By Jen Schumann | Contributing Writer, Rocky Mountain Voice
He holds a black belt in judo and has a knack for spotting nonsense.
Douglas County Republican Rep. Anthony Hartsook has the background of an Army veteran and the ability to take on “fees” — what Republicans call taxes — with calm precision, and sometimes a grin.
You could say he stands out in the capitol’s chaos. A sixth-degree black belt since his teens, he’s built for focus.
“I’ve been doing judo since I was a teenager,” he says. That’s years of flipping foes and dodging blows. Now he’s sidestepping political traps.
Sometimes he cracks a smile about it.
“I’ve commented that we should put boxing gloves on down in the well [the speaking podium on the floor]. And just go, ‘Last guy standing, bill passes,’” he jokes. He pictures the madness. “It’d be a combination of MMA and WWE. It’d be crazy.”
Taking on opponents, from the Taliban to taxes
Hartsook served 26 years in the Army, bouncing from the Pentagon to Italy and Korea. When asked which location showed him what ties humans together, he picks Afghanistan.
In Afghanistan, Hartsook spoke to a local who shared a glimpse of life under Taliban rule.
“It was very interesting when the locals there were out doing some work, and he goes, ‘You Americans, you just don’t understand what it’s like over here.'”
Intrigued, Hartsook pressed further. “I replied, ‘Well, explain it to me.'”
The man shared his experiences, recounting the hardships and brutalities his people had endured.
“His perspective, having been through it with the Taliban. All they wanted to do was live their lives. They were all about freedom,” he said. “They just wanted to be left alone, live their lives, work, have their coffee shops and go do things.”
Hartsook couldn’t help but see the similarities between the man’s words and the values many Americans hold dear.
“You’re going, that is no different than anybody in America. You could talk to a farmer in the Midwest, somebody in Texas or a surfer in California. They just want to be left alone,” Hartsook says. “They don’t want the government telling them how to do anything and everything.”
The man’s words underscored a universal truth: the yearning for independence.
But, back at home as a civilian, now he’s stuck wrestling Denver’s fee obsession.
“We’re fighting against all this constant nickel-and-diming of the Democrats,” he said. “I had a pretty nasty primary, but I won that one and came out on top,” he grinned.
Taliban or tax hikes, Hartsook’s seen the worst side of humanity – but a military and martial arts background has ingrained in him the skill of endurance to see a fight through to the end.
The common-sense kata
An onlooker familiar with judo might harken Hartsook’s simple and sharp legislative approach to the kind of move that looks effortless, but takes years to master. He asks one thing: “I approach things from a practical experience, common-sense perspective. Does this make sense? Is this viable?” he questions.
That’s his filter for bad laws. Rushing spooks him.
“The problem with the government moving fast is that it often makes a lot of mistakes. And then who suffers? The people,” he warns.
He pushes voters to think, not fume.
“We want people to be engaged from a position of knowledge, not anger,” he urges, and laws that hit wallets get no pass. “If the legislation makes it more expensive for the average person to live and do their job, that’s probably a bad piece of legislation.”
Fees keep stacking up. But Hartsook is pushing back.
Bills in the ring
Hartsook doesn’t just dodge — he swings. Hartsook has been a strong proponent of improving education in Colorado, focusing on equipping students with essential skills for success.
Acknowledging the state’s struggles in academic achievement, he said, “We sit pretty much in the basement on test scores for reading, math and science at grade level. We’re trying to get this increased.”
While Douglas County has demonstrated higher-than-average test scores, his vision extends beyond individual districts.
“We want the entire state [to achieve at this level]. We want all these kids [to benefit from learning] reading through phonics. You have to understand how to pronounce words,” he says. “You have to be able to read because if you can’t read, you can’t go on to the future.”
He co-sponsored HB25-1192 to fill a crucial gap in education: financial literacy.
“It’s called financial literacy. It’s the new requirement. It is incorporated. And what we’re saying is that we’re requiring a semester in financial literacy as a graduation requirement.”
However, rather than prescribing a rigid curriculum, the bill allows flexibility for school districts.
“What we’re not telling the schools is how to develop [the curriculum]. We’re just saying, here’s the statute,” Hartsook says. “You must develop this as part of your curriculum. You can put it in social studies, math or economics. That’s up to you at the local level to decide. But you shall make this as a graduation requirement.”
Hartsook believes it is a necessary step to prepare students for the real world.
“Kids are graduating, and even with their smartphones and everything else out there, they don’t know the difference between: Why are they being taxed? What’s an asset versus what’s a liability? What’s a debt? They just don’t get that stuff because it’s not taught anymore,” he says. “I learned it. Most people I know learned it when they were in school. That’s not taught [today].”
Without this foundational knowledge, he argues, young people are at a disadvantage as they enter adulthood.
“We’re trying to teach that to get kids to understand. And when they go out in life, whether it’s going to college, they apply for a student loan, they understand what the interest rate is going to be. They can understand its impact. When they get a job, they’re going to understand what their taxes are, their livable wage, their income, what they can afford to buy, drive, all these kinds of things. If they don’t understand a simple balance sheet with debt and income, it’s gonna be very difficult to be successful in life.”
On the flip side, he’s fought bills that don’t add up. The sheer number of laws passed last year — over 700 — bothers him.
“You can see the amount of legislation the Democrats shoved through,” he said, adding it’s too fast and messy — he wants deliberation, not a pile-on.
Leading the caucus corner
As the minority’s caucus chair, Hartsook keeps the GOP crew steady. He’s part logistics guy, part message wrangler. The 75th session is his first run at the job.
“Caucus chair makes sure that everybody gets fed, everybody is safe and everybody’s got the logistics on what’s happening each day. If they need something, we make sure that happens,” Hartsook said.
“We’re working late, that’s one of the things that we’re well known for,” Hartsook added.
Collaboration’s key — he backs Minority Leader Rose Pugliese’s push.
“We focus our messaging to match the work we’re doing, and that’s consistently saying, ‘Hey, the Republicans are fighting not only for the working class, but to lower the taxes over your cost of living.’”
It’s your move
Hartsook opens his door to hear Coloradans.
“I’m here to listen to you, earn your vote and answer your questions,” he promised. He often holds town halls with fellow lawmakers on the weekend to discuss issues with Coloradans.
“We want them engaged, but we want them to be engaged from a position of knowledge, not anger,” he urged. Denver ignores your gripes. Hartsook doesn’t.
Hartsook wants Coloradans to be informed and show up. He wants Coloradans’ voices added to tip the scales.