Author: The Gazette editorial board
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EDITORIAL: Colorado should seize Trump’s order and help the homeless
Colorado’s mayors, philanthropic leaders and politicians at various levels have the opportunity to address the state’s escalating homelessness crisis by leveraging President Donald Trump’s executive order last week, titled “Ending Crime and Disorder on America’s Streets.” The president’s directive empowers cities and states to clear homeless encampments and prioritize treatment for addiction and mental health…
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EDITORIAL: Colorado’s AG leans on a lowly law officer
Doesn’t Colorado have laws against bullying? More than a few, as we recall. You’d think our state’s attorney general, of all elected officials, would heed them. Instead, AG Phil Weiser — who must see himself as litigator in chief these days, given all the lawsuits he has filed lately — has filed yet another. This…
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EDITORIAL: Immigration enforcement aligns with less violent crime
Americans are witnessing historic plunges in homicide rates. Nationally, homicides fell by 16% from 2023, equating to 631 fewer deaths across 29 major cities, according to the Council on Criminal Justice. Colorado, while not keeping up with the national decline, has seen significant drops in key areas — notably Denver and neighboring Aurora, where homicides…
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EDITORIAL: Let’s support true rehab in the Springs and Denver
Colorado Springs should enthusiastically celebrate the arrival of Step Springs, a 50-bed rehabilitation center for addicted men, set to open in October in the city. Modeled after the transformative Step Denver program, Step Springs promises to be a lifeline for men battling substance abuse, offering a proven path to sobriety, employment and stable housing. We…
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EDITORIAL: Mayor Johnston’s misplaced midterm musings
From the start of his political trek years ago in Colorado’s Legislature, Mike Johnston seemed to be the proverbial young man in a hurry. Today, as Denver’s mayor, Johnston still comes across that way even if he’s no longer young. He’s in a hurry to lay out bold plans of action; in a hurry to…
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EDITORIAL: Gov. Polis gives up on his bridge
Give Gov. Jared Polis credit for bowing to the public’s will. Facing a broad backlash to his out-of-the-blue brainstorm for a pricey pedestrian bridge west of the State Capitol Building, the governor backed out Tuesday. The stiff opposition — including in a poll Polis’ office conducted — was fully justified. The project, in fact, made…
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EDITORIAL: The wolf symbolizes the state’s famous boondoggles
Colorado’s wolf restoration program, mandated by the 2020 Proposition 114, has spiraled into a financial boondoggle, costing taxpayers $8 million in five years — greatly exceeding the annual estimates in the General Assembly’s Blue Book. It symbolizes widespread economic and political dysfunction in a state controlled by far-left fantasies. Whether we talk about “free” school…
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EDITORIAL: Front Range rail is a fake shiny fantasy
Metro Denver voters approved the FasTracks plan in 2004, agreeing to fund an expansive rail network including a line from Union Station to Longmont and ambitions for Front Range service from Trinidad to Fort Collins. More than 20 years later, it is clear taxpayers have been fleeced for a pipe dream. The Regional Transportation District’s…
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EDITORIAL: Law enforcement must tame Colorado’s crotch rocketeers
Colorado’s roads are becoming a racetrack for “crotch rocket” motorcyclists who flout the law, weaving through moving traffic with reckless abandon. Law enforcement must prioritize stopping this menace. The state’s new lane filtering law, which permits motorcyclists to pass between stopped vehicles in traffic jams, was meant to ease congestion and enhance safety. Instead, riders…
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EDITORIAL: Balloon Boy forever cements Colorado’s galactic supremacy
The Netflix documentary Trainwreck: Balloon Boy crash-landed on Tuesday, dragging Colorado’s zaniest “only in Colorado” moment back into the spotlight. In 2009, Fort Collins’ Heene family launched a silver, helium-filled “flying saucer” that had the world glued to their screens, convinced six-year-old Falcon Heene was soaring at 7,000 feet. Spoiler: he was napping in the…