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"You really should go read the John Kane opinion as opposed to just reading Vince Carroll's column," Gov. Bill Ritter told a KOA audience Monday, because Judge Kane's "findings were that nobody in the DA's office did anything wrong." By all means, let's review Kane's remarks last year regarding the contacts between Ritter's 2006 campaign and the Denver district attorney's office following an attack ad released by Republican candidate Bob Beauprez. The episode is suddenly relevant because President Barack Obama nominated Ritter's deputy chief of staff and former campaign worker, Stephanie Villafuerte, as Colorado's next U.S. attorney. As Ritter suggests,...

Budget Committee Senator Says Freeze Was Mismanaged. Gov. Bill Ritter promised a hiring freeze last year to help bridge the budget gap, but a CALL7 investigation found that as many as 2,300 employees were hired during the “freeze.” “We have taken a number of steps to shore up our fiscal house: imposing a hiring freeze, stopping several new construction projects and halting non-essential spending requests,” Ritter said in his January 2009 State of the State speech. But a CALL7 investigation found that the number of state employees increased during Ritter’s hiring freeze, and Ritter’s top staff, who were tasked with...

Stephanie Villafuerte, nominee for Colorado U.S. attorney, owes the public some answers. A Denver Post story published Friday raised questions about Villafuerte's involvement in the response by Bill Ritter's campaign to the controversial accessing of a restricted law enforcement database in the heat of the 2006 gubernatorial campaign. Over the past two years, Villafuerte has declined requests from The Post to describe her contact with former colleagues at the Denver District Attorney's office around the time the database was accessed. But the Senate Judiciary Committee needs to ask her about it. The public deserves to know more details about the...

So far, Colorado has released 10 prisoners early as part of a plan to save $19 million, including a man previously convicted of a child sex-assault case. Gov. Bill Ritter has said that no sex offenders, kidnappers or sex offenders would be released early. Fifty-one-year-old Benny Joe Rael was convicted of a child sex-assault case back in 1982 although that's not the crime he had been serving time for.

Andrew Romanoff set his sights on a race for the U.S. Senate only after the breakdown of several months of backroom negotiations with Gov. Bill Ritter to find an alternative political opportunity for the popular former state House speaker. the potential deal centered on appointing Romanoff lieutenant governor when Barbara O'Brien — who was considering other options — stepped aside. Romanoff allies said Ritter finally told the veteran state legislator in a meeting between the two men in late June that he would not get the job. That set off a chain of events that led Romanoff to consider a...

Gov. Bill Ritter's plan to cut the state budget through inmate releases could reduce Colorado's prison population by 1,000 in a year and immediately save $19 million. It will also almost certainly accelerate the commission of new crimes, and could force layoffs from a privately run prison. Ritter's plan calls for trimming parole supervision for some inmates already out of prison, and releasing some non-sex-offender inmates early and placing them on parole. A total of 5,700 inmates or parolees could see their status change as a result of Ritter's cut. A Metropolitan State College of Denver professor says it's unavoidable...

Denver (AP) Colorado Gov. Bill Ritter has awarded some of the state's first stimulus money to his former employer in a no-bid contract. Ritter hired his former law firm, the Washington-based Hogan & Hartson, in a no-bid contract to review stimulus spending, The Denver Post reported Friday. It said the firm was paid $40,000 in stimulus money through June. ...

As Colorado's Democrat governor effectively signed away a long-standing policy limiting the growth of the state's budget, a key legislative ally called today for rolling back other restraints on taxing and spending. Incoming Senate Democrat leader John Morse welcomed the enactment of controversial Senate Bill 228--diverting billions of dollars away from transportation projects in coming years--by promising that the fight "is just beginning" to retool the state's other constitutional taxing and spending limits. That double-punch left Republicans incredulous, and they pointed out that only months ago, Colorado voters soundly rejected a ballot proposal that would have gutted the perennially popular...

Former Congressman Scott McInnis has officially entered the 2010 gubernatorial race with little fanfare... The secretary of state's office confirmed that the Republican turned in his paperwork Tuesday afternoon. McInnis has traveled the state building support for his campaign in recent weeks and launched a phone campaign.

Freep this poll Gov. Bill Ritter has vetoed a bill that would have exempted some gun buyers from background checks, saying it contains "inadequate safeguards" to prevent ineligible people from buying firearms. The bill would have allowed holders of valid concealed-handgun permits to avoid mandatory criminal background checks by presenting that permit along with one other piece of identification when buying a gun. Critics said there would be no way to guarantee that the current holder of a concealed-weapons permit surrendered it in the event of their arrest for a violent felony. A person in that circumstance would not be...

Former Governor Bill Owens' three children are inviting people to a meet-and-greet for former Republican congressman Scott McInnis, who's thinking about running for governor. McInnis served in the U.S. House for six terms. He and a fellow West Slope Republican, state Sen. Josh Penry, have expressed interest running for governor next year.

Democrat Bill Ritter rode an anti-Republican sentiment into the governor's office in 2006, but a new poll suggests he might have a much harder time in his re-election bid. In the survey of 1,050 likely Colorado voters, Ritter's disapproval ratings are higher than his approval ratings among all voters, including Hispanics and the most crucial bloc of all in Colorado politics: unaffiliated voters. Ritter ... most likely will face one of two Grand Junction Republicans next year: former Congressman Scott McInnis or Senate Minority Leader Josh Penry. The poll shows McInnis beating Ritter, 48-41, and Ritter barely edging Penry, 40-42....

Gov. Bill Ritter today signed into law the historic Colorado Healthcare Affordability Act, which will provide health coverage to more than 100,000 uninsured Coloradans and reduce uncompensated care and cost shifting. House Bill 09-1293 is the most significant health reform legislation in Colorado in four decades. “At no increased cost to taxpayers, the Colorado Healthcare Affordability Act will allow us to provide critical health services to people who need those services the most,” Gov. Ritter said. “This historic legislation will significantly address the crisis of the uninsured while also reducing uncompensated care and cost-shifting in our healthcare system. By partnering...

DENVER -- Tens of thousands of uninsured patients could get hospital care under a bill signed Tuesday by Gov. Bill Ritter. The new law generates funds through hospital provider fees and federal matching dollars to cover the cost of caring for uninsured patients. Supporters said the measure will keep health care costs down and reduce the number of uninsured people seeking care in emergency rooms because they can go to their own doctor.

Weld District Attorney Ken Buck said Tuesday that he’s leaning toward running for Senate in 2010 against Senate appointee Michael Bennet. However, Buck said he has ruled out running for other offices while on his listening tour around the state. Buck said he likely will file paperwork to run for the Senate seat in April and then will announce his candidacy. He declined to give a date for his announcement. Bennet, a Democrat, was appointed by Gov. Bill Ritter to the Senate after Ken Salazar left his seat to take a position in President Barack Obama’s cabinet. Buck, a Republican,...

Gov. Bill Ritter says he would sign a bill giving in-state tuition to illegal immigrants if it reaches his desk....

Gov. Bill Ritter’s trade mission to Asia in November was funded, in part, by private businesses and that might have violated state ethics laws... Critics have questioned why Ritter would take a trip that cost $78,000 in state money while the state is facing an economic crisis, but records uncovered ... show that thousands of dollars in private money also went to offset some of the state employees’ travel expenses. “You've got a number of groups spending a good deal of money essentially still buying access to our government,” At issue is nearly $34,000 collected in sponsorships and participation fees...

It seems like William Rivers Pitt has forgotten his role in perpetrating one of the biggest journalistic frauds (Karl Rove "indictment scoop") of the 21st century. Having conveniently removed that episode from his memory banks, Pitt has now jumped back on his soapbox to lecture conservatives as you can see in his latest DUmmie THREAD, "Idiot Wind." You want some idiot wind, Pitt? Well, this edition of the DUmmie FUnnies is going to blow your own idiot wind right up your butt with your own words. Yes, every single reply will consist entirely of Pied Piper Pitt quotes so...

A bill to raise vehicle registration fees to pay for bridge and highway repairs is on the verge of becoming law. Gov. Bill Ritter plans to sign the measure (Senate Bill 108) today near a bridge over Interstate 25 in Thornton. The bridge is among 126 currently rated as poor by state engineers and, at a cost of $19 million, could be among those replaced with the fee money. The bill phases in the fee hikes over three years. For the owners of passenger cars and sport utility vehicles, it would ultimately mean phasing in an extra $41 a year.

As Gov. Bill Ritter was looking to slash the budget because of the economic downturn, he and nine other state employees spent more than $78,000 for a trip to Asia late last year... During the trip, Ritter and two other top state officials flew business class on state money, paying $6,500 per ticket ... "It would appear that this is above and beyond what was necessary for a trade delegation of this type," said state Sen. Ted Harvey... Ritter...said business class was necessary because the state employees had to be rested to do business on the trip.

Republican lawmakers today signed petitions protesting a possible transfer of Guantanamo Bay prisoners to Colorado, saying the state shouldn't be a dumping ground for terrorists. "The type of terrorists these would be, I'd be ill at ease if I lived in Florence or Canon City or Pueblo West," said Republican Sen. Ken Kester of Las Animas "I don't think we need 200 or 300 terrorists in Colorado. They will infiltrate the other convicts that are there." President Barack Obama announced Thursday he would close the Guantanamo Bay prison, located on an American naval base in Cuba, that has held suspected...

Gov. Bill Ritter is shattering conventional wisdom in tapping the popular but politically untested Michael Bennet, superintendent of Denver Public Schools, as the U.S. Senate replacement for Interior Secretary nominee Ken Salazar. The surprising move, expected at a state Capitol news conference Saturday, perplexed many political insiders, most of whom considered Bennet the darkhorse candidate in a field crowded with big name, political veterans like Bennet's old boss, Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper. To some, the reaction wasn't head-scratching. It was jaw-dropping.

Denver Public Schools superintendent Michael Bennet is expected to be named Saturday as the future U.S. Senate replacement for Interior Secretary nominee Ken Salazar, according to two Democratic sources who spoke on the condition of anonymity. Gov. Bill Ritter is expected to name his U.S. Senate replacement pick on Saturday, ending a brief but frenzied period of speculation about who will take the seat of Interior Secretary nominee Ken Salazar. The selection would be preliminary, since Salazar is not expected to resign his U.S. Senate seat until sometime after Jan. 15, when he faces a confirmation hearing — and later...

Denver, Oct 9, 2008 / 01:01 pm (CNA).- Archbishop of Denver Charles J. Chaput and Denver’s Auxiliary Bishop James D. Conley have issued a statement insisting that Catholic teaching holds that human life is sacred from the moment of fertilization, calling claims insisting otherwise, reportedly made by the governor of Colorado, “bad theology and bad public policy.” Governor Bill Ritter, who is Catholic, on Tuesday commented on the Colorado ballot measure Amendment 48, which would define personhood as beginning at conception. He reportedly said: “My understanding is that there are things about calling a fertilized egg a person that do...

Saying uncertain economic times require tough measures, Gov. Bill Ritter announced a freeze on hiring new state employees on Thursday and ordered a halt to new construction. It was a major reversal for Ritter. On Monday he said it was too early to begin slashing the state budget before Congress approves a bailout of the financial industry.

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Greg Kolomitz, former campaign manager to Gov. Bill Ritter, has started a defense fund to pay his legal bills, and his wife has e-mailed friends alleging that Kolomitz has been "falsely accused" of mismanaging campaign and inaugural funds. The e-mail plea never mentions Ritter by name, but leaves no doubt about who the family thinks is responsible for the "false" accusations that led to an ongoing investigation of Kolomitz. "We have found ourselves in a legal battle with someone whom we believed to be our friend. In April, Ritter alleged that Kolomitz had wrongly used inaugural funds to pay off...

In Colorado, taxpayers have a tremendous amount of control over their own property taxes. Thanks to the state’s Taxpayers Bill of Rights (TABOR), which stunts the growth of property taxes, those of us who own property in Eagle County shouldn’t expect to see our taxes skyrocket at the same rate as our property values without voter approval. This year, however, taxpayers’ rights were usurped by Gov. Bill Ritter’s decision to freeze the statewide school district property tax rate... Not only was Ritter’s move a clear violation of the TABOR Amendment because it effectively raised taxes without voter approval, it didn’t...

District Attorney Will Investigate. Colorado Gov. Bill Ritter on Monday notified prosecutors that more spending violations have been uncovered from his 2006 campaign, and that a former aide has written his campaign a check for $10,340 to correct the problem. Ritter had told the Arapahoe County district attorney in April that his campaign violated finance laws by improperly paying about $217,000 to 28 vendors last year. He said at the time his campaign and inaugural committee chairman, Greg Kolomitz, also overpaid himself and his company $83,250 out of Ritter's inaugural account. Ritter's spokesman, Evan Dreyer, said the district attorney is...

Thursday, June 12, 2008 YOUR GOVERNMENT AT WORK WorldNetDaily Exclusive Biblical message now criminalized Penalties created for those criticizing homosexuality outside church walls Posted: June 12, 2008 12:45 am Eastern By Bob Unruh WorldNetDaily A new Colorado law is helping homosexual activists achieve their goal of forcing Christians to teach biblical condemnation of homosexuality only behind the closed doors of their sanctuaries. The as-yet untested state law promotes sexual identity "perception" to the level of skin color under state discrimination laws. Some opponents are calling it a "bona fide censorship law," and top analysts for Focus on the Family, the...

"We passed 100 percent of what we set out to do," Ritter told an approving crowd of about 100 health professionals and legislators at Children's Hospital in Aurora. Applause and whoops erupted over the signing of a law that makes 50,000 more uninsured children eligible for federal Medicaid benefits and for the state plan, Colorado Child Health Care Plan Plus, known as CHP+. The law expands the eligibility rules to include kids in families with incomes that are 225 percent above the federal poverty level. The old cutoff was incomes at 205 percent above the poverty line.

A Denver District Court judge ruled today that Gov. Bill Ritter's controversial mill-levy freeze is unconstitutional. "However well-intentioned and commendable the purpose and consequences ... this Court must be concerned only with enforcement of the Colorado Constitution," District Court Court Judge Christina Habas ... A group of taxpayers, organized by the conservative Independence Institute, filed suit late last year against the Colorado Department of Education, arguing that the property-tax freeze amounts to an unconstitutional tax increase because voters did not directly approve it. "All that's required to raise taxes in this state is to ask first. Only the most arrogant...

Ritter signed Senate Bill 200 this afternoon in his office, without any of the public ceremonies and news releases that came with six other bills he signed today. His spokesman, Evan Dreyer, said the governor was not deliberately trying to keep the signing quiet. In all, Ritter signed 20 bills today, Dreyer said.

Item likely vital to finance case. A laptop owned by the former campaign manager that Gov. Bill Ritter publicly disowned has been reported stolen, raising unanswered questions about its contents. Ritter accused Greg Kolomitz on April 15 of writing himself and his company $83,250 worth of unauthorized checks. The governor also produced an audit finding Kolomitz improperly paid $217,164.56 in campaign bills with money donated for the Democratic governor's inauguration. Three days later, on April 18, Kolomitz reported to Denver police that his Dell laptop had been stolen from inside his locked Colfax Avenue political consulting firm... "Unknown suspect(s) took...

It was a night filled with costumes, kegs, and partying. One problem, it took place at the Colorado Governor's Mansion. photos posted on the internet show Governor Bill Ritter's 22-year-old son August Ritter III drinking from a keg at a recent masquerade party held at the historic home. The other picture shows August Ritter and an unidentified female playing around with the state flag. An invitation, reading, "Mansion Masquerade-Because Life is Too Tasty Not to Party"-

Official testifies in TABOR lawsuit that more money collected as a result of mill levy freeze. State treasurer Cary Kennedy conceded today on the witness stand that a bill passed last year by the legislature alters the way taxes are calculated with the net result that many property owners pay more. But Kennedy continued to insist the 2007 law, SB 199, does not violate Colorado's Taxpayer's Bill of Rights. Kennedy's testimony came on the second day of a lawsuit brought by opponents of the 2007 law. They say SB 199 should have been referred to voters under TABOR provisions. The...

The rough political road for a proposed state-budget fix got even rougher Monday as Gov. Bill Ritter stopped short of endorsing it and the group expected to propel it to November's ballot expressed concern about funding, timing and other issues. "I don't know ultimately . . . if we're going to have the coalition together to put that on the ballot," Ritter said ... The proposal, which would alter the Taxpayer's Bill of Rights and end mandated increases in education funding, started as a referendum, but Romanoff could not muster the support of two-thirds of state lawmakers — the requirement...

Here is a partial transcript of the interview Matthew Rothschild conducted with Scott Ritter on April 18 for Progressive Radio. To listen to the entire interview, click here. Q: For several years now, you’ve been warning of the possibility that the Bush Administration will attack Iran. What do you think the likelihood is now in the waning months of the Bush Administration? Scott Ritter: I think we’ve never been at a greater risk of American military action against Iran. Q: Really? Why do you say that? Scott Ritter: Because the Bush Administration has made it clear that they seek to...

A judge today will hear a case calling Gov. Ritter's move unconstitutional because voters didn't approve it. The year-long controversy around Gov. Bill Ritter's mill-levy freeze spills into a Denver courtroom today, where a judge will decide whether the state has to give the money from the freeze back. A group of taxpayers, organized by the conservative Independence Institute, filed suit late last year against the Colorado Department of Education, arguing that the property-tax freeze amounts to an unconstitutional tax increase because voters did not directly approve it. The trial in the case is scheduled to start today in Denver...

Speaker: Don't shame Kent State's dead Monday, May 5, 2008 2:58 AM By Jim Mackinnon AKRON BEACON JOURNAL KENT, Ohio -- The shooting deaths 38 years ago of four Kent State University students by the Ohio National Guard need to be seen as a lesson for the United States, a former United Nations weapons inspector said yesterday. But if the May 4 commemoration continues to be poorly attended -- about 400 people showed up yesterday -- and Americans refuse to read and understand their U.S. Constitution, then those lost lives will have been for nothing, keynote speaker Scott Ritter said....

A state representative lodged a campaign-finance complaint against Gov. Bill Ritter today, kick-starting a second investigation into campaign funds Ritter has said were spent incorrectly. The complaint, from Rep. Kent Lambert, R-Colorado Springs, prompts the process for reviewing campaign-finance violations. Without the complaint, it is unclear whether the Secretary of State's Office could have begun a formal inquiry. "There are some very specific rules you've got to follow," Lambert said of campaign-finance laws. "This seemed to violate at least several of them and needs to be investigated further."

Denver Nuggets forward Carmelo Anthony's level of impairment after he was stopped by police Monday morning was described as "extreme" by investigating officers. CBS4 News obtained internal police reports that show Anthony insisted he had only "two glasses of red wine" prior to the DUI stop. After his arrest, police Sgt. Rich Coisman, a 13-year veteran, drove Anthony to the downtown Denver Ritz Carlton hotel, where Anthony's fiancee was staying. That drive has critics charging the department with providing preferential treatment to the Nuggets forward. "I've never had a client I can recall receive that kind of treatment," said attorney...

Gov. Bill Ritter paid more than $200,000 in campaign expenses out of his inaugural account in violation of campaign-finance laws, his office announced today as March disclosures come due. Ritter has put up his home as collateral on a $200,000 loan to repay the misspent funds...

Immigration agent Cory Voorhis was found not guilty of violating the law by accessing a confidential government database for political purposes — providing information on illegal immigrants used in a campaign attack ad against now-Gov. Bill Ritter. The federal courtroom was full, with some 50 supporters of Voorhis and members of the public. The jury apparently rejected the prosecution's argument that they would have to find Voorhis guilty simply if he exceeded his authority in going on the National Crime Information Center computer to obtain information on illegal aliens who won plea bargains while Ritter was district attorney. Voorhis admitted...

Federal immigration agent Cory Voorhis sat at the defense table in federal court Tuesday, but opening statements by his lawyer indicated that the legal team would try to put the actions of Gov. Bill Ritter and the city of Denver on trial. Bill Taylor, attorney for the special agent, said his client was "shocked, angered, and yes, bewildered" when he read statements by Ritter, then a candidate for governor, in an August 2006 newspaper article saying that when he was Denver district attorney, his office had always been tough on illegal immigration. Voorhis' experience as an immigration agent, and as...

As Gov. Bill Ritter continues his efforts to make his coalition with Big Labor look reasonable, one Colorado union is showing just how out of touch with reality union bosses really are. United Food and Commercial Workers union Local 7 had introduced five statewide ballot initiatives that if approved for the November ballot and passed by voters, would collectively and significantly raise the cost of hiring new workers. At a time when the U.S. economy continues to shed thousands of low-skilled jobs each quarter, the timing of the Local 7’s proposal is extremely questionable. One of the initiatives would require...

State troopers in Colorado have voted to form a union, according to Colorado WINS, a labor union coalition seeking to organize approximately 32,000 state workers. The state trooper employee organization, known as the Association of Colorado State Patrol Professionals, is the first of its kind to form since Democratic Gov. Bill Ritter issued an executive order in November supporting state worker efforts to unionize and form employee partnerships.

Scott Ritter, a former U.N. weapons inspector and high-profile critic of the war in Iraq, will speak at Barnstable High School on Wednesday about the Bush administration's policy in Iran. A former intelligence officer in the U.S. Marines who worked as a U.N. weapons inspector in Iraq from 1991 to 1998, Ritter maintained back in 2002 that there was not enough evidence to support Bush's claim that Iraq had weapons of mass destruction and that therefore the war was not justified. He drew sharp criticism from conservatives at the time. In 2002, Time Magazine asked him about right-wing critics calling...

$100 more for car registration among road funding ideas. A healthy transportation network is the lifeblood of the state's economy, Gov. Bill Ritter and others believe, but Colorado voters have a spotty record for providing cash transfusions. This fall, an electorate that has roundly turned down cheaper highway fixes that wouldn't have raised taxes could be asked to approve significantly more spending. Didn't like spending $100 million more a year for five years on transportation without paying any new taxes, as was proposed by a referendum voters rejected in 1998? Then how would you like spending an additional $1.5 billion...

While business leaders rail at Gov. Bill Ritter's partnership push, workers are making gains - some even when unionizing fails. Meanwhile, a fight to make Colorado a right-to-work state looms. When Gov. Bill Ritter eased the path for organizing state workers in November, he set off just one of the high-profile fights destined to take place here in 2008. "We are seeing the next generation of union members coming along," said Mark Schwane, Colorado director of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees. Ritter upended the business-labor balance by handing unions huge new resources to organize... "You have...