Rocky Mountain Voice

Tag: Inflation

You can’t afford your government: The cost of Colorado’s “affordability” agenda
Rocky Mountain Voice, Commentary, State, Top Stories

You can’t afford your government: The cost of Colorado’s “affordability” agenda

By Dave Kerber | Guest Commentary, Rocky Mountain Voice Here we go again. Another crisis has materialized demanding our immediate attention and action. In the 2024 elections, Democrats took to lamenting the unaffordability of stuff in America to sweep to victory. Absent in those campaigns were any suggestions as to exactly how to make things “affordable” nor was there any mention that it was the Democrats with their massive post-COVID, Inflation Reduction Act spending that crammed money into the economy causing the rapid increase in inflation and economic unhappiness. Trump initially responded that affordability was a hoax, that the price of gas was down, and that little girls only needed two dolls not thirty-four. After being mocked by those who caused the crisis, he ...
Mark Baisley Launches U.S. Senate Bid, Shifts Focus From Statehouse to Washington
Rocky Mountain Voice, State, Top Stories

Mark Baisley Launches U.S. Senate Bid, Shifts Focus From Statehouse to Washington

By Shaina Cole | Contributing Writer, Rocky Mountain Voice Colorado State Senator Mark Baisley has entered the race for U.S. Senate, ending his bid for governor and refocusing his campaign on federal policy decisions he says are driving affordability pressures and limiting Colorado’s ability to chart its own course. Baisley described the shift as a move from state-level problem solving to addressing issues he believes now originate in Washington. “I’m moving from being a state senator to a bigger stage in the United States Senate,” he said. He said his earlier campaign sharpened his view of where decisions affecting daily life are increasingly being made — and where he believes Colorado needs stronger representation. Cost of Living and Affordability ...
Economists Miss Again as Trump Economy Defies Gloomy Forecasts
Fox News, Approved, Commentary, National

Economists Miss Again as Trump Economy Defies Gloomy Forecasts

By Stephen Moore | Commentary, Fox News Professional forecasters underestimated GDP growth by nearly 50% as third quarter hits 4.3% despite predictions of economic slowdown. Well, Donald Trump has done it again! He stumped the chumps. The "chumps" in this case were the "blue-chip" academic and financial economists whose consensus forecast this time last year predicted high inflation and low economic growth. They were wrong on both counts. As you've probably heard, GDP growth for the third quarter came in at a red-hot 4.3%, following 3.5% for the second quarter. Some 90% of professional economists got it wrong — all underestimating the strength of the Trump economy. QED: These weren't random errors. These were "hate Trump" errors. They also...
If 2025 Had a Playlist, These Songs Would Be on It
Rocky Mountain Voice, Commentary, National, Top Stories

If 2025 Had a Playlist, These Songs Would Be on It

By Shaina Cole | Contributing Writer, Commentary, Rocky Mountain Voice This was a year that kept interrupting whatever you thought you were doing. It arrived unevenly. Some moments swallowed entire news cycles. Others barely registered at first, only making sense months later, once the consequences showed up.  Most of the arguments about 2025 focused on motives or ideology. The consequences were easier to feel than to argue about.  Music, oddly enough, ended up capturing that better than summaries or charts. Not as nostalgia or a clever hook, but as a record. If this year had a playlist, the following songs would be included. We Didn’t Start the Fire — Billy Joel Inflation wasn’t theoretical in 2025. After years of high accumulation, it continued to...
Rand Paul’s Festivus Report Flags $1.6 Trillion in Federal Waste
Washington Examiner, Approved, National

Rand Paul’s Festivus Report Flags $1.6 Trillion in Federal Waste

By Molly Parks | Washington Examiner Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) released his annual “Festivus Report” on Tuesday, spotlighting over $1.6 trillion in wasteful government spending. Between discovering Veterans Affairs cash spent on teaching teenage ferrets how to binge drink to discovering $14.6 million spent on having monkeys play a Price Is Right-like video game, the Kentucky fiscal hawk bared all the quirky government waste on Tuesday. “No matter how much taxpayer money Washington burns through, politicians can’t help but demand more. Fiscal responsibility may not be the most crowded road, but it’s one I’ve walked year after year — and this holiday season will be no different. So, before we get to the Feats of Strength, it’s time for my A...
Trump Unveils $1,776 Warrior Dividend for Servicemembers in National Address
Washington Examiner, Approved, National

Trump Unveils $1,776 Warrior Dividend for Servicemembers in National Address

By Christian Datoc | Washington Examiner President Donald Trump delivered an end-of-year address to the nation on Wednesday night, the vast majority of which consisted of him repeating attacks on his predecessor, former President Joe Biden, as he sought to once again tie him to affordability concerns among voters. Eleven months after re-entering office with virtually the highest approval rating of his political career, the president finds himself having lost significant support from voters, specifically regarding his stewardship of financial matters, as the president’s tariffs maintain inflationary pressure on consumer markets. A poll published Tuesday by Reuters found that just 33% of respondents gave Trump’s economic policies a passing grade, down 10 poi...
Americans Defy Expectations as Online Holiday Spending Breaks Records
Washington Examiner, Approved, National

Americans Defy Expectations as Online Holiday Spending Breaks Records

By Washington Examiner Staff | Washington Examiner Black Friday is traditionally recognized as one of the busiest shopping days in the United States, regularly resulting in millions, if not billions, of dollars’ worth of consumer purchases. The tradition continued as Black Friday consumer spending online this year reached a record $11.8 billion.  The structure of that spending has changed in recent years as consumers have pivoted from brick-and-mortar stores and malls to online shopping. Amid economic uncertainty and affordability concerns, initial projections for consumer spending during the holiday season in the U.S. were projected to be more modest than in years past.  For example, Tom Arnold, a finance professor at the University of Richmond, projected spen...
Full Steam Ahead on the America First Agenda
Rocky Mountain Voice, Commentary, National, Top Stories

Full Steam Ahead on the America First Agenda

By Heidi Ganahl | Commentary, Rocky Mountain Voice A lot of good has already happened in Trump’s first year back. Donald Trump’s first year in the White House has delivered more progress than most presidents manage in an entire term. The border is tightening. Energy is coming back to life. Inflation is easing. America feels steady again. You can see it in people’s faces — a sense of relief, a little pride, a little hope after years of turbulence. But anyone who’s ever built anything knows early wins don’t carry you forever. Momentum is a start, not a finish. We’ve moved things forward, but keeping that ground and pushing it further is the real test. This is where you focus up and just do the work. The America First agenda works — and the next chapter must be about execution, ac...
Denver’s Inflation Rate Leads Nation Despite Cooling Elsewhere
kdvr.com, Approved, Local

Denver’s Inflation Rate Leads Nation Despite Cooling Elsewhere

By: Brooke Williams | KDVR FOX31 DENVER (KDVR) — Denver has some of the worst inflation problems of large metropolitan areas across the nation, according to new data. Personal finance website WalletHub released a study showing the changes in inflation for 23 major metropolitan statistical areas across the U.S., with the Denver-Aurora-Lakewood metro area having some of the biggest inflation problems. Nationwide, the rate of inflation sits at 3% as of September. WalletHub said factors like the war in Ukraine, labor shortages and recent tariffs drive inflation higher than the target rate of 2%. The study focused on the changes in inflation over the last year and the last few months. Highest Consumer Price Index change – Latest month vs two months before The study, ...
Colorado’s clean-energy crusade looks a lot like Germany’s—and that should scare us
Substack, Commentary, State, Top Stories

Colorado’s clean-energy crusade looks a lot like Germany’s—and that should scare us

By Michael Hancock | Commentary, Michael Hancock’s Undercurrent A warning for Colorado before it repeats Europe’s green mistakes. Germany tried to save the planet — and ended up saving nothing, not even itself. The same ideology that shut down its nuclear plants, drove up energy prices, and gutted its industries is now being repackaged in Colorado under the banner of “climate justice.” The warnings are flashing red, but our leaders seem too busy chasing virtue to notice the cliff ahead. Germany once led the world in renewable energy. It also now leads it in self-inflicted economic decline. After spending hundreds of billions of euros to “go green,” the country that once symbolized industrial excellence now faces soaring energy prices, factory closures, and an exodus of jobs. ...