Author: By Eric Sondermann
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A governor needs to say “no” to his friends | Eric Sondermann
A wise man once remarked that the real test of a governor is his willingness to turn down and reject the pleadings of political friends and allies. That gentleman knew something of what he spoke. He occupied the corner-office executive chambers on the main floor of the State Capitol for three terms. For six years,…
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Michael Bennet and the question in a campaign of small differences | Eric Sondermann
The train usually runs only one-way. The route goes from the state capital to Washington, D.C. State legislators become congresspeople; governors become senators. See Hickenlooper, John. Including our junior senator, no matter his years, a total of 12 current U.S. senators arrived there after first doing stints in the governor’s chair of their respective state.…
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Unsolicited advise to both Republicans and Democrats | Sondermann
This even-numbered year will be one of political turnover in Colorado with the governor’s chair opening up along with the other state executive offices (attorney general, state treasurer and secretary of state), all due to term limits. A U.S. Senate seat will also be on the ballot. The ultra-competitive 8th district to Denver’s north will…
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A bit of positive thinking for the holidays
These days, some out-and-out positivity is perhaps out of character for me. I tend to view our politics and the world more broadly with considerable alarm. My morning routine most often consists of reading for a solid 60 or 90 minutes, all online, all news and commentary from a variety of publications. As this period…
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Colorado Lottery’s mega-bad idea
There are plenty of lousy, miserable, misguided whims out there. Then, every so often, you come across a notion so wrong-headed that it qualifies as phenomenally bad. Or in words the marketing whizzes at the Colorado Lottery might understand, let’s call this a mega-bad idea. The proposal in question, recently adopted by the Lottery Commission,…
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Kent Thiry, please pull your checkbook out again | SONDERMANN
Business and civic leader Kent Thiry is a complex figure. He built Denver-based DaVita to be a behemoth in the world of kidney care and dialysis. Along the way, he was known for some wild, over-the-top gatherings in the name of team-building. Under his leadership, the company paid major sums to settle claims of fraudulent…
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A miserable, horrible, dangerously cynical idea | SONDERMANN
Avalanche superstar Cale Makar, not one to pass up a strategic advantage, would never be so bold as to suggest that the other team be required to play with broken sticks. Caitlin Clark, her polished exterior barely concealing the fierce competitor within, would not think of proposing that the basket at the opponent’s end of…
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On immigration battles and political dysfunction | SONDERMANN
We interrupt the scenes of rockets over Tehran and Jerusalem, legislative body bags in Minnesota, tanks rolling down Constitution Avenue, and “No Kings” protests juxtaposed with Democratic royalty arriving in black Suburbans for Alex Soros’s wedding to return to regularly scheduled programming. That standard fare centers around the issue of immigration, which determined the last…
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COLUMN: Colorado’s Tom Tancredo was MAGA before it had a name | Eric Sondermann
Long before Donald Trump descended his New York escalator in 2015 to throw his hat in the presidential ring, a Coloradan of prominence did much to lay the groundwork and pave the way. For recent arrivals to our state, the name Tom Tancredo might not mean much or even be recognizable. However, for those of…
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A book that nails this contentious, explosive moment | SONDERMANN
Excellent books abound. But it is a rarity to find one that almost perfectly captures the current moment. Upon recent reading, which was my reaction to Evan Osnos’s “Wildland: The Making of America’s Fury.” The title derives from a catastrophic California wildfire several years ago. In trying to determine the blaze’s origin, experts were able…