Rocky Mountain Voice

Menu

Tag: Government transparency

FBI and DOJ Coordinated with White House on Secretive ‘Arctic Frost’ Surveillance of Trump Associates
No Comments
Just The News, Approved, National

FBI and DOJ Coordinated with White House on Secretive ‘Arctic Frost’ Surveillance of Trump Associates

By Jerry Dunleavy | Just the News Evidence continues to emerge showing the top levels of the Biden Administration involved in the investigations into once-and-future rival Donald Trump. Members of the Biden White House and leaders at the Biden-era Justice Department and FBI were all involved in efforts linked to the launch of the Arctic Frost investigation which targeted then-former President Donald Trump and MAGA World over the events surrounding January 6, 2021. Recently-declassified revelations related to the FBI’s “Arctic Frost” investigation chronicle the 2022 lawfare assault against then-former President Donald Trump and MAGA world, as criminal inquiries — which would soon lead to criminal charges — spun into high gear as Trump leaned toward running for p...
Read More
Colorado Supreme Court Expands Who Can Sue Over Secret Government Meetings
No Comments
Colorado Politics, Approved, State

Colorado Supreme Court Expands Who Can Sue Over Secret Government Meetings

By Michael Karlik | Colorado Politics The Colorado Supreme Court ruled on Tuesday that organizations are entitled to the same recovery of their costs as individuals when they successfully pursue a public entity’s violation of the state’s open meetings law. The Colorado Open Meetings Law permits “any person” to challenge a violation of the law. At the same time, it grants “the citizen” who proves a violation the right to relief and to recover the cost of litigation for holding the government accountable. The question for the Supreme Court was whether an organization, such as a newspaper, is a citizen entitled to the benefits of the law. By 6-1, the court answered yes. “It would be absurd to allow corporations — who are recognized as persons in one part of the statutory scheme an...
Read More
Governor’s mansion doubles as free soapbox for First Gentleman’s animal agenda
No Comments
Colorado Accountability Project, Approved, Commentary, State

Governor’s mansion doubles as free soapbox for First Gentleman’s animal agenda

By Cory Gaines | Commentary, Colorado Accountability Project The First Gentleman's lecture series -- who's footing the bill? A couple weeks back, I noticed an article about a talk at the governor's mansion about wolf reintroduction involving the First Gentleman and his guests for the evening. The article is linked first below if you'd like to give it a read.If you know anything about the First Gentleman, you know he is a dedicated animal rights activist. Has been for a while. It should therefore not shock anyone that the guests at this talk were also animal rights/wildlife advocates.I won't go into the details of the talk. I'll leave it to you to read up if you'd like.The First Gentleman has the same First Amendment rights as anyone else. He's welcome to have an opinion and expre...
Read More
Denver’s $950 million bond: Taxpayers deserve full accountability before another blank check
No Comments
Westword, Approved, Commentary, Local

Denver’s $950 million bond: Taxpayers deserve full accountability before another blank check

By Erik Clarke | Commentary, Westword "Denver residents want to support good projects that improve our daily life and solve real problems. Taxpayers also want to know that their money is being managed responsibly." In 2017, Denver voters approved the $937 million Elevate Denver Bond Program to improve civic infrastructure across the city. Eight years later, while some projects have made meaningful progress, many remain delayed, over budget or not yet started. Now, the city is preparing to ask voters to approve another nearly billion dollars through the proposed Vibrant Denver package. Before we’re asked to vote this November, we deserve more than summaries and categories. We deserve transparency. We deserve details. As of today, there is no public cost breakdown ...
Read More
Budget Gaps Lead to Layoff Notices for Denver Employees
No Comments
Local, Approved, kdvr.com

Budget Gaps Lead to Layoff Notices for Denver Employees

By Kim Posey | KDVR Fox 31 DENVER (KDVR) — After weeks of uncertainty, Denver employees are now finding out if they will be laid off. Mayor Mike Johnston’s office said impacted employees would be notified Monday and Tuesday. The mayor’s office announced Monday that the city is eliminating 928 positions out of about 11,000, in an effort to deal with a $200 million budget shortfall. But only 171 of those are layoffs, as another 645 are vacant positions that won’t be filled, and 92 are positions that will be transferred to alternate funding sources. Alvin Tafoya, the former deputy director of the Financial Empowerment Division, says he was one of the workers laid off. Tafoya said his department was told to work from home today, and he was let go during a virtual meeting at 9 a.m. ...
Read More
Aurora ICE visit leaves Colorado Democrats with more questions than answers
No Comments
Fox31, Approved, Local

Aurora ICE visit leaves Colorado Democrats with more questions than answers

By Gabrielle Franklin | KDVR.com DENVER (KDVR) — A handful of Democrats in Colorado’s congressional delegation went inside the GEO ICE facility in Aurora on Monday. The visit comes as they try to gain clarity and access from the Trump administration about what is going on there. They spoke with members of the press after the visit to share what they say they saw. Democratic U.S. House members from Colorado visited the ICE facility, saying they left the building with more questions than answers. “When I walked through the facility, it felt like a prison,” Congresswoman Brittany Pettersen said at a press conference following the visit. The Colorado Democratic congressional members said the GEO ICE facility in Aurora has changed since the last time they went inside it. “Afte...
Read More
President Trump says he wants to release everything tied to Jeffrey Epstein
No Comments
Just The News, Approved, National

President Trump says he wants to release everything tied to Jeffrey Epstein

By Misty Severi | Just the News President Donald Trump on Friday night said he would like the federal government to "release everything" that it has on the disgraced, late financier and sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein as long as innocents aren't hurt in the process. The Trump administration has faced heavy backlash over its handling of the Epstein investigation, including its promise to release Epstein's alleged "client list," which it has since said does not exist. But Trump has pushed the Justice Department to provide more transparency on the matter. Trump last month directed Attorney General Pam Bondi to release relevant grand jury testimony related to Epstein, but a judge in Florida denied the request saying that legal precedent doesn't allow it.  Deputy ...
Read More
Gaines: Subsidies save some—but in reality, they’re just wealth transfers
No Comments
Colorado Accountability Project, Approved, Commentary, State

Gaines: Subsidies save some—but in reality, they’re just wealth transfers

By Cory Gaines | Commentary, Colorado Accountability Project Let me start with a couple non-contiguous quotes from the article linked at bottom. “'By better using the heat beneath our feet to help us, we are leading the nation in innovative clean energy technologies that save Coloradans money, and protect our air quality. Investing in Geothermal heating technology increases energy reliability and serves as a low-cost energy source,' Polis said." “'Geothermal heating technology plays a huge role in helping Colorado reduce emissions from homes and buildings while saving Coloradans money on heating and cooling costs,' said CEO Executive Director Will Toor. 'It’s exciting to see so many innovative geothermal initiatives being made possible due to Colorado’s investment in this technolo...
Read More
Secret call reveals top-down tampering in Colorado wolf probe
No Comments
The Coloradoan, Approved, State

Secret call reveals top-down tampering in Colorado wolf probe

By Miles Blumhardt | Coloradoan A secretly recorded cellphone conversation between ranchers and a Colorado Parks and Wildlife wolf depredation investigator exposed how agency investigations receive top-down influence to alter the number of confirmed wolf depredations. The Coloradoan on July 20 was provided a copy of the nearly 20-minute recording by Merrilee Ellis of Coberly Creek Ranch that included a conversation between her husband, Mike Neelis; son-in-law, Adam Edwards; and state wildlife damage specialist Rhea Ebel-Childs on April 23. Ellis believes the recorded conversation was pivotal in the ranch winning a wolf depredation compensation claim that Colorado Parks and Wildlife had initially denied. The conversation centered around a wolf kill investigation on the southern ...
Read More
Governor Solicits Input After Millions Already Spent on Pedestrian Project
No Comments
Local, Approved, Colorado Politics

Governor Solicits Input After Millions Already Spent on Pedestrian Project

By Marianne Goodland | Colorado Politics Gov. Jared Polis is asking Coloradans to weigh in on the $29 million pedestrian bridge he envisions as part of the state's 150th birthday celebration. However, the bridge project, which will primarily be funded by private donations, is facing challenges in its next step: securing approval from the legislature's Capital Development Committee. The bridge, according to its design, will connect the grounds of the state Capitol across Lincoln Street to Lincoln Veterans Memorial Park, and then across Broadway to Civic Center Park. The state has already allocated $8.5 million of taxpayer money to initiate the project, but the remaining funds will need to be raised through private donations. The initial cost is $18 million, but an additional $10...
Read More