Free Republic

(VIDEO-AT-LINK)There are 65 prominent people who might run for president in 2016. The Democratic and Republican fields contrast sharply. Hillary Clinton is the clear front-runner, while there is no front-runner on the Republican side. Twenty-three Democrats have been mentioned as a candidate or are eyeing a bid, according to an analysis by The Hill. The GOP side has 42. Most of the people on this list won’t run, and some have adamantly claimed that they’re not interested. But many politicians have changed their minds on seeking the White House. Before mounting his 2008 bid, then-Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) said he...

Says he doesn’t want to upset powers in D.C. Gov. John Hickenlooper today told a room full of Western gas and oil executives that he hasn’t taken a position on the proposed Keystone XL pipeline because he hasn’t wanted to “piss off” the powers that be in Washington, D.C. “I’ve avoided taking a position (on the Keystone pipeline) because it’s just going to piss off a lot of people in Washington that I don’t need to piss off, and my opinion is not going to change anybody’s opinion there,” Hickenlooper said ... Hickenlooper’s opponent, former U.S. Rep. Bob Beauprez, criticized...

Gov. John Hickenlooper's job approval ratings plunged in a new poll that shows Republican challenger Bob Beauprez beating the Democratic incumbent by 1 percentage point.

Panicked liberals and crony Republican elitists agree: Tom Tancredo would be bad for their Big Government and Big Business rackets. That's exactly why I support him in Colorado's June 24 GOP primary election for governor. A fear-mongering ad campaign by the left-wing group "ProgressNow," which is funded by billionaire George Soros, hyperventilated last week that "Tancredo believes Obamacare is a scam." Gasp! "Scam" is putting it politely, of course. Billions of dollars have been wasted on defunct and dysfunctional Obamacare health exchanges. Criminals, illegal aliens and con artists have been hired as "navigators" to sign up Obamacare enrollees (a.k.a. future...

Rep. Jared Polis’s decision to sponsor a barrelful of anti-fracking initiatives is threatening to make a tough election year even rougher for Colorado Democrats, starting with Sen. Mark Udall. Democratic Gov. John Hickenlooper is attempting to broker a deal that would persuade Polis to pull his proposed anti-fracking initiatives, but if the governor can’t get it done, every Democratic candidate will face pressure to take a stand this year on an issue that has badly divided the state party. That starts with the Democrat Udall, who’s already under fire for refusing to stake out a position on whether to construct...

Jared Polis really doesn’t care what anyone else thinks. If you saw the Colorado congressman speaking on the House floor last month wearing a clip-on bowtie with a polo shirt under his blazer, you know what I’m talking about. He’s been this way since he first emerged on the scene. About 10 years ago, when he was just 28, Polis was one of four wealthy Colorado Democrats who pooled their considerable personal resources to create a state-of-the-art political machine that was ruthlessly effective in turning this once-red heartland state a stunning shade of blue. But Polis wouldn’t run with that...

Colorado’s legal marijuana market is far exceeding tax expectations, according to a budget proposal released Wednesday by Gov. John Hickenlooper that gives the first official estimate of how much the state expects to make from pot taxes. The proposal outlines plans to spend some $99 million next fiscal year on substance abuse prevention, youth marijuana use prevention and other priorities. The money would come from a statewide 12.9 percent sales tax on recreational pot. Colorado’s total pot sales next fiscal year were estimated to be about $610 million. Retail sales began Jan. 1 in Colorado. Sales have been strong, though...

Well, that was fast. Just a few days ago, we reported that liberal Gov. John Hickenlooper told The Yuma Pioneer that he would veto any bill without bipartisan support. Like many Coloradans, we thought that was a step in the right direction. That sentiment lasted less than a week. Last night, Gov. Hickenlooper signed into law the bill that opens the door wide for election fraud – the infamous H.B. 1164. The bill had no bipartisan support. ... Coloradans must hold Hick’s feet to the fire on his eagerness to break his promises

Homaidan al-Turki was convicted in 2006 on charges related to having an underage slave whom he sexually molested. Al-Turki resided in Colorado and his now serving out his prison sentence in that state. Since his conviction, there has been a very strong effort from Saudi Arabia to have him released. ... A judge has now ruled that al-Turki isn’t going anywhere (that is if you don’t count his being moved from a State Correctional facility to a federal one). ... al-Turki has never really been completely cleared in the murder of Executive Director for Colorado’s Department of Corrections. Clements was...

Gov. Hickenlooper orders flags to fly at half-staff to honor Claire Davis on Wednesday Memorial for slain student at Stock Show Wednesday Posted: 12/31/2013 DENVER - Gov. John Hickenlooper has ordering flags lowered to half-staff Wednesday in honor of Claire Davis, the student slain in the Arapahoe High School shooting. The 17 year old will be remembered Wednesday in a public memorial service at the National Western Stock Show and Complex. Claire was scheduled to compete in a horse show at the Stock Show in a few weeks. Doors at the complex will open at 12 p.m. Wednesday and the...

Gov. John Hickenlooper called Thursday for a focus on bipartisanship in the 2014 legislative session, but Republicans can be forgiven for greeting his proposal with a certain skepticism. The 2013 legislative session, often described as the most liberal in state history, may have also been the most partisan. Democrats pushed through major legislation with no Republican votes on a half-dozen fronts, including election reform, gun control, education funding, and the rural renewable-energy standard. “It would be lovely if he behaved in a bipartisan manner, but that’s not what we saw last year,” said state Sen. Greg Brophy (R-Wray... ... This...

UPDATE: Noting that Alan Salazar, Hick’s strategery chief, retweeted the bizarre proclamation, Colorado’s gubernatorial candidates weighed in via The Colorado Observer.  Former U.S. Rep. Tom Tancredo said that the tweet “seem[ed] to claim that ‘there is no Second Amendment’ and called on the governor to explain the message”, observing: “The tweet implies that the governor looks at gun rights in the same way as [Potter] does, and unless the governor says something to the contrary, that’s what we have to conclude.” Fellow gubernatorial candidate and state senator, Greg Brophy, said, “It’s an indication of how deeply their animosity toward gun rights...

Gun-rights advocates are having trouble digesting a social-media post from a senior advisor to Gov. John Hickenlooper that compares the right to bear arms with the right to bear a ham sandwich. “’Constitutional rights,’” yes. But #gunrights? Isn’t that like #hamsandwichrights or #lightbulbrights or #bombrights or #humanrights…wait,” says the message from Max Potter, the governor’s senior media adviser, on Twitter. Former Rep. Tom Tancredo, who’s running for the Republican nomination for governor, said the tweet seems to claim that “there is no Second Amendment,” and called on the governor to explain the message. “The tweet implies that the governor looks...

An example of the tension between Western Democrats and the Obama administration surfaced Monday when Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper told a rural audience that Washington bureaucrats are pushing a “slanted version” of the sage-grouse issue to political decision-makers. Mr. Hickenlooper, a Democrat who’s running for re-election in 2014, said Interior Secretary Sally Jewell is receiving one-sided advice from staff at the Fish and Wildlife Service over the issue of whether to place the Gunnison sage grouse on the endangered-species list. “She has an open mind, right, she’s not well-versed in this issue, and she recognizes that,” said Mr. Hickenlooper in...

Even though Gov. John Hickenlooper did most of the talking during Monday’s “lean in and listen” stop in Craig, the locals made it clear they’re tired of having their concerns brushed aside by lawmakers in Denver and Washington, D.C. Chief among the issues raised at the public forum were the federal crackdown on coal, the looming sage-grouse listing, and the state legislature’s doubling of the renewable-energy mandate and limiting access to firearms and ammunition. Brandy Meek, chair of the Moffat County Republican Party, drew loud applause when she said, “I would urge you, this next legislative session, please represent all...

DENVER — The state Independent Ethics Commission has voted to proceed with an ethics complaint filed against Gov. John Hickenlooper.

The office of the Colorado Governor’s office, headed by Democrat John Hickenlooper, may be on the brink of a major scandal involving attempts to release a Saudi prisoner. Homaidan al-Turki was convicted in 2006 for keeping a sex slave locked up in his residence. He repeatedly molested her over a period of years. You might remember that earlier this year, the Executive Director for Colorado’s prisons, Tom Clements, denied a request to release al-Turki and have him sent back to Saudi Arabia. Eight days later, Clements was shot dead shortly after opening his front door on March 19, 2013. ......

A Saudi national, who is serving an eight-years-to-life sentence in Arapahoe County for repeatedly sexually assaulting his housekeeper, is seeking to spend the rest of his sentence in his native country. Homaidan al-Turki was convicted in 2006 of unlawful sexual contact by use of force, theft and extortion. Thursday, he is expected back in court for the continuation of a hearing that began last week. Defense attorneys say their client should have access to a sex offender treatment program that takes into account his religious and cultural beliefs and one that would be closer to his family. They say the...

Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper says last week’s victory by gun-rights voters in the state’s recall elections shouldn’t be seen as a litmus test for the rest of the nation — or even the rest of the state. The Democratic governor, appearing on CNN’s “State of the Union” on Sunday, said the recalls of two state lawmakers, both Democrats, who supported gun-control legislation he signed earlier this year were more about local politics. “I’m not sure it has a national message or even a statewide message,” he said. “These are very specific districts.” Asked if the recall indicated a broader unease...

An armed man is a free man whilst an unarmed man is a serf who is subject to the whims and dictates of the State. That is why progressive liberals fear and despise gun ownership and why they relentlessly pursue to destroy the Second Amendment of the US Constitution. They know that an armed population can resist any final destruction of their God-given liberties. This week saw a mixed bag of news as it pertains to gun rights. However, while there was a setback in Missouri, the overall news is encouraging. On Tuesday, voters in Colorado successfully recalled two anti-liberty...