Former Colorado Senate Majority Leader Ken Gordon Dies

UPDATE 12/26: The Denver Post's Joey Bunch reports on memorial arrangements:

His funeral will be Sunday at 10:30 a.m. at the Davidson/Hermelin Chapel at Clover Hill Park Cemetery in Birmingham, Mich.,a Detroit suburb, where other members of Gordon's family are buried.

The memorial service in Denver will be Tuesday, Jan. 7 at 11a.m. at Temple Emmanuel, 51 Grape St.

His family asked that, instead of flowers, donations be made to the organization Ken Gordon founded, CleanSlateNow.org.

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Former Colorado Sen. Ken Gordon (D).

UPDATE #2: Statement from Colorado Democratic Party chairman Rick Palacio:

"Colorado lost a great public servant today with the passing of former State Senator Ken Gordon. A champion for good government, Ken worked hard to ensure our democratic process was one of transparency and accountability.

"Whether it was during his tenure in the Colorado Public Defender's Office or in the Colorado State Legislature, Ken has left a legacy of fighting for those that cannot fight for themselves. Our thoughts are with Ken's loved ones and family, including his children, his grandchildren, and Betty, his partner of many years." 

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?UPDATE: Lynn Bartels and Joey Bunch of the Denver Post:

Former Gov. Bill Owens, a Republican, said Sunday night that Gordon rose above partisan politics.

"Ken was a good friend and an outstanding lawmaker," Owens said. "Ken was willing to set aside partisanship to do what was best for Colorado."

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Word just now arriving via Twitter; we'll update shortly with coverage. More sad news this holiday weekend:

Former #Colorado Senate Majority Leader Ken Gordon felt ill Sunday, drove himself to hospital and died at 5:30 p.m. Story soon. #copolitics

— Joey Bunch (@joeybunch) December 23, 2013

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Andy Kerr Replaces Hudak As Senate Ed Chair

Sen. Andy Kerr (D-Lakewood).

As reported by FOX 31's Eli Stokols Sunday evening:

Senate Democrats are set to announce Monday that Sen. Andy Kerr will replace former Sen. Evie Hudak, who resigned her seat last month to avoid a recall election and preserve her party’s one-seat majority in the chamber, as the chairman of the Senate Education Committee…

Kerr was chosen over Sen. Mike Johnston, D-Denver, a former teacher and principal who also sits on the committee.

Johnston will continue to serve as chair of the Senate Finance Committee, a post he’d have had to give up to head the education committee.

A higher profile for Kerr will be good for Democrats generally, and for Kerr's own competitive re-election bid next year.

Stokols briefly discusses the background of Sen. Mike Johnston's education reform efforts, like Johnston's role in passing the controversial 2010 Senate Bill 191 "teacher accountability" legislation, as well as this year's defeated Amendment 66. Stokols traffics a bit more than we would in unsourced rumors from a conservative blog to raise the possibility that Sen. Andy Kerr was a contentious pick over Sen. Johnston (we haven't ourselves heard that). That said, we tend to agree that for the purposes of unifying Democrats after a tough 2013, Kerr is probably the better choice to lead the Education Committee.

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Conservative talk-radio host gets all excited about critique of Republican Senate candidate

(Promoted by Colorado Pols)

KFKA talk-radio host Amy Oliver urged Republicans last week to read a Facebook post by former State Senator Shawn Mitchell, in which Mitchell wrote that he's "somewhere between distressed and appalled that GOP luminaries think it's a good idea for [Rep. Amy Stephens] to bear the party's standard into a campaign for federal office in 2014."

Stephens is one of six GOP candidates vying to take on Democratic Sen. Mark Udall next year.  Also running are Tea Party favorite and recycled Senate candidate Ken Buck, mustachioed state Senator Randy Baumgardner from northwestern Colorado's District 8, state Senator from El Paso County Owen Hill, as well as Jamie McMillan and Tom Janich.

Oliver, who doubles as a staffer for the libertarian Independence Institute, was really excited about Mitchell's Dec. 9 Facebook post, telling listeners that "the entry of Amy Stephens in the race, and some of the subsequent endorsements that she has received, have got conservatives saying privately what Shawn Mitchell put out publicly."

Oliver dedicated two segments of Tuesday's show to the Facebook post, pouring over Mitchell's writing, like you might read a religious text, slowly and respectfully analyzing it in loving detail, re-reading portions of it, pausing, and building up to what she called on of Mitchell's "most important lessons:"

Mitchell: "Pushing Amy Stephens to the nomination will guarantee bitter debate and resentment that demoralizes the base, escalates recrimination, and urging toward party fracture, and accelerates the GOP's recent death wish to impersonate the Whigs.

And that speaks only of the primary. If the elders and donors can carry her across the line to the nomination, what exactly do you think the Media Democrat team will do to the former employee of Focus on the Family, the co-architect of the infamous end-of session civil-buster, that killed dozens of bills on the calendar, in order to block a vote on civil unions? Whatever the merits of that move, it will be blood in the water come October. And it will be just about the only thing that unpolitical, tv-watching Coloradans ever hear about Amy Stephens."

Oliver accurately provided context, pointing out that Mitchell's post, which has amassed 264 comments on Facebook, states that Stephens is not a "bad Republican," but she agreed with Mitchell's view:

Mitchell: "In sponsoring SB-200, the Obamacare exchange, Amy Stephens bet wrong in a big way on a defining, existential battle, perhaps the biggest of the decade, maybe in our lifetime. She sided with party appeasers and corporate accomodationists against a vital, surging grass roots movement for liberty and smaller government. Even at the time she made her bet, the picture was murky, and ambitious politicians could be forgiven for being uncertain. (Once upon a time, it took me days to sort out right from wrong when Referendum C's assault on TABOR was put before the people.)."

"I highly recommend that Republicans read it," Oliver told listeners, even after she's already said Mitchell's post is a "must read" and "a great read."

Oliver should obviously have Stephens on the show to get her side of the story.

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Who Will Replace Hudak in State Senate?

FRIDAY UPDATE: Kurtis Lee of the Denver Post reports that Rep. Tracy Kraft-Tharp will not seek appointment to the SD-19 seat vacated by Sen. Evie Hudak. Rep. Kraft-Tharpe reportedly endorses former Rep. Sara Gagliardi.

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Democrat Evie Hudak's resignation from the State Senate on Wednesday effectively ended the attempted recall in SD-19, but it still leaves Democrats with a significant election battle in 2014.

Rep. Tracy Kraft-Tharp

Hudak was re-elected to the State Senate in 2012 by a slim margin over Republican Lang Sias, which meant Democrats wouldn't need to think about the seat again until 2016. With Hudak's resignation on Wednesday, Democrats don't have to worry that a recall election might swing control of the Senate into Republican hands for the 2014 session, but they still have to think about maintaining a majority into 2015. Democrats will fill Hudak's seat through a vacancy committee, but whoever wins the appointment will have to run for a full term next year.

Democrats have represented SD-19 for the last decade, with Sue Windels serving two terms prior to Hudak's 2008 victory, but the district has not been an easy seat to hold. With the 2014 election right around the corner, Democrats have a critical decision to make when the vacancy committee convenes.

Former Rep. Sara Gagliardi

There is certainly time for other candidates to emerge, but as of now, it looks like a potential three-way race among Rep. Tracy Kraft-Tharp, former Rep. Sara Gagliardi, and Arvada City Council member (and a former campaign manager for Hudak in 2012) Rachel Zenzinger.

All three candidates will have their share of supporters, all three have strong credentials, and all three can make a good case for why they should get the appointment. But from a purely strategic perspective — we're not going to get into any potential policy arguments here — one makes more sense than the other two. Here's why:

Rep. Kraft-Tharp could make the case that she is the logical heir to the SD-19 seat after her 2012 victory in HD-29, but she wouldn't likely have had a free run to the Democratic nomination in 2016 (Zenzinger was planning to run for SD-19 regardless of Kraft-Tharp's intentions). The strategic problem with nominating Kraft-Tharp to succeed Hudak is that it leaves two Democratic seats without an incumbent in 2014. While it's true that control of the Senate is going to be more difficult for Democrats to maintain than control of the State House, it would be tough for Democrats to give up Kraft-Tharp's incumbent advantage in HD-29. Kraft-Tharp has been a strong campaigner in HD-29, but she's not so well-known that she would have a significant edge over a Republican opponent in SD-19; it's a bigger advantage for Democrats if Kraft-Tharp runs for re-election in HD-29 instead.

Rachel Zenzinger

Gagliardi is a popular Democrat who served two terms in HD-27 (which was redrawn in the last round of redistricting) before losing her re-election bid to Republican Libby Szabo in 2010. As a nurse with strong ties to organized labor (SEIU), Gagliardi will likely have support from key Democratic allies in a vacancy committee, and she certainly has the experience and credibility to make a good argument for the appointment. The problem with nominating Gagliardi isn't about her — it's about the narrative it feeds into. The 2014 election will be spun by Republicans as a validation of the recall process (fairly or not), and that narrative is strengthened if Democrats appoint someone who was recently defeated at the polls by another Republican; it makes it easier for the GOP to say that Democrats are only paying attention to Democratic voters. It may not be fair to Gagliardi, but Democrats need to consider the reality of the situation as they try to retain SD-19 next November.

Barring any unforseen circumstances, that leaves Zenzinger as the most logical choice from a purely strategic perspective. Zenzinger was just re-elected to her Arvada city council seat without opposition, and that non-partisan position gives her the best opportunity of the three candidates to create her own narrative in 2014. As a campaign manager for Hudak in 2012, Zenzinger is also plenty familiar with the politics at play in SD-19. Zenzinger's name ID won't be quite as strong as that of Kraft-Tharp or Gagliardi, but given the recent dynamics surrounding the recall, that might actually be an advantage. And while it's true that Republicans may try to use Zenzinger's ties to Hudak to say that she will be more of the same, it's important to remember that Hudak was not unpopular in her district — Hudak had served in elected office on the state school board for years prior to her Senate win in 2008, and she was demonized by a small, vocal minority (many of whom weren't even residents of SD-19).

Democrats are fortunate to have three strong candidates to replace Hudak through a vacancy committee, and all three would be well-prepared to defend the seat in 2014. But it is purely circumstance — and not criticism of Kraft-Tharp or Gagliardi — that makes Zenzinger the most logical option at this point.

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Senate Ends Filibuster of Most Presidential Nominees

Politico–kaboom!

The Senate approved a historic rules change on Thursday by eliminating the use of the filibuster on all presidential nominees except those to the U.S. Supreme Court...

The unprecedented rules change means that President Barack Obama’s judicial and executive branch nominees no longer need to clear a 60-vote threshold to reach the Senate floor and get an up-or-down vote.

Both parties threatened to change the rules in recent years — but Reid said he felt compelled to finally pull the trigger after what he described as unprecedented use of the filibuster on Obama’s judicial picks, namely three blocked judges to the powerful D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals.

“It’s time to change the Senate before this institution becomes obsolete,” Reid said in a lengthy floor speech on Thursday morning.

Both Colorado Senators Mark Udall and Michael Bennet voted in favor of the so-called "nuclear option," long threatened by both sides in different circumstances and finally enacted today. Both Colorado Senators have pushed for reform of the filibuster in some form for as long as they've been in the U.S. Senate. The change made today, while historic, won't affect the ability of Senators to filibuster legislation. The delay faced by nominee for posts in the Obama administration has been far longer than that faced by his predecessor. From the time of committee approval to confirmation, Obama's circuit court nominees–just as one example–have had to wait over 138 days on average–by comparison, George W. Bush's nominees waited 35 days.

With public approval of Congress at unprecedented lows, and partisan gridlock chiefly blamed, something had to give. It's true that the change made today could be used against Democrats at some point should they find themselves in the minority, but the risk to the credibility of the entire institution under the dysfunctional status quo appears to have forced this long-debated action.

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Republican Amy Stephens Will Run for Senate

Rep. Amy Stephens (R-Focus on the Family).

And then there was…Amy.

It was just a few weeks ago that Democrats locally praised state Rep. Amy Stephens for her help in creating the state's piece of the Affordable Care Act, while Republicans in Washington D.C. were busy drawing silly lines in the sand over defunding Obamacare. Given those very different storylines, and with the entry of Weld County D.A. Ken Buck in the race for Senate, it was beginning to look like Stephens had decided against running for Senate despite being courted to take the leap in June (as Pols first reported). But now, according to The Denver Post, the former House Majority Leader has decided to jump in the race for Senate after all:

Stephens will formally announce her candidacy Saturday to challenge Democratic U.S. Sen. Mark Udall in 2014 — a move that increases the GOP primary field to four candidates vying to unseat an incumbent who, for now, many political observers view as relatively safe.

"Coloradans are exceptional people and we deserve a federal government that reflects our values by upholding the Constitution, exercising fiscal discipline and respecting the privacy of law-abiding citizens," Stephens said in a statement to The Denver Post.

Stephens, alongside former Republican U.S. Sen. Hank Brown, will make her announcement at the Classical Academy in Colorado Springs, before embarking on a four-stop tour along the Front Range this weekend to meet with voters.

The fact that Stephens is being backed by former U.S. Senator Hank Brown, one of the most respected Republicans in Colorado, says a lot to us about Republican concerns over the current field of candidates (Buck, state Sen. Owen Hill, and The Mustache). In fact, we wouldn't be surprised if the Q3 fundraising reports for Buck and state Sen. Owen Hill turn out to be unimpressive, an impetus for Stephens to enter the field with confidence that she can secure the GOP nomination.

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Democrats Pick Morgan Carroll as Senate President

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Recall Successors Take Office; Dem Senate Majority Now 18-17

Photo by Rocky Mountain Gun Owners

As the Colorado Springs Gazette's Megan Schrader reports:

Newly elected state Sens. Bernie Herpin and George Rivera were sworn in Thursday after winning the seats of two ousted Democrats, bringing the GOP within a one-vote margin of power…

Herpin, a former Colorado Springs City Councilman, and Rivera, a retired deputy police chief, gave their oaths of office and swore to uphold the Constitution in a ceremony led by Colorado Supreme Court Chief Justice Michael Bender.

"We are witnessing today the peaceful transfer of responsibility from one elected official to another, a freedom that many people in other nations have never known," Herpin said. "I realize I have much to learn, but I pledge to work hard, serve with honor and never forget the lessons of this summer that this is truly a republic of the people, by the people, for the people and we serve at the pleasure of those who represent us."

Adds AP's Ivan Moreno:

Herpin replaces Sen. John Morse and Rivera replaces Sen. Angela Giron. The defeated Democrats remained firm over their support for the new gun laws. The limits on ammunition magazines and expanding background checks to private and online firearm sales were reactions to mass shootings at a suburban Denver movie theater and a Connecticut elementary school last year.

Here's the statement from outgoing Senate President John Morse:

I leave the legislature with no regrets.

A neighborhood in my district bears the troubling distinction of having the most gun deaths in the entire state.  As a Senator, I served families who expect, at a minimum, we will prevent criminals from getting guns.

Bernie Herpin was used as a pawn in an election where almost 80 percent of voters did not even participate and only 11 percent of the district elected him. Make no mistake about it — he was elected in a myopic recall where he ran on only one issue. Senate District 11 has dynamic needs and is not defined by one issue.

And Sen. Angela Giron:

Pueblo is my home and, for now, I will return to my roots as a citizen advocate fighting for Southern Colorado families, schools and businesses.  Now, more than ever, Americans are demanding bold leadership of our elected officials and I'm very proud of the breadth of work I accomplished in just three years of service in the Senate.

I'm leaving, not on my own terms, but with my integrity intact and with the sure and certain knowledge that Colorado and Pueblo are safer with these modest gun safety laws.

Both Sens. Bernie Herpin and George Rivera face a difficult battle to keep their seats in 2014. In Senate District 11 in Colorado Springs, 2010's very close win for Morse isn't a predictor of future results, as reapportionment made the district blue enough that it should be entirely retakable for Democrats. As for Rivera's Senate District 3, well, he's the first Republican to represent Pueblo in many decades–and he's virtually certain to serve one year and lose unceremoniously in 2014. We've explained since the historic recall elections last month the many reasons why what happened in these two Senate districts cannot be replicated in any general election. Short of a new era of continuous recalls in favorable districts, which we think the voting public would very quickly tire of, this was most likely the high-water mark of the GOP's "comeback," produced by a combination of unique circumstances.

With that said, as of this morning, Herpin and Rivera are your newest Colorado Senators. Welcome aboard.

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Big Line Updates: Buck Changes Senate, AG Lines

We've updated The Big Line to reflect Ken Buck's entry into the U.S. Senate race.

Buck is the early favorite to capture the GOP nomination for U.S. Senate, but we still have Sen. Mark Udall as a heavy favorite to win re-election. The biggest impact of Buck's candidacy is on the Republican side, where Owen Hill and Amy Stephens have some decisions to make. This is an entirely different race for Hill, who a week ago had little to lose politically so long as he didn't make a fool of himself in a race no-one would expect him to win (we don't consider Randy Baumgardner a serious obstacle for, well, anyone). Does Hill keep running and risk a drubbing in a Primary? Probably not.

As for Stephens, if she was serious about running for Senate she probably waited too long. We first reported back in June that Stephens was being recruited by some to run in 2014, but she really need to jump into the race before Buck in order to coalesce the support she would need to win a Primary. It's quite possible that Stephens could have done enough to keep Buck from running if she had moved quicker. If she still intends to run, the clock is ticking fast — she can't let Buck get even a few weeks' head start in fundraising.

Buck's decision should also finally end Bob Beauprez's sad flirtation with running for Senate. Beauprez really, really, really wanted to run for Senate, and Republicans really, really, really had no interest in supporting him.

Things are also clarified a bit on the GOP side for Attorney General, where Cynthia Coffman and Mark Waller are now free to battle it out for the Republican nomination.

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Udall Fundraises Off Potential Buck Senate Run

2010 GOP Senate nominee Ken Buck.

Can you blame him? A fundraising email blast from Sen. Mark Udall today:

In 2010, outside groups like AFP spent a combined $30 million to influence the Colorado U.S. Senate race. We have to be prepared to fight back…

It’s not just the Koch brothers and outside spending coming back to Colorado from 2010.

Now the media’s reporting that Ken Buck, Weld County district attorney and failed 2010 Republican nominee for U.S. Senate, is itching for a second shot at bringing his extreme views to the U.S. Senate. [Pols emphasis]

In 2010, the Year of the Tea Party, Buck blazed the trail for future extremists. Before Todd Akin explained his theory of “legitimate rape” in 2012, Buck told a rape victim she was simply experiencing “buyer’s remorse” and refused to prosecute her case.

While Buck’s views are outside of the mainstream for most Coloradans, it’s par for the course for today’s right-wing ideologues. And any Republican candidate will be helped by millions of dollars in outside money.

Although Weld County DA Ken Buck lost to Sen. Michael Bennet by a relatively small margin, the underlying demographics showing a collapse in support for Buck among women voters has been studied intensely by Democrats since 2010. Buck's defeat after a campaign focused on highly offensive remarks about a victim of rape whose case he refused to prosecute, along with other hard-line social issue positions Buck proudly took as a GOP primary candidate, has evolved into what's known nationally as the "Michael Bennet strategy."

If we were Mark Udall, we'd be talking about Buck a lot too. And privately, hoping.

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