A center-right agenda for Colorado

(Denver Post, Dec. 29) Unlike Washington, DC, where divided government will continue in 2013, the new year in Colorado will bring a return of unified control by Democrats. On Jan. 9, Rep. Mark Ferrandino (D-Denver) takes the speaker’s gavel from Rep. Frank McNulty (R-Highlands Ranch), whose GOP majority was ousted by voters in November. If you visit the state House that day, you’ll notice that Democrats are mostly seated to Speaker's left, Republicans mostly to the right. The custom dates from the French Revolution, when legislators enthusiastic for political activism massed on the left side of the chamber, while those more skeptical massed opposite them. As Ferrandino assumes power alongside incoming Senate President John Morse (D-Colorado Springs) and Democratic Gov. John Hickenlooper, Colorado’s party of the left has another chance to show what it can do with dominance under the Gold Dome, an advantage Dems last enjoyed in 2007-2011. My housewarming gift, as a friendly opponent, is a memo from voters they probably didn’t persuade this time.

Colorado Christian University, where I work, polled some 1300 Coloradans shortly before the 2012 election with an automated phone survey by SmartVoice.com. We went for a center-right sample, with 44% of respondents self-described as conservative and 30% as moderate. Their views on the role of government may help caution Democrats against overreach while providing Republicans a roadmap to relevance.

The CCU-SmartVoice poll asked about the best way of fostering prosperity, protecting liberty, helping the less fortunate, improving the schools, and encouraging people to treat each other decently. That is, most of what we want in living together. In prioritizing what civil society can do voluntarily, over what activist government might promise, respondents reminded us the left isn’t the whole ballgame – not yet, at least.

What’s the key factor in higher living standards? Free enterprise, said 45% of center-right Coloradans. Better education was next with 38%. Government programs were named by only 9%.

What’s most important in improving America as a free society? “Revival of our founding principles,” said 54% of poll respondents. Federal, state, and local government were named by 28%. Just 18% chose “progressive reform like most other countries.”

What factor matters most in providing for children, the elderly, and the disabled, the poll also asked. Families and churches were cited by 46% of those polled, voluntary private charity by another 18%. Only about one respondent in three, 36%, said government programs matter most.

The citizens typified in this particular survey obviously weren’t the voting majority that gave Democrats a 37-28 edge in the Colorado House. But Speaker Ferrandino would be unwise to ignore them if he seeks to govern with broad consensus. And House Minority Leader Mark Waller (R-Colorado Springs) should forcefully advocate for them during the upcoming session.

The teachers-union agenda, for example, calls for raising taxes by a billion dollars and softening tests, while blocking vouchers and charter schools. But the center-right agenda for education, as reflected in CCU’s poll, finds parental choice prioritized by 42% and higher standards by another 27%, whereas more spending is favored by only 31%. Jam-downs from the left will backfire.

Culture warriors on both sides, meanwhile, should take pause from the survey finding on how best to ensure decent treatment of one another. A mere 7% of respondents said it’s up to laws and government. Eighty-three percent said they’d rather look to families, churches, and schools for keeping America morally strong.

Polls can mislead, of course. Remember the statistician who drowned while wading across a lake that was an average of 18 inches deep. Our center-right survey respondents were older, more religious, and more female than Coloradans overall. But they count as much as their leftist neighbors – and one day they’ll be in the majority again.

A lighter look back at 2012 and ahead to 2013

As 2012 departs with undeserved job security for Buffs' top brass, says John Andrews in the December round of Head On TV debates, 2013 may come in with bungee cords as Congress's consolation prize to Americans headed over the fiscal cliff. Secretary of State Scott Gessler's letter to Santa, adds Susan Barnes-Gelt, should request a new ethical compass -- and Interior Secretary Ken Salazar's secret wish for the New Year may be a 2014 run for governor. John on the right, Susan on the left, this month whimsically nominate their Colorado winners and sinners for the old year, offer wacky predictions for the year ahead, and outline New Year's resolutions for politicos in both Denver and Washington, along with thoughts on the brave new world of legal marijuana. Head On has been a daily feature on Colorado Public Television since 1997. Here are all five scripts for December: 1. WINNERS & SINNERS OF 2012

John: It’s John and Susan’s Colorado winners and sinners of 2012, 10th annual. Thumbs up for Jon Caldara, whose Freedom Embassy shook up Capitol Hill, and John Elway, who rebuilt the Broncos bigtime. Thumbs down for the RTD board, who can’t build light rail, and the PERA board, who can’t do math.

Susan: Gifts for my sinners: Secretary of State Scott Gessler, an ethical compass for his desk. A bigger bathtub for Grover Norquist in his quest to drown government. Copies of the 2010 census for Republican consultants. And a 2-year supply of TUMS for our Gov, facing Dem majorities in the lege.

John: More Colorado winners and sinners as the old year departs: Thumbs down for the anti-energy left with their false fears about fracking, and the top brass of Buffs and Rockies who keep their jobs despite hellacious losing records. Thumbs up for pension watchdog Walker Stapleton and Pentagon watchdog Mike Coffman.

Susan: A bag of coal for Denver DA Mitch Morrissey’s off-the-chart salary demands. Gold stars to Civic Center’s Conservancy’s revitalization of Denver’s most important public square; Metro State Pres Steve Jordan and trustees for lowering tuition for undocumented students. And a BIG bouquet of roses to the people of Colorado!

2. FEARLESS PREDICTIONS FOR 2013

John: It’s John and Susan’s fearless predictions for 2013, wildly wrong every year. Hickenlooper tries for president with a new home in Iowa. He’ll govern Colorado by Twitter. Perlmutter tries for bipartisanship with a new chief of staff: Joe Coors. Coffman tries his wife’s patience by volunteering in Afghanistan.

Susan: Hick and Ken Salazar swap jobs: Hick goes to DC. Salazar comes home as guv. Mayor Hancock attends to the City he leads, not the aerotropolis he dreams about. Denver School Board requires local residency for its superintendent. RTD hires a director who has actually built a transit system.

John: More predictions for a wacky 2013. Unable to avoid the fiscal cliff, Congress authorizes free bungee cords for every American. Grabbing for the Hispanic vote, Republicans offer to make Mexico the 51st state. To prove his foreign policy is no joke, Obama replaces Secretary of State Hillary Clinton with Jon Stewart.

Susan: Uber-partisan talking heads become an endangered species. Good humor and sound judgment prevail: Al Franken replaces Harry Reid as the Senate majority leader. South Carolina Guv Haley appoints Steven Colbert to DeMint’s vacant Senate seat. 2013 inaugurates peace, health and optimism to Coloradans and the planet.

3. NEW YEAR’S RESOLUTIONS FOR THE GOLD DOME

John: The 2013 legislative session brings fresh faces and hot issues. Susan, I bet the members of your party and mine would love some help with New Year’s resolutions. House Republican leader Mark Waller: I’ll be calm and conciliatory on civil unions. Senate Republican leader Bill Cadman: I’ll pressure the Dems like Von Miller.

Susan: I’ll start with a resolution for Guv Hickenlooper. He’ll maneuver gracefully when the Dem-controlled legislature forces him to be partisan. Legislators from both parties will resolve to follow Aurora Dem Morgan Carroll in ignoring the pressure from lobbyists during official debate. Both D’s and R’s resolve courage and compassion.

John: More New Year’s resolutions recommended for the next Colorado General Assembly. Budget Committee Republicans Cheri Gerou and Kent Lambert: We resolve to scream bloody murder if Democrats propose reckless spending and tax increases disguised as fees. TABOR means what it says.

Susan: Both D’s & R’s – persuade voters to end the stranglehold of TABOR, Gallagher and Amendment 23, thus allowing Colorado’s economy to address the future. The Lege endorses CDOT Director Don Hunt’s solution to the I-70 viaduct expansion; bans hand-held cell phones in vehicles and mandates year-round K-12 education.

4. NEW YEAR’S RESOLUTIONS FOR THE BELTWAY

Susan: 2013 offers a new beginning for Federal government leaders. Resolutions to consider: Congressionals resolve to hear We The People . . . not just K Street lobbyists. The Supremes resolve that Corporations don’t breathe and reverse Citizens United. Obama resolves to enjoy the rough and tumble of political engagement.

John: More New Year’s resolutions recommended for the upcoming 113th Congress. Speaker John Boehner: I will relentlessly use the power of the purse to oppose Obama and the Senate in their crazy spending and expansion of government. The House has no less a mandate for conservatism than the President does for liberalism.

Susan: Democrats and Republicans work for the future of the country instead of their political parties and themselves. Congress reforms the entire tax code, Social Security and Medicare. Special interest and Super PACS reveal individual donors. The US Capitol moves to Lake Wobegon and . . . pigs fly!

John: At the risk of agreeing with you, I like the Lake Wobegon idea, because every congressmen and senator is above average – just ask them. But these are supposed to be achievable resolutions for the Beltway crowd. All of them should vow this year they’ll obey the constitution, for a change.

5. BRAVE NEW WORLD OF LEGAL MARIJUANA.

Susan: Colorado, along with Washington State approved the possession of small amounts of marijuana. Medical MJ is legal in several other states. Enter the conflict between local policy and federal – zero tolerance laws. The war on drugs was lost decades ago and it’s time the feds decriminalize and regulate drugs.

John: The message from voters seems to be that marijuana prohibition has failed as badly as alcohol prohibition, and a new approach is needed. But restraint and responsibility are needed as legislators draw up regulations. A pot parlor on every block, as some stoners have fantasized, is not the way to go.

Susan: Wow! We are pretty much in agreement on this issue, John. Legalizing and regulating drugs is the only way to put criminals and the drug cartels out of business. Comprehensive and unified Federal policy – including imposition of local, state and federal sales tax – must prevail.

John: Voters legalizing marijuana in two states and same-sex marriage in four states signal a new American attitude about using the law to enforce virtue. As a Christian, I believe the body is God’s temple. Don’t defile it with chemicals or promiscuity. But government can’t ultimately police that. It happens in the heart.

A rehab kit for Republicans

(Denver Post, Nov. 25) Show me a sore loser, and I’ll show you a loser. This has rung in my ears since the election, as I listened to some fellow Republicans and conservatives weeping, whining, and caterwauling. Not to mention griping, blaming, and sulking. Enough already. Good losers being similarly scorned, who does that leave? Political party animals who rebound from a loss with humility, humor, and honesty. Happy warriors who take a setback in stride, undaunted yet undefensive. Those are the comrades I’ll share a shell-shocked foxhole with. The authors of anguished obituaries for America and the GOP need not apply. For a couple of days after Nov. 6, it’s true, I was bluer than the MSNBC presidential map. Then I stumbled on one of those websites, PoliticalDefeatTherapy.com, with a guaranteed offer to dispel the darkness and put you back on daylight time after voters clean your clock. Click, pay, and my Republican Rehab Kit was on the way.

When it came, I was initially disappointed. No Kryptonite to reduce Reid and Pelosi to jello. Not a word about Obama’s real birthplace. The envelope contained nothing but three toys – a magnifying glass, a telescope, and a small mirror – plus a pocket edition of the Declaration of Independence and U. S. Constitution. My $19.95 for this?

The instruction sheet - which I read last; typical man – quickly clarified things, however. To get past the superficial “optics” of the Democrats’ big victory, it advised, we Republicans can regain clear vision by putting the 2012 results under a magnifier, then scanning history and the future with a spyglass, and then, above all, looking hard at ourselves in the mirror.

But at no point in this perspective-recovering process, the instructions warned, should a shaken GOP entertain the temptation of abandoning its 150-year fidelity to individual liberty and personal responsibility, limited government and rule of law, free enterprise and private property, human rights and moral truth as gifts from God – the principles in America’s founding documents – first voiced by my party in behalf of the African slave.

This country doesn’t need, in other words, two liberal parties. Nor does it need a quixotic third party, a neo-Confederate secession craze, or a John Galt dropout movement. It needs the Republican party to continue our historically indispensable – and resiliently effective – role as the conservative party for these United States.

The magnifying glass that came in my rehab kit showed the Dems’ retention of the White House and Senate, as well as their Colorado legislative gains, to have been a tactical victory won on intensity and execution, not a repudiation of conservatism. The telescope, looking back, revealed many a political pendulum swing after all seemed lost – think 1964 for my side, 2004 for their side – and likely the same when looking ahead.

Then there was the mirror. Gazing into it was painful, but what a reality bath. Had the GOP, me included, often forgotten that politics is about people no less than principles? Was the other side’s edge in intensity and execution, securing reelection for Obama, baggage and all, partly our fault? Who could be to blame for the tarnished Republican brand but us? Ouch and ouch again.

Inviting a number of conservative audiences to try the mirror exercise has been interesting. There was pushback. “Nobody in this room bears any of the blame,” insisted a friend in Denver. “That’s moderate talk, RINO talk,” said another friend in Grand Junction.

“Death of a Nation,” went an online whine from Colorado Springs. “GOP, DOA, RIP,” moaned an email from Evergreen. Oh really? Time will tell. I’m betting that 2014 and 2016 will prove the reports of conservatism’s demise, like that of Mark Twain, to have been greatly exaggerated.

Glories of gridlock, perils of second terms

Divided government continuing into 2014 and beyond may not be all that bad, especially as presidential second terms tend to go awry, says John Andrews in the November round of Head On TV debates. Not so, given Americans' reaffirmation of Obama's leadership and their impatience for government that works, contends Susan Barnes-Gelt. John on the right, Susan on the left, also go at it this month over prospects for the now all-Democratic Colorado General Assembly and what it meant that voters approved most ballot issues. Head On has been a daily feature on Colorado Public Television since 1997. Here are all five scripts for November: 1. PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION

John: Congratulations to my Democratic friends for their big victory. President Obama will proceed with his agenda of fundamentally transforming America through bigger government and a weak foreign policy. Americans seem to be okay with that. Mitt Romney campaigned valiantly for freedom and limited government, but he couldn’t overcome the negative ads.

Susan: The Obama victory reflects not only a very smart and strategic campaign, but also recognition that the U.S. in 21st Century is more diverse, socially tolerant, less partisan and more independent than it used to be. A viable democracy relies on compromise and flexibility. Americans are sick of wing-nut ideology.

John: Compromise? Flexibility? There’s a concept. We’ll see how the left-leaning Obama does with the right-leaning House on compromising to tame the entitlement monster. His flexibility so far has been mostly with foreign bad guys like the Russians. Presidential second terms often go off the rails. Democrats beware.

Susan: When Republican leadership announces its primary goal is to limit the new president to a single term – it’s testimony to Obama’s tenacity that he still stands. Americans are sick of political grandstanding. Obama is a centrist – it will be up to your team to move to the center.

2. THE NEW CONGRESS

Susan: The 113th Congress will be a bit different than the 112th. Dems took several seats in the House, though R’s maintain control. Dems picked up seats in the Senate – thanks to far right Republican candidates. The 2012 campaign headline: Republican Party hijacked by Tea Party crazies and 18th Century luddites.

John: Americans said no to real change and yes to divided government. Speaker John Boehner is now the man of the hour, and time is short. The House, the Senate, and the President have only a few weeks to save our economy from crippling tax increases and our defenses from a body blow.

Susan: The resounding take-away from the 2012 election is the C-word: Compromise. Voters are clearly frustrated with extremes on both sides of the aisle. Biggest winners: immigration reform; the politics of inclusion, and a balance of tax increases and entitlement reform. Americans want a government that works.

John: Are you sure? Maybe they’d rather have gridlock. Individual liberty, civil society, religious freedom, and economic growth stand a better chance when we don’t get all the government we pay for. Every day Harry Reid and John Boehner are at loggerheads, and sObama is out golfing, is a good day for America.

3. COLORADO GENERAL ASSEMBLY

John: Congratulations to Colorado Democrats for holding the state Senate and taking the state House. Mark Ferrandino of Denver will become Speaker. His sexual orientation is his own business. But his political orientation is to the left, which is not good news for economic growth, energy exploration, or fiscal responsibility.

Susan: One party control of the legislature is bound to give our a-partisan governor, Dem John Hickenlooper, heartburn. If the Dems list too far from the middle on fiscal policy – Hick will be hard-pressed to advance his ambition. I’m optimistic that both sides will resist overreach.

John: When you speak of Hick’s ambition, do you mean the White House? Some say he’s so focused on 2016 that he won’t seek a second term in 2014. Then the fun begins. Meanwhile, one-party control of state government could lead to overreach on fiscal and social issues alike. Democrats beware.

Susan: The voters have no patience for overreach. And Hick is so good at commanding the bully pulpit, that he will prevail on fiscal issues. Any Dem who doesn’t support fiscal prudence is destined to fail. The guv is a pragmatist and superb arm-twister. The smart money is with him

Susan: Wow! I hoped we’d have a kumbaya moment - as in why can’t we all get along? Demographics are stacked against you. Ask New Jersey Republican Gov. Chris Christie about shrinking government to drown it in a bathtub? Christy has tougher waters to navigate for those devastated by Sandy.

4. COLORADO BALLOT ISSUES

Susan: Colorado’s November ballot was littered with issues ranging from local tax increases to cleaning up the state personnel system and legalizing marijuana. Every question was overwhelmingly approved: local school bond issues; tax increases; state constitutional changes and legalizing marijuana. Margins indicate Coloradans are generous and optimistic.

John: I hate to say it, but America is moving left and Colorado is keeping pace. Voter approval for legal marijuana here and in Washington State, along with gay marriage in Maine and Maryland, signals a new moral permissiveness. Local tax hikes in a weak economy defy logic, but at least TABOR is working.

Susan: America is moving to the center, reflecting a more diverse, younger and socially tolerant electorate. The Republican party must re-define its principles to adapt to the less hierarchical and more flexible society. Hurricanes Sandy and Katrina reinforce the importance of federal policy and resources. Take that – Grover Norquist.

John: I love it when you Democrats give us Republicans makeover advice. We already have one party with disposable principles. The GOP will stick to the proven principles of America’s founding, thanks anyway. One of those is federalism, which now faces a test with our state’s pot legalization. Uncle Sam disapproves.

No more freedom on the cheap

(Denver Post, Oct. 28) Have you voted yet? Our state’s nine electoral votes could hand the presidency to Romney or Obama -- and the Colorado outcome in 2012 could turn on a few hundred ballots, much like the Florida outcome in 2000. Within months of achieving statehood in 1876, Colorado tipped the presidential election for Rutherford B. Hayes, as historian Tom Noel noted recently in these pages. Yet the dominant issue of that era, equal rights for former black slaves, wasn’t settled by the election. It troubled the American conscience for almost another century. So in battling over the high stakes to be decided between the candidates next week, we need to recognize how much this election will NOT settle. It’s folly to assume that the Nov. 6 verdict ties a ribbon around everything. “Keeping the republic,” our task as free citizens in Benjamin Franklin’s words, is a marathon not a sprint.

Whether your ticket wins or loses, we’ll all wake up in the same America as before. It’s an America where neither Republicans nor Democrats have yet shown the backbone to keep our deficits and debt from worsening to the level of Greece -- with broke California, no longer the Golden State, leading the way. Think that will suddenly change in 2013?

An AP profile on Xi Jingping, soon to be president of China, says he will assume power confident in “Beijing’s belief that its chief rival Washington is in decline.” Osama bin Laden’s taunt that America is a “weak horse” echoes from beyond the grave, emboldening al Qaeda in Libya, the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt, the mullahs in Tehran.

Much as I favor the GOP, one party’s victory won’t instantly dispel those doubts. For they arise from what a smart investor or a winning coach calls the fundamentals. Those who are short-selling the USA take note of the actuarial tables for the rise and fall of great nations – which predict a lifespan of about 250 years – and the indicators of slackness in our national character.

They look at what has been called the Tytler cycle, whereby a people climbs up from bondage through faith and courage to liberty and abundance, but then slides down through complacency and apathy into dependency and finally into bondage again. Detractors see America in the late afternoon of our greatness, with darkness coming on. Can we prove them wrong? Absolutely, but it will take more than campaign slogans.

The worst deficit our country faces, looking beyond election 2012, isn’t in jobs, budgets, pensions, or infrastructure. It’s not in energy, health, education, or national security. It is the deficit of personal responsibility. In our enjoyment of liberty and abundance, we’re in danger of forgetting that the price of both is responsibility and self-discipline. Our experiment in freedom on the cheap is running out of time.

A president who constantly ducks responsibility and blames others is but a symptom of this. We elected him with our eyes wide open. Voters took a chance – in hindsight, an irresponsible gamble – on the hip young community organizer over the crusty old war hero. The Obama phenomenon merely shows how far the celebrity culture has gone in swamping principled self-government.

Media elites didn’t care when Obama flew to Vegas for a fundraiser the day Ambassador Stevens was assassinated in an act of war. They shrugged when the former drug dealer Jay-Z threw a party for him. But few noticed either when Kid Rock, whose songs were too dirty for radio, opened for Romney in Denver the other day. Chill out, man.

I hope Mitt wins. He’ll do our country proud. But the rebirth of responsibility America needs, if we’re to survive, isn’t up to him or any politician. It’s up to the person in the mirror: you and me. ----------- John Andrews is director of the Centennial Institute, former president of the Colorado Senate, and the author of Responsibility Reborn: A Citizen’s Guide to the Next American Century (Denali Press, 2011).