by Democratic AG Weiser, claims the Trump administration bypassed required evaluations, studies, and justifications in the September 2025 decision—prompted by Trump's criticisms of Colorado's mail-in voting system, which audits have deemed secure. Mayor Yemi Mobolade expressed regret over the move but deferred to state leaders on legal action, vowing to focus on supporting local defense missions. The resolution highlights tensions between state Democrats pushing back legally and local leaders prioritizing economic stability in a city where Space Command employs thousands and drives billions in economic activity.
A viral YouTube video highlights the exodus of affluent residents from 10 iconic Colorado mountain towns like Aspen, Vail, and Telluride, blaming skyrocketing taxes imposed by Democratic lawmakers on high earners. As property and income taxes surge to fund expansive government programs, wealthy homeowners—who fuel local economies through tourism, real estate, and business investments—are packing up for lower-tax havens like Wyoming and Montana. The result? Ghost-town vibes in luxury enclaves, shrinking tax bases, and a stark warning about the perils of progressive overreach in the Rockies.
Colorado joined a multi-state lawsuit challenging a federal campaign aimed at denying SNAP benefits to certain noncitizens, arguing the policy risks wrongful benefit terminations, financial penalties for the state, and undermines public trust, highlighting tensions over government spending and program administration.
In this eye-opening interview from Free State Colorado, Jake Fogleman, Director of Policy at the Independence Institute, breaks down the alarming surge in Colorado's electricity and natural gas prices. Despite the state's vast energy wealth—including trillions of cubic feet of natural gas and billions of barrels of oil in formations like the Mancos Shale—residents are facing skyrocketing bills due to heavy-handed government policies. Fogleman points to arbitrary renewable energy mandates, restrictive regulations on oil and gas production, and an anti-fossil fuel agenda pushed by politicians as the culprits. These interventions stifle free-market competition, drive up costs for consumers, and threaten high-paying jobs in the energy sector. The discussion calls for deregulation to unleash Colorado's resources, lower prices, and boost economic freedom, warning that without change, families will continue to suffer under this "disaster in the making."
In a major win for underserved communities, the Trump Administration's Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), led by Administrator Dr. Mehmet Oz, is rolling out the $50 billion Rural Health Transformation (RHT) program—the largest-ever federal investment in rural health care. Colorado applied in early November 2025, with awards expected by year's end, promising to bolster 43 rural hospitals that employ 16,000+ and drive $6.6 billion in economic impact. Amid a mid-October Senate push to gut the program, state leaders rallied to secure this funding, aiming to combat chronic diseases, uninsured rates, and facility closures in remote areas like the Western Slope and eastern plains.
A horrific crash in Franktown, Colorado, claimed five lives—including a father and his three young children—when 31-year-old parolee Walter Huling, driving a stolen Ford sedan with five juveniles inside, lost control and collided head-on with an oncoming vehicle on November 24, 2025. Huling, who had a lengthy rap sheet including assault, burglary, sexual assault, and weapons charges dating back to 2013, had just hours earlier carjacked the vehicle at an Aurora RTD station by yanking the owner out. Despite multiple prison terms, including six years for a 2019 assault, Huling was free on parole under Democratic Governor Jared Polis's administration. This tragedy highlights ongoing concerns about Colorado's lenient criminal justice reforms allowing repeat offenders back on the streets.
Colorado State Sen. Faith Winter, a 45-year-old Democrat from Broomfield and a prominent advocate for transportation, environmental protections, paid family leave, and women's rights, was killed on November 26, 2025, in a multi-vehicle crash on northbound Interstate 25 near Dry Creek Road, south of Denver. The incident, involving five vehicles around 6 p.m., left three others injured and is under investigation by the Arapahoe County Sheriff's Office, with no immediate cause determined. Winter, who was engaged to former Rep. Matt Gray and mother to two young children, had served 12 years in the legislature—her final term limited by state rules—chairing the Senate Transportation and Energy Committee and championing policies like new fees on gas, rideshares, and deliveries to fund infrastructure. Colleagues, including Gov. Jared Polis, Senate leaders, and House Democrats, mourned her as a "fierce advocate," "trailblazer," and warm presence at the Capitol, where she often brought her dog Queso. Her death prompted tributes highlighting her resilience amid personal health battles, including an autoimmune disease, a 2023 bike accident, and 2024 treatment for alcoholism following an ethics review. A vacancy committee will soon appoint a successor for her Senate District 25 seat.
This X post by Joe Gebbia shares a striking chart from the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) visualizing U.S. net immigration from 2001 to 2024, broken down by status: lawful permanent residents (LPR+ in cyan), nonimmigrants on temporary visas (dark blue), and other foreign nationals without legal status (red). The data reveals stark contrasts across presidencies—modest inflows under Bush (9.8M total) and Obama (7M), a dip during Trump's term (3M), and a massive surge under Biden (10.4M, dominated by 7.5M+ in the "other" category). Projections show sustained high levels through 2024, with an average of 2M annual net immigrants expected from 2024-2034, mostly legal permanent residents. Posted in response to a discussion on a controversial USCIS memo requiring re-interviews for refugees admitted 2021-2025, Gebbia's caption defends the policy as necessary cleanup from prior "abuse," sparking debates on immigration enforcement, with critics calling the chart understated and others highlighting legal vs. illegal inflows.
In Colorado, federal cuts under the Republican-led "Big Beautiful Bill" (H.R. 1), signed into law earlier in 2025, have slashed health care tax credits, forcing the state's OmniSalud program—launched a few years ago to provide free insurance to low-income undocumented immigrants—to halve its enrollment via a random lottery for 2026. Out of 12,000 eligible applicants (mostly long-term residents from Mexico working in low-wage jobs like construction and farming), only about 6,000 will keep zero-premium coverage, leaving over 5,000 to pay full price starting January. The program, funded by state resources and a Medicaid waiver, has helped detect serious conditions like cancer for some, but demand exploded after prior expansions (10,000 in 2023, 11,000 in 2024). Nonprofits like Vuela for Health report emotional tolls, with winners like a 63-year-old cancer survivor expressing relief and losers, including a 52-year-old single mother, facing financial ruin amid economic uncertainty. Federal officials, including HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and House Speaker Mike Johnson, hail the changes as prioritizing American taxpayers over incentives for illegal immigration.
Congressional hearings have targeted Democrat-led pandemic spending, highlighting widespread waste, fraud, and abuse—including billions in improper Medicaid payments and insufficient oversight of relief funds. The hearings criticize previous Democratic leadership for failing to prevent major losses of taxpayer funds and emphasize ongoing investigations.
In this explosive courtroom clip from Tina Peters' trial, a DA investigator admits the entire probe into the Mesa County Clerk—sparked by a routine video of a Dominion software "trusted build" upgrade posted online—was triggered by a frantic call from Colorado Secretary of State Jena Griswold's office. The video showed redacted, obsolete passwords from before the mandatory reset process, posing zero hacking risk. Defense hammers home that filming and sharing it was 100% legal, exposing the "investigation" as a politically motivated sham to silence Peters for exposing 2020 election vulnerabilities. Part of a thread by @CannConActual demanding #FreeTinaPeters—watch to see the deep-state gears grinding.
Drawing a chilling parallel to Minnesota's explosive welfare fraud epidemic—where Somali immigrants siphoned billions from programs like Housing Stabilization Services and child nutrition, funneling millions back to Al-Shabaab terrorists via hawala networks—Colorado faces its own invasion of fiscal abuse. Under Governor Jared Polis's sanctuary-state policies, Denver has become ground zero for undocumented immigrants exploiting state-funded healthcare like OmniSalud and Cover All Coloradans, with costs exploding over 600% to $32 million in FY2026 alone after absorbing 42,000 border crossers. Federal probes by CMS and House Republicans uncovered 45,000 suspect Medicaid enrollments in Colorado, amid accusations of identity theft, overbilling, and "emergency" care loopholes that bleed taxpayers for non-emergencies. Like Minnesota's "schemes stacked upon schemes," critics warn Colorado's lax oversight invites fraud rings preying on programs meant for citizens, diverting resources from vulnerable Americans while sanctuary laws shield data from ICE—potentially costing the state millions in federal matching funds.
In a blatant end-run around Colorado's taxpayer protections under TABOR (Taxpayer's Bill of Rights), Denver officials are slapping a new "trash fee" on residents—effectively a tax hike in disguise—to fund garbage collection without voter approval. The city claims it's just a "fee" to separate it from property taxes, allowing them to redirect existing tax dollars to other pet projects. This move, detailed in a CBS News report, affects hundreds of thousands of households and exemplifies the creative accounting politicians use to extract more money from hardworking families without accountability. Critics, including conservative voices on X, slam it as government theft, with replies highlighting similar dodges like bag fees and gas surcharges that erode personal financial freedom.
Colorado was once the ultimate escape from California’s high taxes and housing nightmare. Now, after 30 years of mass migration and one-party rule, the Centennial State has become California 2.0 (only colder and more expensive). See the brutal proof in one infographic that natives don’t want to admit and newcomers refuse to believe.
In the sweltering heat of August 2025, Colorado's lawmakers convened for an extraordinary special session from August 21 to 26, scrambling to patch a gaping $783 million state budget shortfall triggered by a $1.2 billion plunge in income tax revenue. Blame the federal "One Big Beautiful Bill Act" for capping state-and-local tax deductions and gutting corporate incentives, but let's be real: years of unchecked Democratic spending on bloated programs left the Centennial State woefully unprepared. Over six frantic days, the Democrat-controlled legislature rammed through 11 bills, scraping together about $253 million in new corporate taxes and gimmicks like selling discounted tax credits, while greenlighting $103 million in painful cuts to Medicaid, affordable housing, and higher education. They also kicked the can down the road on Colorado's pioneering—but disastrously overreaching—AI regulations, delaying enforcement until June 30, 2026, after tech firms and small businesses begged for mercy from the regulatory nightmare. Tweaks to ballot measures aimed to shield school meals and cap skyrocketing health insurance premiums, but the session ended without fully closing the deficit—leaving Governor Polis to wield the ax on even more essential services. It's a classic tale of fiscal irresponsibility: short-term bandages on a hemorrhaging budget, with taxpayers footing the bill for Sacramento-style progressivism in the Rockies.
In a viral X post, citizen journalist @dobetterdnvr exposes a brazen open-air drug operation at a brick house on 44th & Sherman in Denver's Globeville neighborhood. Neighbors report RVs circling like a "support fleet" for dealers, with stolen bikes being unloaded from trailers— all just two blocks from an elementary school where kids walk by daily. Despite repeated calls to Denver Police, city policies under Mayor Mike Johnston have "tied their hands," allowing the operation to simply relocate 40 feet when tagged and resume business in minutes. The post, viewed over 6,000 times, sparks outrage in replies, with users slamming bureaucratic red tape and calling it a symptom of unchecked urban decay.
In this Complete Colorado op-ed, author Eli Bremer blasts the passage of Propositions LL and MM in Colorado's November 2025 election, claiming voters were fed a pack of lies to pass them. Sold as a lifeline for the Healthy School Meals for All (HSMA) program—framed as the only way to keep free lunches flowing for needy kids—the props were rendered obsolete by federal changes in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA). Despite no real budget shortfall (expenses stayed within $128.4 million for FY 2024-25), the legislature kept the measures alive, quietly amending Prop MM to siphon over 50% of its new tax revenue from wealthy Coloradans toward SNAP benefits instead of school meals. Prop LL de-TABORed HSMA funding, unlocking a $95 million annual windfall for progressive pet projects. Bremer argues this was a transparent scam to erode TABOR protections and hike taxes under false pretenses, with ballot language burying the SNAP diversion in fine print.
As of November 21, 2025, the Colorado Secretary of State's press release page highlights routine post-election updates for the 2025 Coordinated Election, including the successful completion of the statewide Risk-Limiting Audit on November 20 (confirming accurate ballot counting) and ongoing canvassing/recount processes. The most politically charged recent item is a November 18 release where far-left Democrat Jena Griswold leads a coalition of 10 blue-state secretaries in demanding answers from the Trump administration's DOJ and DHS about requests for voter roll data—accusing federal officials of "conflicting information" and raising alarms over potential efforts to verify citizenship and remove ineligible voters.
The shocking Oklahoma bust – where state troopers pulled over 125+ semi-trucks in just three days, every single one driven by illegal aliens wielding fraudulent "No Name Given" commercial driver's licenses from sanctuary states like California and New York – exposes a terrifying reality for Colorado. Our state sits smack in the middle of America's trucking superhighway: I-70 (the main artery from California through the Rockies to the East Coast) and I-25 (the north-south spine from New Mexico to Wyoming). That means hundreds, if not thousands of these same unvetted, unidentified ghost drivers thunder through Colorado every single day at 80 mph, hauling 80,000-pound missiles with zero verifiable identity, no real background checks, and often limited English skills. One blown tire, one wrong lane change on an icy mountain pass, and entire Colorado families could be wiped out – all courtesy of blue-state policies that prioritize illegal aliens over American safety.
Imagine opening your mailbox in early 2026 and finding a property tax bill that’s hundreds—or even thousands—of dollars higher than last year… even though your home’s value barely budged. That stomach-drop moment isn’t bad luck. It isn’t inflation. It isn’t “unavoidable.” It’s the direct result of a slick political bait-and-switch you and your neighbors fell for back in 2020, when Colorado voters were scared into repealing the Gallagher Amendment—the one constitutional guardrail that had kept residential property taxes among the lowest in America for almost four decades. They called it a “temporary technical fix” to “save rural schools” during COVID. They promised no one’s taxes would go up right away. 57% of us believed them. Five years later, the temporary band-aids are ripping tempest off, and the bill for that trust is coming due—straight to your wallet. This is the story of how Colorado surrendered its best taxpayer protection… and why you’re about to pay the price.