'Happy' and 'mad': 2 visions in Colorado governor's race
Colorado's Democratic governor, Jared Polis, has emphasized in his reelection campaign his efforts to ease inflation’s burdens on families and fight crime while touting first-term triumphs in health care affordability, public education funding and climate policy.
Ute Indian Tribe criticizes Biden monument on ancestral land
A Utah-based Native American tribe that frequently has sparred with President Joe Biden criticized the White House again for not adequately consulting its leaders ahead of this week’s creation of a national monument on ancestral lands in Colorado.
As winter storm moves across US, ice becomes bigger concern
A major winter storm has left about 350,000 homes and businesses without power across the U.S. The multiday storm dumped more than a foot of snow in parts of the Midwest and caused a tornado in Alabama that killed one person and critically injured three others.
Deaths highlight once-in-a-decade Rockies avalanche danger
This image provided by Colorado Avalanche Information Center shows an avalanche that killed an unidentified snowboarder on Sunday, Feb. 14, 2021, near the town of Winter Park in Colorado. When you pile on more snow, there’s always one spot that’s going to break,” said Ethan Greene, director of the Colorado Avalanche Information Center. Jared Polis and the state parks and wildlife agency urged residents to check conditions this holiday weekend, citing the high danger. The Colorado Avalanche Information Center issued a special advisory Monday, warning that “large, wide and long-running natural and human-triggered avalanches are likely.”Are people getting the message? “The bottom line is that partner rescue is the only way we have positive outcomes in the backcountry,” Zinn said.
A fluke or the future? Boebert shakes up Colorado district
But unlike Greene, Boebert doesn't hail from an overwhelmingly GOP, safe district. But unlike Greene, Boebert doesn't hail from an overwhelmingly GOP, safe district. The question strategists in Colorado and elsewhere in this divided country are asking is whether Boebert is a fluke — or the future. AdIn an interview, Boebert said the district's voters are eager for disruption. Boebert insists she and the rest of the first-term class of lawmakers are the future, even in districts like hers.
Rennie Davis, 'Chicago Seven' activist, dies at 80
Left to right, Lee Weiner, Rennie Davis, David Dellinger, Abbie Hoffman, Tom Hayden, (behind Hoffman), Jerry Rubin and John Froiners. Davis, one of the "Chicago Seven" who was tried for organizing an anti-Vietnam War protest outside the 1968 Democratic National Convention in Chicago that turned violent, has died at age 80. “One of the things people always said about Rennie Davis was that he was a gentle man. AdIn addition to Liegmann, Davis is survived by three children from previous marriages: daughters Lia Davis, 44, and Maya Davis, 28; and a son, Sky Davis, 26; as well as three siblings and two grandchildren. It was updated on Feb. 5, 2021, to correct Rennie Davis' date of birth.
Americans who live, work near capitols see peace, new hope
Isaac Smith, of Boston, speaks to a reporter near the Massachusetts Statehouse in Boston about the new incoming administration, Wednesday, Jan. 20, 2021. (AP Photo/Elise Amendola)SALEM, Ore. – Normally quiet streets around U.S. state capitol buildings have looked more like battlegrounds recently, putting those who live and work there on edge. As President Joe Biden was sworn into office, demonstrations at state capitols were scant, with only a few protesters showing up, and in some cities, none at all. Jonathan Jones' front-row seat to what happens next is his restaurant that is decorated with Black Lives Matter signs and art near the Oregon State Capitol. She said she is optimistic that Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris will be able to accomplish many things.
State capitols reassess safety after violence at US Capitol
But if the U.S. Capitol — a shining symbol of democracy with a dedicated police force— can be overrun by a violent mob, could state capitols be next? Protesters in Idaho temporarily derailed a special legislative session last August. In Oregon, where Trump supporters burned a life-size puppet of Democratic Gov. “Pretty sure more #txlege members are going to start carrying inside the Capitol,” Republican state Rep. Briscoe Cain tweeted Thursday, a day after the Capitol grounds were abruptly shuttered as hundreds of Trump supporters demonstrated outside without any reported incidents. Mike Parson is planning for more than a thousand guests to gather Monday on the lawn of the state Capitol for his inaugural ceremony.
State capitols face showdown over COVID powers and spending
– State lawmakers across the country will convene in 2021 with the continuing COVID-19 pandemic rippling through much of their work — even affecting the way they work. “COVID will frame everything,” said Tim Storey, executive director of the National Conference of State Legislatures. Opponents of pandemic restrictions on businesses cite their harmful effect on the economy. Mike DeWine said his upcoming budget plan is likely to include more funding for the state's health agency and its 113 local public health departments. “We have a health department and a public health system that’s been neglected too long,” DeWine said.
Top Pentagon official tests positive for coronavirus
WASHINGTON – A Pentagon official installed in a top policy job last week has tested positive for COVID-19, the Pentagon said Thursday, just days after he met with the Lithuanian defense minister, who had contracted the virus. Jonathan Hoffman, the chief Pentagon spokesperson, said Anthony Tata, who is serving as the undersecretary of defense, was tested Thursday after learning that Defense Minister Raimundas Karoblis had tested positive. White House chief of staff Mark Meadows tested positive after attending an election night party at the White House. Others who were at the party also tested positive, including White House political director Brian Jack, former White House aide Healy Baumgardner and Trump campaign advisers David Bossie and Corey Lewandowski. The assistant commandant of the Marine Corps later also tested positive, and all the chiefs were forced to quarantine at home for at least 10 days.
Remains of 3 found in Colorado, triggering manhunt for felon
Authorities in southern Colorado said Wednesday they are searching for a man in connection with the discovery of human remains belonging to three people near a rural hamlet. The Colorado Bureau of Investigation and local police agencies identified the suspect as 26-year-old Adre Jordan Baroz. (Colorado Bureau of Investigation via AP)DENVER – Authorities in southern Colorado said Wednesday that they are searching for a suspect in connection with the discovery of the remains of three people near a rural hamlet. The Colorado Bureau of Investigation and local police agencies identified the suspect as Adre Jordan Baroz, a convicted felon. “Our priority is to get him into custody and identify the remains,” said John Camper, deputy director of the Colorado Bureau of Investigation.
Military wary that shakeup could upend its apolitical nature
Esper also had worked with military leaders to talk Trump out of complete troop withdrawals from Syria and Afghanistan. And top military leaders — including Milley — are counseling patience and stability. But on other policy matters, Pentagon leaders saluted and marched forward. The abrupt personnel changes this week, however, have amped up the anxiety of civilian and military staff in the five-sided building. James Anderson, who had been acting undersecretary for policy, and Joseph Kernan, who was undersecretary for intelligence, both resigned Tuesday.
Trump loyalists get top Pentagon jobs after Esper firing
(Tom Williams/Pool via AP, File)WASHINGTON – A day after President Donald Trump fired Defense Secretary Mark Esper, three staunch loyalists to the president were named to top defense jobs. Patel and Cohen-Watnick are both considered staunchly loyal to Trump and previously worked at the National Security Council. He also is a former prosecutor in the national security division of the Department of Justice and former staff member on the House Intelligence Committee. Cohen-Watnick was a protégé of Trump’s initial national security adviser, Michael Flynn, but was replaced in the summer of 2017 by Flynn’s successor, H.R. McMaster, as part of a string of shakeups at the White House and National Security Council.
The Latest: Lincoln Project taking on GOP-linked law firms
WASHINGTON – The Latest on President-elect Joe Biden (all times local):5:45 p.m. The Lincoln Project has announced plans to launch an advertising campaign against two law firms over their role representing President Donald Trump and the Republican Party in their voter fraud-related lawsuits. President Donald Trump would have to authorize Biden to receive that brief. ___11:20 a.m.U.S. defense officials said James Anderson, the top policy adviser at the Pentagon, submitted his resignation Tuesday, a day after President Donald Trump fired Defense Secretary Mark Esper. Trump’s firing of Esper comes as he has refused to concede his election loss to Democrat Joe Biden.
'Nothing left in the bucket': Wildfire resources run thin
This year's fires have taxed the human, mechanical and financial resources of the nation's wildfire fighting forces to a degree that few past blazes did. After working in Santa Cruz County, his next assignment was to head north to attack wildfires near the Oregon border. “There’s never enough resources," said Silvera, one of nearly 17,000 firefighters battling the California blazes. “We know that there’s really nothing left in the bucket,” Geissler said. Officials at the U.S. government operation in Boise, Idaho help decide which fires get priority when equipment and firefighters run scarce nationwide.
Trump loyalist gets Defense post as Senate nomination stalls
Gen. Anthony Tata to a job performing the duties of the deputy undersecretary for defense policy, amid ongoing furor over offensive remarks Tata made, including about Islam. Last week the Senate canceled a hearing on Tata's nomination to become defense undersecretary for policy, the third-highest civilian post at the Pentagon. Tata, who also has been a Fox News commentator, withdrew his name from consideration for the undersecretary job over the weekend, and was then appointed by Trump to serve in the deputy's post. James Anderson, who had been serving as Rood's deputy, is currently the acting policy undersecretary the job Tata was initially nominated to fill. Officials who carry the acting title have more authority than those who are performing the duties of the job.
Colorado ex-Gov. Hickenlooper is no-show at ethics hearing
Mark Grueskin, an attorney for Hickenlooper, logged onto the remote hearing 15 minutes after it started, citing problems with his internet connection. He told commissioners that Hickenlooper's legal team had appealed to an appellate court a Wednesday night court order for Hickenlooper to appear. No immediate ruling is expected but Hickenlooper could be fined if the commission rules against him. The Public Trust Institute, a conservative group led by Frank McNulty, a former Republican speaker of the Colorado House, has alleged that Hickenlooper violated Colorado's ethics law by taking free flights on private jets as governor. Hickenlooper, who was governor from 2011 to 2019, has denied the accusations as politically motivated.
Nick Gordon died after being found unresponsive in hotel
FILE - In this Oct. 22, 2012, file photo, Bobbi Kristina Brown and Nick Gordon attend the premiere party for "The Houstons On Our Own" at the Tribeca Grand hotel in New York. Gordon, ex-partner of the late Bobbi Kristina Brown, has died. Gordon's attorney Joe S. Habachy confirmed his client's death Wednesday, Jan. 1, 2020. Brown was the daughter of Whitney Houston. (Photo by Donald Traill/Invision/AP, File)
Nick Gordon died after being found unresponsive in hotel
FILE - In this Oct. 22, 2012, file photo, Bobbi Kristina Brown and Nick Gordon attend the premiere party for "The Houstons On Our Own" at the Tribeca Grand hotel in New York. Gordon, ex-partner of the late Bobbi Kristina Brown, has died. Paramedics were called to Nick Gordon's hotel room in Maitland, a suburb of Orlando, early Wednesday morning to check on an unresponsive man, according to a statement from the Maitland Police Department. The paramedics in the Sheraton hotel room began treating Gordon, who was identified in the police statement as Nicholas Bouler. Investigators with the medical examiner’s office were not able to determine exactly how Bobbi Kristina Brown died.