121 Matching Annotations
  1. Feb 2021
    1. bruised, battered and shaken

      The Americanized idiom yields from the poem "Invictus" that states, "Under the bludgeonings of chance, my head is bloody but unbowed" by William Ernest Henley in 1875. Notably, Oklahoma City bomber Timothy McVeigh said the line verbatim at his execution in 2001.

    2. universal full-day kindergarten

      Another key Polis promise, he was able to deliver in 2019, but skeptics doubt the expensive program is sustainable before or after Polis leaves office.

    3. tax loopholes that benefit the few

      Business lobbyists will argue that tax breaks help support jobs and economic development, which brings in more money for the public good than higher taxes.

    4. park and public lands pass

      Based on a Montana registration fee for parks. Vehicle owners can pay $9 to get new tags or check a box to opt out, promising not to use the vehicle in a state park or to go fishing in state waters. In the bargain, parks ditch their entrance fee.

    5. Fishers Peak

      Fisher's Peak is also the state's second-largest state park. Polis is soliciting nominations to created another state park before his time in the governor's office is done.

    6. Larimer County Sheriff Justin Smith

      A Republican sometimes discussed as a candidate for higher office. He weighed a run for U.S. Senate in 2015, after he garnered publiclity opposing Colorado Democrats' gun control measures in 2013.

    7. brave Colorado firefighters

      Eight firefighters from the U.S. Forest Service in Colorado spent a month in Australia helping coordinate the fight against a blaze roughly the size of a quarter of Colorado that killed 25 people and destroyed more than 2,000 homes, the worst wildfire season in decades down under.

    8. streamline our mental health services

      Colorado's mental health services have been long-neglected, experts have told legislative committees in the past, and the wake of the pandemic and economic crisis is expected to exacerbate those problems, especially in schools and other facets of life disrupted by the opportune virus.

    9. Black and LatinX Caucuses

      The Black Democratic Legislative Caucus of Colorado is chaired by Rep, Leslie Herod of Denver. The Colorado Democratic Latino Caucus is co-chaired by Rep. Serena Gonzales-Gutierrez and Sen. Robert Rodriguez, both of Denver.

    10. affordable Colorado Option

      This controversial bill has a long, hard fight ahead. It was tabled last year because of the pandemic, and health care advocates say it could hurt rural hospitals and small clinics who are struggling to make ends meet, by imposing price caps and other curbs on cost.

    11. continuing the reinsurance program

      A major health care victory for Polis in 2018, the reinsurance pool puts high-risk and high-cost patients in a pool for coverage to lower the rating and the costs for others buying policies in the area.

    12. virus struck last year

      Colorado's first two cases were reported on March 5 last year: an older woman from Douglas County who had returned from an international cruise and an out-of-state man who flew into Denver International Airport and traveled to Summit County.

    13. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. once said

      As stated before the Convention of the Medical Committee for Human Rights held in Chicago in March 1966, two years before he was assassinated in Memphis.

    14. state data isn’t used to enforce

      Legislation in the upcoming session is expected to block state agencies, primarily the Department of Motor Vehicles, from sharing information with federal immigration enforcement agencies.

    15. inequities in criminal justice

      Last year, Democratic Rep, Leslie Herod and Republican Sen. John Cooke led the latest major attempt at police reforms in Senate Bill 217 to hold cops responsible without preventing them from protecting the public.

    16. pay down our education budget deficit

      The so-called negative factor -- that was renamed the budget stabilization factor -- has allowed the legislature to poach money taxpayers said they wanted to go to K-12 education, until the deficit has reached $1.7 billion.

    17. small publishing company

      Blue Mountain Arts, the family greeting card business the scion took online and, when it was sold, provided much of the foundation for his future fortunes in business, included online flower orders.

    18. 8 percent decline

      This figure comes from the Common Sense Institute report last month that found women, especially mothers, are especially hard hit by the economic fallout of the pandemic.

    19. Prop EE

      Proposition EE raises taxes on tobacco products and the first tax on vaping project. It is expected to raise $276 million a year when fully implemented to support pre-school and other early childhood educational programs.

    20. taxing seniors’ Social Security Benefits

      In most states, up to 50% of Social Security income is taxable for those whose total gross income, including Social Security, is at least $25,000, or couples filing jointly with a combined gross income of at least $32,000. Retirees who have little income other than Social Security aren't taxed on their benefits.

    21. Earned Income Tax Credit

      The tax credit helps moderate- and low-income working parents and is generally applies to a fixed percentage of earnings from the first dollar of earnings until the credit reaches its maximum.

    22. business personal property tax

      Most commercial, industrial and agricultural property have an assessment of 29% before deductions. The tax also can apply to equipment, furniture, security devices and signs that factor in generating income.

    23. car shares and ride shares

      Ride-sharing services reported big losses since the pandemic began, but they are moving quickly into new home delivery options, Uber and Lyft have reported.

    24. request moves forward vital projects

      The administration's 10-year transportation plan will need $500 million each year to stay on course, money the legislature has been reluctant to provide other governors.

    25. affordablehealth care

      An elusive national goal that Polis fully embraced when President Obama proposed the Affordable Care Act a decade ago, when he was a congressman. Polis cited Obamacare for a "historic reduction in the number of uninsured Coloradans" in the aftermath of the politically divisive legislation.

    26. didn’t let politics get in the way

      This is debatable. There was plenty of complaining from Republicans, who lacked the votes to alter the majority's course. GOP members have been especially out out with the governor's use of executive orders, bypassing the legislative branch.

    27. still some months away from reaching it

      Most Americans will have access to a COVID-19 vaccine by mid- to late May or early June, White House chief medical advisor Dr. Anthony Fauci said Tuesday.

    28. vaccine is making its way into communities

      As of Tuesday, 704,052 Coloradans -- of a population of 5.9 million -- have been vaccinated with one dose of the vaccine as of Feb. 16, and 313,842 have received two doses.

    29. avoid overwhelming our hospitals

      As of Tuesday, 406 people were in Colorado hospital due to COVID-19, using 29% of the state's adult critical care ventilators and occupying 73% intensive care unit beds. So far, 22,847 people in Colorado have been hospitalized.

    30. Hannah Senesh

      A Jew, a spy and a woman, Senesh joined the British Army and parachuted into war zones to rescue Hungarians from exile to death camps. She was captured by the Nazis, tortured and executed in 1944. Polis is Colorado's first Jewish governor.

    31. Ash Wednesday

      The day after Mardi Gras, Ash Wednesday kicks off the Lenten season lasts 40 days before Easter, when Christians believe Jesus was resurrected. The ashes symbolize death and repentance.

    32. Rick Palacio

      Palacio is the former director of the Colorado Democratic Party, the first Latino to serve in that role, and a noted party activist who was a candidate for vice chair of the national party in 2017. He was an advisor to former Gov. John Hickenlooper's presidential campaign in 2019.

    33. Jill Hunsaker Ryan

      The director of the state health department is a former Eagle County commissioner and health and environment consultant, including previously serving as director of health disparities for the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment.

    34. our brave health care workers

      The state department of health said Monday that more than 90% of all health-care workers in Colorado are vaccinated. About 10% of the state's hospitals report staffing shortages caused by the viral onslaught.

    35. Gracias Nelly por todo tu trabajo!

      The governor is fluent in Spanish. On International Mother Language Day last year, Polis said he also speaks German. "Not sure if Pig Latin counts. it's never too late!" he posted on Facebook.

    36. intent on overturning the results

      A number of Coloradans attended the June 6 rally with President Trump, including freshman Republican Rep. Ron Hanks. Tuesday Democratic Rep. Don Valdez called for an investigation into Hanks' involvement. Six Coloradans, though not Hanks, have been arrested so far.

    37. brutality inflicted on Black Americans

      A Denver Post analysis last year indicated that while Black peoplemake up only 5% of Colorado's population in 2019 they made up 10% of those involved in police-involved deaths or shootings.

    38. record-breaking wildfires

      The three largest wildfires in Colorado history occurred in 2020: the Cameron Peak fire in Larimer County burned 202,253 acres and destroyed 461 buildings; the East Troublesome fire in Grand County consumed 193,812 acres and consumed 366 residences and 214 outbuildings and commercial structures; and the Pine Gulch fire north of Grand Junction, which burned 139,007 acres. Before the Hayman fire in 2002, Colorado had never had a fire of more than 100,000 acres.

    39. Too many of us have lost someone close

      The Colorado Department of Public Health and the Environment said Tuesday that the state has endured 415,037 cases, 5,828 deaths related to the virus and 5,655 deaths directly due to COVID-19.

    40. Our dedicated First Gentleman Marlon Reis

      The governor's office has been sensitive about the role of the first gentleman, since he received a vaccination as an essential state worker, which Republicans scoffed at.

  2. Jan 2021
    1. health, economic, and budgetary consequences

      Colorado has recorded 5,326 deaths and more than 366,000 cases of COVID-19 so far. Lawmakers cut nearly a quarter of the state's operating budget and raided reserves to balance the books, as the state's economy reels from shutdowns, imposed by the governor.

    2. no party had a monopoly on good ideas

      "Political parties do not determine what improves the lives of Coloradans," Garcia said in his oending day address ini 2019. "Good policy does, and no one party has a monopoly on good ideas."

    3. “Brady lists”

      Brady lists track law enforcement officials with integrity issues, criminal histories, lying or other misconduct. The registry was created in 1963, when the U.S. Supreme Court in Brady v. Maryland ruled that police and prosecutors could not withhold evidence related to past dishonesty by officers

    4. largest piece of police reform legislation

      Senate Bill 217 passed on a broadly bipartisan vote in June to curb excessive use of force and discipline police officers. Cooke is the former Weld County sheriff.

    5. has only widened

      A study last year at the Annenberg Institute at Brown University affirmed this. “There are many reasons to believe the Covid-19 impacts might be larger for children in poverty and children of color,” according to the study. "Their families suffer higher rates of infection, and the economic burden disproportionately falls on Black and Hispanic parents, who are less likely to be able to work from home during the pandemic."

    6. so-called “public option”

      A bill introduced by Democrats the same week as the legislative shutdown would have created a public insurance policy with below-market rates based on price caps on hospitals.

    7. This isn’t a partisan issue

      Positions on shutdowns and masks have fallen along party lines, starting with President Trump, who has questioned safety protocols and only sporadically worn a mask in public.

    8. executive orders from the executive branch

      Republicans have complained for months that Gov. Jared Polis has exercised aggressive emergency orders to shut down businesses he deems a risk to public health during the pandemic.

    9. same guidelines as “essential” businesses

      The problem and solution spans the state. Businesses in Fort Collins asked for the same variance from health restrictions that businesses in Grand Junction receive for following stringent safety guidelines.

    10. Proposition 116

      The tax reduction passed easily. Besides letting workers keep more of their income, it was projected to cost the state budget $203 million this year and $154 million next year.

    11. Proposition CC

      The ballot question that asked Coloradans to forego future refunds under the Taxpayer's Bill of Rights to fund education and transportation. The measure failed 54% to 46%.

    12. blue sky promises

      Long a politically red state, Colorado has gone blue, controlling the state House, Senate and governor's office, as well as state treasurer, secretary of state and attorney general. Democrats have the majority's power behind their promises.

    13. willingness and cooperation

      The Joint Budget Committee holds hearings before writing the first draft of the state budget. The six-member committee is made up of three Republicans and three Democrats from the House and Senate.

    1. People’s House

      The people's house usually applies to the U.S. Capitol, but the term also has been applied to White House. It comes from an Old English term that meant a gathering place.

    1. getting back to school

      Denver Public Schools reopened in-person learning for preschool through fifth grade students Monday. Middle and high school students begin a gradual phase-in to in-person learning Jan. 19-29, as individual schools decide if classes are online, in-person or hybrid.

    2. relief to struggling small businesses

      The governor signed Senate Bill 1 on , Dec. 7 to provide $57 million in direct aid, grants and annual fee waivers to struggling small businesses, as well as create grants for art and cultural organizations as well as minority-owned businesses.

    3. access to affordable health care

      This was one of Gov. Jared Polis' top policy agendas when he ws campaigning for his 2018 election and the fast work Democrats have put into the issue, before the pandemic.

    4. ever faced in human history

      A reference to the collision of historic events: the pandemic, the challenges to a democratic election and peaceful transfer of power, as well as the recovery from a dire economic collapse.

    5. president and his enablers cause unimaginable destruction

      The U.S, Capitol was overrun by protesters immediately after the president gave a speech nearby on Jan. 6. Colorado elected leaders, including U.S. Rep. Lauren Boebert, has supported the president's call for investigations into voter fraud but denounced last week's violence.

    6. Sens. Buckner, Coleman, Jaquez Lewis, Kirkmeyer, Kolker, Liston, Simpson

      The 35-member chamber has seven new members, including four -- Buckner, Coleman, Jaquez-Lewis and Liston -- who were in the state House last session.

    7. their well-being above your own

      Lawmakers face a number of threats in Denver, including COVID-19 and the threat of violence from protests, including for racial inequity and over alleged voter fraud.

    1. Budget Stabilization Factor

      School finance advocates consider the factor to be debt owed to K-12 education. Since the recession in 2009, lawmakers have used the factor to balance what a 1994 school funding rule says they should provide against tax money the legislature has that year to pay those costs. The deficit is more than $8 billion and counting. https://www.coloradopolitics.com/news/colorado-schools-are-getting-a-major-bump-in-the-state/article_47dfc34f-5e40-5768-99cf-8ee133d0fdd9.html

    2. critical for a child’s development

      The Colorado Children's Campaign says "A child’s earliest experiences greatly affect the way his or her brain develops. In the first years of life, the brain is developing rapidly. More than 700 neural connections are being formed every second, setting the stage for children to acquire skills like working memory, language development, and self-control."

    3. 95% of the bills

      Another political trope, it's mathematically true but somewhat misleading if it suggests broad agreements between Republicans and Democrats. The vast majority of legislation that flows through the Capitol are not controversial at all, including resolutions honoring service members and such. The most important bills, however, deliver plenty of partisanship and gridlock, including abortion rights, guns, taxing and spending.

    4. Senator Lois Court

      Court, a member of the legislature since 2008, is stepping down effective Jan. 16 after she was hospitalized on New Year's Eve and diagnosed with Guillain-Barré Syndrome.

    5. late Representative Kimmi Lewis

      From reporter Marianne Goodland's article: "Lewis was a fierce advocate for rural Colorado, especially on issues like "country of origin" beef labeling and conservation easements. She also was a leader in the successful effort to fight the Defense Department over its efforts to expand the Piñon Canyon Maneuver Site in southeastern Colorado more than a decade ago. That expansion was canceled due to landowner opposition in 2013."