by George Gramlich
Analysis and Commentary
We get a ton of people asking us about our political opinions on various subjects here at The Sentinel. This year being no exception. A lot of folks have been asking about the 2018 Colorado Statewide Election on November 6th, and what we think about the people running and the ballot issues. Let’s have at it.

Part I:    Brief Vote Summary of our State ballot issue choices.
Part II:  Custer County ballot plus some analysis and commentary
on our calls on the State ballot issues.

Part I: Brief Summary of State Ballot Issues:

Amendment V: NO. Lower Age Requirement for Members of the State Legislature
Amendment W: NO. Election Ballot Format for
Judicial Retention Elections
Amendment X: YOUR CALL.
Industrial Hemp Definition
Amendment Y: NO. Congressional Redistricting
Amendment Z: NO. Legislative Redistricting
Amendment A: YES. Prohibit Slavery and Involuntary Servitude
in All Circumstances
Amendment 73: NO. Funding for Public Schools
Amendment 74: YES. Compensation for Reduction in Fair Market Value by Government Law of Regulation (After reading this article, we are leaning toward NO.
Amendment 75: YES. Campaign Contributions
Proposition 109: YES. Authorize Bonds for Highway Projects.
(GG: This is the “Fix Our D*mn Roads” proposition. Paid for out of the General Fund, thus, no tax increase.)
Proposition 110: NO. Authorize Bonds for Highway Projects
(Huge tax increase!!!)
Proposition 111: NO. Limitations on Payday Loans
Proposition 112: NO. Increased Setback Requirement for Oil and Natural Gas Development.

Part II: The Custer County Ballot;
Who to Vote For and Ballot Issues
Analysis and Commentary

Federal Offices:
Representative to the 116th United States Congress, District 3.
Vote for Scott R. Tipton, Republican. He’s a RINO but the dem running against him is a typical sorry socialist.

State Offices:
Governor/Lieutenant Governor: Vote for Walker Stapleton/Lang Sias, Republican. A no brainer for informed citizens. The crazy left-wing loon Jared Polis is as bad as it gets. Anti 2nd Amendment, more taxes, big government, press censorship, pro-abortion. On and on. Plus, Polis is a mega millionaire who has put over TEN million dollars of his own money into the campaign so far. He makes Nobama look like Ronnie Reagan. Stapleton is a middle of the road republican and would do a good job.
Secretary of State: Vote for Wayne Williams, Republican. Decent guy. Decent politics. The dem running, Lisa Grenwald is genuinely not qualified.
State Treasurer: Vote for Brian Watson, Republican. Do you want to put a liberal democrat in charge of our money? Get real.
Attorney General: Vote for George Brauchler, Republican. Brauchler is a solid, experienced, conservative choice. State AG’s are becoming increasingly important as litigation is as important politically as elections. Do NOT put a lib in this spot.
Regent of the University of Colorado at Large: Vote for Ken Montera, Republican. The Regents make UC policy. Our university system needs a cleanup.
Regent of the University of Colorado District 3: Glen H. Gallegos, Republican.
State Representative District 60: Vote for James D. “Jim” Wilson, Republican. Jim is a good guy. His specialty is education where he has done outstanding work. He’s a little weak according to various conservative/libertarian ratings groups on fiscal and other issues, but overall a solid choice.

County Offices:
County Commissioner District 1: Vote for William R. (Bill) Canda, Republican. Bill has done an OUTSTANDING job since defeating the liberal Commissioner in the recall. You could not find a better candidate.
County Treasurer: Vote for Virginia Trujilo, Republican. Virginia has done a top-notch job for many, many years.
County Assessor: Vote for J.D. Henrich, Republican. J.D. is one of the best county assessors in the state.
County Sheriff: Vote for Shannon K. Byerly, Republican. Sheriff Byerly has done a tremendous job since being elected.
County Surveyor: Vote for Christopher L. (Kit) Shy, Republican. Kit knows surveying and most of Happy Valley like the back of his hand.
County Coroner: Arthur L. Nordyke, Republican. Art knows the county and the job.

Judicial Retention Questions: (GG: We did some research on the State Commission on Judicial Performance (SCJP) a few years ago when we had those issue with the selection of our current county judge by Hickenlooper. The judicial system in Colorado is controlled by the dems, and so is the SCJP. Plus, folks, they are lawyers and lawyers are like the mafia, they take care of their own. The review system is a joke with lawyers rating lawyers. Good grief. This year, out of 125 judges up for retention, the SCJP recommended that only TWO be not retained.
‘Nuff said.)

Colorado Supreme Court:
Shall Justice Richard L. Gabriel of the Colorado Supreme Court be retained in office? NO. He is a classic, left wing, “living” constitution lawyer appointed by guess who? Yup, Hickenlooper. Throw him out.
Colorado Court of Appeals Judges: They all have been appointed by liberal Colorado Governors. You know what that means. Remember these folks, along with the Colorado Supreme Court, UPHELD the unconstitutional gun magazine ban a few years ago. Vote NO on all of them:
Judge Rebecca Rankin Frey: NO
Judge Elizabeth L. Harris: NO
Judge David J. Richman: NO

District Court Judge – 11th Judicial District:
Shall Judge Ramsey Lama of the 11th Judicial District be retained in office? NO. Too soft on crime. Was a criminal defense attorney and then a public defender. The amount of felony charges plea bargained away in the 11th District is simply astonishing. Need tougher judges and a new set of attorneys at our 11th District Attorney’s Office who refuse to prosecute illegal drug lab busts or illegal pot grow arrests.
Shall Judge Lynette Mary Wenner of the 111th Judicial District be retained in office? NO. 21% of the attorneys who responded on Judge Wenner’s performance voted “No’ on retention. Pretty high.

County Court Judge – Custer:
Shall Judge Amanda Jean Hunter of the Custer County Court be retained in office? Tough Call, Leaning hard YES. Judge Hunter’s appointment a few years ago caused a new Colorado state law to be passed (caused by a series of articles in the Sentinel on the “shaky” committee/governor judge selection process, not Judge Hunter) that was sponsored by Senator Crowder and Representative Wilson requiring that county citizens be given preference over non-county citizens. Reports from those who work with and around Judge Hunter indicate after a bit of a rocky start she is doing a good job. However, only 67% of the attorneys who have appeared before Judge Hunter recommend she be retained. That’s a bit low. A plus is that Judge Hunter and her staff have been very cooperative with the Sentinel in court results reporting.

Ballot Measures:
State Measures: Constitutional:

Article V: Lower Age Requirements for Members of the State Legislature From 25 to 21?
Vote NO. We need some life experience for an elected member of our state legislature. Plus, today’s twenty somethings do not seem to be the most informed individuals on the planet. Article V is a horrible idea.
Article W: Election Ballot Format for Judicial Retention Elections – “change the ballot format for judicial retention elections to remove the requirement that a retention question be asked for each justice and judge.” Vote NO. The way the ballot is, is fine.
Amendment X: Industrial Hemp Definition – “remove the definition of “industrial hemp” from the Colorado Constitution and, instead, use the definition in federal or state law.
Vote: YOUR CALL. The Industrial Hemp Definition was added to the Colorado Constitution in the 2012 in Amendment 64 which legalized recreational use and growing of marijuana. Some conservative pundits say vote YES, some NO. It might be smart to Vote YES as the feds and the US legislatures are going to address hemp and pot in the near future and it would be easier to stay in sync with them if the definition is made statutory.
Amendment Y: Congressional Redistricting – “create the Independent Congressional Redistricting Commission….”. Vote NO. Conservative commentators unanimously agree that this is BAD. A commission of four repubs, four dems and four unaffiliated shuts out ALL minority parties. Plus, these commission members are selected by a panel of retired Colorado Supreme Court and Appeals Court Judges, who are themselves selected by the Colorado Supreme Court. Smell a problem here, folks? Judges, lawyers? And not one accountable. You can’t vote these people out if they go rogue. Plus, the Colorado Supreme Court is a liberal bastion of social justice. Can you imagine who they are going to pick to redistrict Colorado? Plus, Amendment Y is TWENTY THREE PAGES LONG! Good grief. Insanity. Vote NO.
Amendment Z: Legislative Redistricting – Basically the same thing as Amendment X but it replaces “Congressional Districts” with “State Senate and State House of Representatives Districts”. This one is 24 pages long! Same arguments against as Amendment X. Vote NO.
Amendment A: Prohibit Slavery and Involuntary Servitude in All Circumstances – “remove language that currently allows slavery and involuntary servitude to be used as punishment for a crime.” This was on the ballot two years ago in a different form and it had some language issues. This one is better. Some people see some lawsuits coming from it if it passed but overall, it makes sense. Vote YES.
Amendment 73: Funding for Public Schools – Vote NO – increase funding for public education (preschool thru twelfth grade) raising individual income tax rate for taxpayers with taxable income over $150,000 and increase the state corporate income tax rate; and, for school district property taxes, set the assessment rate at 7.0% for residential properties and lower the rate for nonresidential properties to 24.0%. Vote NO. This proposed Amendment is horrible. It sets up five income brackets for individuals and a new, much higher rate for corporations. We currently have ONE for individuals so that everybody is treated the same. Progressive tax structures punish success and job creation. Colorado is very attractive to outside businesses, entrepreneurs and capital because it has a flat tax and does not punish success. There’s plenty of money in the budget for more school funding if real priorities were ever used again. Vote NO.
Amendment 74: Compensation for Reduction in Fair Market Value by Government Law or Regulation – “require the state or a local government to compensate a property owner if a law or regulation reduces the fair market value of his or her property.” Vote YES. This will help to put a stop to outrageous state and local officials from making laws and regulations negatively affecting the value of our property. We like it. Vote YES.
Amendment 75: Campaign Contributions – if a rich political candidate (like Jared Polis) puts in more than a million dollars into his campaign, this Amendment would allow all other candidates to increase the allowable individual contribution to them by five times. Vote YES. Actually, this Amendment doesn’t go far enough. Five times is peanuts when you look at Polis’ ten-million-dollar self-contribution. There should be NO limit on campaign contributions. Campaign contributions are free speech and there should be no limits on them, period. Vote YES.

State Measures: Propositions:
Proposition 109: Authorize Bonds for Highway Projects – Vote YES – “require the state to borrow up to $3.5 Billion in 2019 to fund up to 66 specific highway projects; direct the state to identify a source of funds to repay the borrowed amount WITHOUT RAISING TAXES OR FEES; and limit the total repayment amount, including the principal and interest, to $5.2 billion over 20 years.” Vote YES. This amendment was the brain child of Jon Caldera over at the Independence Institute. He calls it “Fix Our D*mn Roads”. It is outstanding. It specifically identifies the highway/road projects so the politicians and bureaucrats won’t steal the money for turtle crossings and forces the legislature to pay for it OUT OF EXISTING MONEY. Love it. Vote YES.
Proposition 110: Authorize Sales Tax and Bonds for Transportation Projects – Vote NO – This is so bad. Raises the state sales tax. By a lot. Then also borrow $6 BILLION more. Then, it does not state what projects, it just gives the state 45%, local governments 40%, and “multimodal transportation” (ie, fake trains, etc.) 15%. This proposition sounds like it came from Obama and the Iran deal. This is just money down the toilet. Graft money for politicians. Vote NO. In fact, Vote NO twice.
Proposition 111: Limitation of Payday Loans – “reduce the total cost of payday loans to a 36 percent annual percentage rate; and expand what constitutes unfair or deceptive trade practices for payday lending.” Vote NO. This will hurt the people they are intending to help. It sounds nice and warm, but it is big government getting into small business. It is a competitive business and the rates are what the market makes them. Vote NO.
Proposition 112: Increased Setback Requirement for Oil and Natural Gas Development – Vote NO – “require that new oil and natural gas development be located at least 2,500 feet from occupied structures, water sources, and areas designated as vulnerable.” Vote NO. We have run several articles in the Sentinel knocking this proposal. It would devastate Colorado. We would lose over $230 million dollars in tax revenue in JUST THE FIRST YEAR!!! Colorado’s economy would lose more than $26 BILLION by 2030. We would lose 43,000 jobs in just the first year. This could almost literally bankrupt our state. Vote NO.

Custer County Measures & Issues
School Measure: Custer County C-1 School District Ballot Question 4A – this proposal would eliminate the five school board districts and make all of the school board member positions “at large”. Vote NO. Bad idea. Eons ago, when the little school districts all over the county consolidated, the schools insisted on rural district representation – they did not want population concentrations (ie, Westcliffe, Silver Cliff) to control the school board. And neither did the Founding Fathers when they wrote the Constitution as they protected the small, rural states with the same two senators that the big states got. This proposal dramatically increases the chances of a small group of people controlling the school board. A much better idea is to ADD two at-large board members to the EXISTING five-person district board. Vote NO. Protect our rural voting rights.
Special District Measure: Wet Mountain Fire Protection District Issue 7A: The WMFPD wants a $180,403.72 (2 mills) property tax increase. They haven’t had an increase in a long, long time. WMFPD is one of the finest, if not the finest, rural fire department in the state. Just outstanding. It is basically volunteer with some members being paid for specific tasks. The Sentinel has an interview with WMFPD Chief Kit Shy in this issue about the tax increase. We are a little disappointed that Kit and the Fire Board did not give or publish specifically where the money is going like 50,000 for this and $10,000 for that. We have had a lot of tax increases here locally lately, e.g. the Hospital District and a big one for the school, so the timing if this is not good for our lower income residents and fix income folks. Plus, being good conservatives, The Sentinel minions hate taxes and tax increases. However, we know these guys and they won’t waste the money. It hurts because it is a tax increase, but we say Vote YES.
Note: All the quotes above are from the 2018 State Ballot Information Booklet, the “Blue Book”.