Despite a few recent disappointments, former state Sen. Ed Jones of El Paso County has not given up on his lifelong fight for civil rights.
Sitting in for Amy Oliver on 1310 KFKA, FTS managing editor Brad Jones discusses two recent stories based on government open records. E-mails sent and received by CU law professor Melissa Hart detail her political activities while on the clock at the university, and Gov. Bill Ritter's calendar is completely blacked out the day before the November election.
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Through an open records request for Gov. Bill Ritter's 2007 and 2008 calendars, Face the State has received hundreds of pages pointing to Ritter's whereabouts over the past two years. While Ritter's legal counsel complied with the request by providing information about meetings and public appearances, the documents also included various election-related redactions.
Documents obtained under the Colorado Open Records Act show CU law professor Melissa Hart made a habit of using her position at the university to further her work in defeating Amendment 46, a 2008 ballot initiative seeking to end race and gender preferences in Colorado government. The documents are the basis for two FTS reports (found here and here).
Through a recent open records request, Face the State obtained dozens of e-mails sent and received by tenured CU law professor Melissa Hart. While this proved to be a story in and of itself, one e-mail from a prominent Denver attorney stood out, referencing Hart's opposition as "social vampires" who "will seek to rise from the grave."
This email was sent by James Lyons, a partner at the Denver law firm Rothgerber, Johnson & Lyons.
According to e-mails obtained by Face the State via an open-records request, tenured CU law professor and co-chair of the "No on 46" campaign Melissa Hart frequently used her CU e-mail account and campus resources to advocate against November's Amendment 46. More than 35 emails sent between August and December 2008 show Hart was using her CU e-mail address to organize campaign events, correspond with campaign attorneys, and advocate against the proposed amendment that sought to eliminate race and gender preferences in the state's affirmative action programs.
Jessica Corry, executive director of the Colorado Civil Rights Initiative, talks about the proposal's narrow loss at the ballot box and the continuing fight for gender and race equality.
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Polls closed at 7, although anyone in line to vote at that time is guaranteed the opportunity to exercise his or her franchise. FTS visits with Amendment 46 spokeswoman Kate Melvin about the interplay of the initiative and Barack Obama's appeal with youth voters.
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An anti-Amendment 46 advertisement has been pulled from the airwaves of two Denver radio stations following complaints of misrepresentation and false impersonation.
By Andrew Ripemoff
It’s been an incredibly exciting campaign season, and today, we look back at all the hot button people and issues making news this election cycle. I’m talking about things like "Joe the Plumber," "Jeremiah Wright," and the $700 billion Wall Street bailout which, coincidentally, is the same amount Mark Udall has spent trying to tear down Bob Schaffer.
What does racial diversity have to do with academic achievement?
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Colorado's readiness to look beyond race this election is evidenced by the estimated 100,000 people who showed up to support Barack Obama at Civic Center Park Sunday. So how ironic that on that same day the Denver Post reported the “race issue” could sway voters?
Appearing on 850 KOA's Mike Rosen Show Tuesday, Melissa Hart, co-chair of the "No on 46" campaign, said that without race and gender preferences, schools would admit classes of "overprivileged" students who "all look the same."
A controversial ballot initiative that would put an end to preferential treatment based on race, sex, or ethnicity by public entities received further validation from the voting public Tuesday.
Voters be warned: while campaigns heavily promote polling data to suggest public support, political analysts allege that such data is highly subject to manipulation by pollsters, spinsters, and campaign consultants.
In the last two weeks, Gov. Bill Ritter has publicly come out against two ballot proposals, worked behind the scenes to knock a few more off the ballot, and has continued to serve as a key spokesman for another. And now with recent polls showing the Democrat's approval ratings at under 50 percent, his diluted stamp of approval is being dismissed by his political opponents.
At a press conference on the West Steps of the Capitol Monday, Gov. Bill Ritter, a Democrat, announced his formal opposition to the Colorado Civil Rights Initiative, which will appear as Amendment 46 on this November's ballot.
The future of Colorado's equal opportunity programs was the source of a two-hour debate Thursday night at the University of Colorado’s law school in Boulder. Experts representing both sides of Amendment 46, a measure that would prohibit race and gender preferences in public education, hiring and contracting presented their case to an audience of about 70 people, mostly law students.
Face The State's Kate Melvin joins FTS managing editor Brad Jones for a look at the week that was in Colorado news.
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In a lively debate packed with a live studio audience of reporters and cameramen, panelists duked it out over the Colorado Civil Rights Initiative, a proposed constitutional amendment titled Amendment 46 for this November's ballot.
There was big election news last week, but I’m not talking about the Republican Convention.
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With just 59 days until the election, competition for the hearts and minds of voters has begun. But with 18 different questions poised for this November's ballot, campaigns are fighting an uphill battle not only for that coveted "yes" vote, but also for sources of communication, including advertising space.
Initiative 82, a ballot measure designed to preserve race and gender preferences in public hiring, contracting, and education, failed to make November’s ballot after coming up short by nearly 8,000 signatures, the Secretary of State’s office announced Wednesday afternoon.
As both sides of Initiative 82 wait in suspense for the Secretary of State to announce whether the 82 campaign submitted enough signatures to ensure a slot on the November ballot, this much is for sure. Regardless of whether it makes the cut, this November's ballot will be the second longest Colorado has ever seen--and the longest one the nation will see this November.
Campaign managers and consultants move over and make way. The most important weapon in today's political arsenal is a campaign's attorney. Lawsuits are the latest device employed by the left to take on conservative and libertarian candidates and causes. Mark Grueskin, a favorite litigator among Democrat activists, is leading the charge.
Today marked the deadline for initiative campaigns to submit signatures to the Secretary of State for the November general election. Six waited to the last day, but all insist they will have garnered enough valid signatures to make the ballot.
