Covering Colorado’s proposed Referendum A in 2003 was the real starting point for Coyote Gulch. I had been blogging since 2002, mostly about state and local politics, but the water issue focus was due to the referendum.
At the same time I was buying a second home down in Montezuma County. When I talked to locals in Mesa Verde country about the referendum the quick answer was, “Water Grab.” There wasn’t much discussion but there was a lot of mistrust expressed about the politicians up in Denver and their plans. Many thought the referendum was a cover up for funding for the “Big Straw” that would move water from the Colorado River on the Utah border and dump it in the headwaters above the Front Range to feed more unbridled growth.
In his column in today’s Denver Post Ed Quillen looks back at some of the politicians that supported the referendum and what happened to them in their electoral careers. He writes:
Jane Norton, then the lieutenant governor, was a Referendum A supporter. And she lost the Republican primary for U.S. Senate. However, also on the supporter list was the fellow she lost to: “Ken Buck, Hensel Phelps Construction Company, Weld County.” I look forward to hearing him explain why he deserves to represent Colorado after he supported a big-spending big-government boondoggle that two-thirds of us opposed.
More 2010 Colorado elections coverage here. More Referendum A coverage here.