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No way out: Rural Colorado is outvoted at every turn
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Rocky Mountain Voice, State, Top Stories

No way out: Rural Colorado is outvoted at every turn

By Shaina Cole | Contributing Writer, Rocky Mountain Voice Tom Harrington manages a 500-cow operation on the Crystal River Ranch, two miles from the town of Carbondale on a mesa west of town.  He grew up in Ridgway.  A friend sent him some papers from the North Park area of Walden showing the school news, a note from the old folks' home and local ads. "I looked through these papers and I thought, man, this is like the 70s in Ridgway," he said. Those things have disappeared from the Carbondale he lives in now. "They've certainly left here." He has also watched the valley floor transform in his 18 years on the ranch, hayfields replaced by a shopping complex and apartment buildings, the quiet gone with it. "Once things are paved over," he said, "they never come back....
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Grand Junction Pays Tribute to Three Firefighters Lost in Snyder Fire
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DENVER7, Approved, Local

Grand Junction Pays Tribute to Three Firefighters Lost in Snyder Fire

By Robert Garrison | Denver7 GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. — The three firefighters killed in the Snyder Fire west of Grand Junction last month were remembered and honored during a memorial service Sunday. Federal firefighters Emily Barker, 38, Nick Hutcherson, 27, and Sydney Watson, 27, were killed June 27 fighting the more than 30,000-acre wildfire on the Colorado-Utah state line. Authorities said they were trying to shield themselves from flames by deploying tent-like shelters when they were overcome. READ THE FULL ARTICLE AT DENVER7
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FEMA Approves Additional Fire Aid as Colorado Wildfires Burn Across State
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The Denver Gazette, Approved, State

FEMA Approves Additional Fire Aid as Colorado Wildfires Burn Across State

By Nicholas Fogleman | The Denver Gazette Gov. Jared Polis announced Sunday that FEMA approved a Fire Management Assistance Grant for the Willow fire as firefighting efforts continue across the state. The Willow fire has placed more than 1,500 people under mandatory evacuation orders and another 2,100 residents under pre-evacuation notices, according to the governor’s office. The fire, reported June 28, has burned almost 4,000 acres and is 1% contained. “This Federal Fire Management Assistance Grant will help our state take all necessary actions to protect Coloradans and communities,” Polis said in a statement. “Protecting lives, property, and businesses is our top priority.” READ THE FULL ARTICLE AT THE DENVER GAZETTE
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Polis Fires Two Clemency Board Members After Tina Peters Vote Becomes Public
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Just The News, Approved, State

Polis Fires Two Clemency Board Members After Tina Peters Vote Becomes Public

By Kevin Killough | Just the News Peters, a former clerk of Mesa County, was sentenced to nine years in prison after she was convicted in 2024 of tampering with voting machines in an attempt to show that the 2020 presidential election was gamed to favor Democratic candidate Joe Biden. Colorado Gov. Jared Polis fired two members of the state's clemency board after they disclosed the board's recommendation to the governor against commuting the prison sentence of Tina Peters.  Peters, a former clerk of Mesa County, was sentenced to nine years in prison after she was convicted in 2024 of tampering with voting machines in an attempt to show that the 2020 presidential election was gamed to favor Democratic candidate Joe Biden.  Clemency board members Hanna...
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Trump Welcomes Tina Peters to White House Following Colorado Prison Release
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The Denver Gazette, Approved, National

Trump Welcomes Tina Peters to White House Following Colorado Prison Release

By: Thelma Grimes | The Denver Gazette Since her release from prison, Tina Peters has reemerged on the political circuit — appearing over the weekend at the GOP Freedom Fest in Castle Rock and then visiting the White House on Monday to meet with President Donald Trump. In a post on Truth Social, Trump wrote that Peters “just came to the White House to thank me for getting her released from prison in Colorado.” Trump said she had been jailed “because she found Election Fraud” and that authorities targeted her instead of “the people that committed the Fraud.” He said Peters “served two” of a nine-year sentence, spending time in solitary confinement alongside “hardened criminals and murderers.” He asserted that he “got the Republican Party into gear” to secure her release...
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Three Wildland Firefighters Die In Burnover During Western Colorado Fire Fight
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CBS Colorado, Approved, State

Three Wildland Firefighters Die In Burnover During Western Colorado Fire Fight

By: Logan Smith, Christa Swanson | CBS Colorado Three wildland firefighters died Saturday during their response to a pair of Colorado wildfires, federal agencies announced early Sunday morning.  Two other firefighters were injured and flown out by helicopters to area hospitals. "Our immediate focus is on supporting their families, friends, and fellow crewmates during this incredibly difficult time," the U.S. Wildland Fire Service stated in a 12:30 a.m. social media post.  The five fighters were caught in a "burnover," according to a press release from the U.S. Department of Interior. A burnover occurs when firefighters are overtaken or trapped by a wildfire and take cover under protective shelters carried in their packs. Firefighters are trained to use...
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She circled his photo in seventh grade. For America’s 250th, she’s taking his name to Washington
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Rocky Mountain Voice, State, Top Stories

She circled his photo in seventh grade. For America’s 250th, she’s taking his name to Washington

By Jen Schumann | Rocky Mountain Voice Days before leaving on a trip she has waited 50 years to take, Rahna Autrey walked into her garage and found a face she had promised never to forget. The tub of childhood keepsakes sat on a shelf in her garage. Inside was her seventh-grade scrapbook, Partridge Family magazines and all. Inside was the brochure that came with her bracelet. One photograph had a blue circle drawn around it. "I couldn't believe it," she said. "What a God thing, huh?" The soldier was Staff Sgt. William "Sandy" Sanderlin, lost over South Vietnam on Dec. 2, 1969. She never met him. But she wore a bracelet with his name for five years, until it broke when she was a senior in high school. Across the country in those years, Americans wore POW/MIA bracelets, each ...
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New Analysis Examines Why Homelessness Is Concentrated in Mesa County
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The Business Times, Approved, Local

New Analysis Examines Why Homelessness Is Concentrated in Mesa County

By Brandon Leuallen | The Business Times Why does Mesa County account for such a large share of Western Slope homelessness? As the Grand Junction City Council debated whether to amend city code to strengthen enforcement of the camping ordinance, questions about shelter capacity and the size of the local homeless population took on new importance. The shelter-capacity discussion is further complicated by the fact the shelter system serves more than just Mesa County residents. Many neighboring communities have either no shelter at all, only seasonal shelter options, or significantly fewer homeless services. The question of whether Mesa County is carrying a regional burden has also surfaced during Grand Junction City Council discussions. During a Nov. 19, 2025, m...
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Roan Plateau Acreage Included In Potential December Oil and Gas Lease Auction
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Grand Junction Sentinel, Approved, Local

Roan Plateau Acreage Included In Potential December Oil and Gas Lease Auction

By: Dan West | Grand Junction Daily Sentinel This screenshot shows acreage on the Roan Plateau being considered by the Bureau of Land Management for a December lease sale.Source: BLM This week, the Bureau of Land Management opened a 30-day public scoping period on a proposed oil and gas lease sale of up to 126,744 acres, including acreage on the Roan Plateau between De Beque and Rifle. The BLM is seeking public input on 114 oil and gas parcels in Colorado that could be included in a December 2026 lease sale. Several parcels included are on the Roan Plateau north of Parachute, an area that has been the focus of past legal battles over oil and gas development. READ THE FULL ARTICLE AT GRAND JUNCTION DAILY SENTINEL
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