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Colorado News Miner 82
CMAS school test results, Buck on Jan. 6, impeachment talk, antitrust, Trump on the ballot, Wommack, migrants, raw milk, and more.
Copyright © 2024 by Ari Armstrong
September 12, 2023; ported here August 2, 2024
How Black and Hispanic Students Did on CMAS
In my recent column for Complete Colorado, I look at select results from the Colorado Measures of Academic Success. I summarize:
Let's start with eighth grade math. Among Asian kids, 59.5% met or exceeded expectations. Only 10.8% scored in the lowest tier, "did not yet meet expectations" (students also can "partially" meet expectations or "approach" them). Among white kids, 45% met or exceeded expectations, while 13.5% scored in the lowest tier. That's bad enough!
Black and Hispanic kids did substantially worse. Among black kids, only 16.9% met or exceeded expectations. And more than a third, 37.1%, scored in the lowest tier. Among Hispanic kids, 15.8% met or exceeded expectations, while 37% scored in the lowest tier.
Buck on the January 6 Capitol Assault
In today's world, all that is required for a Republican leader to earn praise from sensible people is to say something true, as Rep. Ken Buck did regarding the defendants in the January 6 Capitol assault.
Dick Wadhams writes:
As a former assistant U.S. attorney who served as Weld County District Attorney from 2004 to 2014, Buck is a prosecutor who deals in facts, not the kind of fantasies and conspiracies that consume the leadership of the Colorado Republican State Central Committee [CRC]. . . .
As a member of the CRC, Buck has released a detailed four-page response to the hysterical claims, inaccuracies and misrepresentations contained in the "banana republic" letter [distributed by the secretary of the CRC].
Mario Nicolais writes:
[Buck] felt it was incumbent upon him to respond when the Colorado GOP sent a blast email, including a letter rife with wild conspiracies about January 6 defendants. Buck put together a multiple-page letter of his own methodically exposing the inaccuracies and lies previously sent. . . . [Buck] took apart several claims with the precision of a practiced attorney dismantling a case before a jury. Using citations and specific numbers, he laid waste to the generalized allegations that have run rampant on the internet. . . .
The Republican Party has been on a collision course with reality for quite some time. Unfortunately, it continues unabated toward the precipice. Ken Buck has clearly had enough. He is no longer willing to stand by and watch the wreck unfold. Our country will be better off if more Republican leaders follow his lead.
Krista Kafer writes:
Buck handily dismantled [Todd] Walkins's claims of abuses, violation of constitutional rights, and unequal treatment. He criticized the GOP call to action email for making irresponsible, false, and misleading claims and for misdirecting "the energy and resources of Republican activists at a time when this country is facing crises after crises as a result of the failed policies of the Biden administration." . . .
As long as conspiracy theorists helm the state party, it is more likely Buck will have to return to the dirty work of dispelling disinformation. Keep the shovel handy, Congressman.
Buck's Statement
The Colorado Times Recorder published the full text of Todd Watkins's August 21 CRC letter, along with Buck's September 1 response. Here are some excerpts from the latter:
. . . There has been significant misinformation proliferated on the Internet about the status of the January 6th defendants, and I assume these Internet rumors are the source for much of the incorrect information contained in the letter. . . .
Your letter claims, for instance, that hundreds of individuals have been detained without bond, for misdemeanor offenses, or detained "pending federal charges." In reality, no defendants have been jailed "pending charges." All were charged prior to arrest and detention. . . . Of those still currently held in custody, 85% are charged with assaulting a law enforcement officer, a felony. The remainder are charged with conspiracy or possession of a deadly weapon on Capitol grounds, also felonies.
All pre-trial detainees are provided with hearings to determine bond and are only held without bond if the court determines they are "a danger to the community," a "flight risk," or at high risk of obstructing justice Your statement that January 6th defendants have been detained without bond for misdemeanor offenses is also pure fiction. . . .
Your letter claims that January 6 defendants have suffered physical abuse and injury, and further suggests that they are being singled out for their political beliefs. The DC jail is a miserable place, rife with abuse and dangerous for even the most hardened criminal. . . . There are legitimate concerns with the treatment of all inmates in the DC jail and clear pathways to address abuse. Lawyers for several January 6 defendants have complained about the lack of proper food, access to showers, and restrictions on religious services. Currently, none of these allegations have been substantiated by a court. Your letter misleads the reader by portraying worse conditions at the jail for January 6 defendants than for other inmates. That is simply not true.
Additionally, your letter asserts that January 6 defendants were denied contact with counsel. . . . The courts have made accommodations, including continuances, to assure that counsel have adequate time to meet with defendants before hearings and trial. . . .
There have been no substantiated allegations that the government violated the 4th, 5th, or 6th Amendments in prosecuting January 6 defendants. It is irresponsible to allege without evidence, as your letter does, that Americans are being systematically denied their most basic Constitutional rights based on their political beliefs. . . .
Quick Takes
Buck on Impeachment: Oh no: Buck has made Marjorie Taylor Greene mad over his non-insane impeachment stance. "She doesn't think he should still be able to serve on the Judiciary panel or the GOP whip's team, which is responsible for vote counting," CNN reports. Further: "Now, there is a serious effort underway to find a candidate to mount a primary challenge against Buck in his solidly red district in eastern Colorado, three GOP sources told CNN." I doubt that gets very far, unless Colorado Republicans are even crazier and more stupid than I imagined.
Antitrust: AG Phil Weiser wrote, "Our trial against Google begins today, after years of preparation and hard work by a great team. Google has abused its monopoly to undermine competition and harm consumers. This case is about remedying those harms and restoring competition to the market." I replied, "In 'Weiser's World' 'competition' means bureaucrats, lawyers, and judges micromanaging industries they barely understand and could never create."
Antitrust II: Weiser wrote, "I continue to hear concerns about the Kroger/Albertsons merger. In Greeley, the concern about reductions in the supply chain and concerns about less resilient markets came up. And producers expressed their concerns as well. Please express yours, too." I replied, "Obviously, Phil, when you go out of your way to solicit people bitching and moaning about the proposed merger, you're going to hear a lot of bitching and moaning about it. Your'e not going to hear from many people who think it's okay." He's pretending to fairly collect public comments while relentlessly biasing the response. It's almost as though he already knew the conclusion he wanted to reach ahead of time. I wrote an article on the merger last Fall.
Trump Suit: Will Baude takes a look at the lawsuit attempting to keep Donald Trump off the ballot in Colorado. Also, Craig Silverman interviews Mario Nicolais about the case (Nicolais is a participant in it). Meanwhile, GOP "chair Dave Williams tells KNUS radio host [Jeff Hunt] that the GOP and unaffiliated voters suing to keep Trump off the ballot are engaged in 'treasonous' behavior," reports Kyle Clark. I'd call today's GOP a clown show if it weren't so dangerous.
Wommack: Andrew Wommack, the man most responsible for promoting conservative politics in Woodland Park, calls "liberals 'demon-possessed' and 'evil'" and claims he can facilitate healing of diseases including "autism, fibromyalgia, Lyme disease and lupus," reports Steve Rabey. Wommack is a theocrat and a charlatan.
Boebert: No surprise, Lauren Boebert played fast-and-loose with claims about illegal immigrants receiving federal funds. However, Boebert's claims are not complete BS. Newsline reported that the feds allocated money to Denver "to welcome, shelter and feed migrants." Further, the Denver Post reports, "Denver immigrant families that were left out of past pandemic recovery aid programs can apply for new cash assistance through the city beginning Tuesday. Households that qualify will receive $1,000 to $1,500 under the city's Basic Cash Assistance for Households Program."
Failing Kids: Julia Cardi and Christopher Osher: "Even though Colorado lawmakers have passed laws requiring the release from detention of youth who aren't considered a community threat while their criminal delinquency cases are pending, a lack of resources and a crunch in safe alternative placements mean some youth remain locked up well beyond the intent of state law."
Criminal Justice: A Grand Junction man was sentence to life in prison based largely on "expert witness testimony that claimed marks on the bombs were made with a tool owned by [the man], to the exclusion of all other wire cutters," reports CPR. The Innocence Project thinks that "evidence" was junk science.
Raw Milk: Jennifer Brown has a remarkably detailed report on raw milk in Colorado that covers how people get it, why they seek it out, and some of the potential risks of drinking it.
Colorado Sun: The publication is going nonprofit, announced editor Larry Ryckman.
Crime: Chase Woodruff: "Colorado's reported crime rates appear to have peaked in 2022, and are now trending downward again."
Gadsden Flag: Jon Caldara has some thoughts on the school incident.
Short-Term Rentals: Clara Geoghegan: "As the popularity of short-term rental services has stayed high in Colorado, a number of local governments have made efforts to regulate and tax these services. But homeowners and companies have been pushing back against some of these efforts with recent lawsuits."
Legislative Pay: It's so weird how some legislators have to work outside of the legislative session. I think we should have shorter legislative sessions, not longer ones, as some people are calling for.
Gessler: Former Secretary of State Scott Gessler, who once argued that the SOS has the legal authority to block candidates from the ballot for Constitutional reasons, now is defending Trump against the suit trying to block Trump from the ballot, as Chase Woodruff reports.
Smarter: Thanks to Get More Smarter for the recommendation; it's a leftie podcast run by smart operatives.
Dino Tracks: That volunteers "touch up" the tracks with charcoal did not dampen my enthusiasm for seeing them, out of Dinosaur Ridge.
