A Modest Proposal. Now is the time for Colorado Republicans to Charge.

[Justin]

Given the stunning victories in the recall elections, it's probably safe to say that the state party Democrats are wandering around in a daze of befuddlement and shock. If this is the case, the Republicans need to redouble their efforts and push a fast and furious agenda before the Democrats have a chance to catch their breath and regroup.

As such, I think the Republicans should come back with a list of legislative efforts aimed at setting things right, and maybe extracting a pound or two of flesh.

Guns:
1.) Immediate proposal to repeal the idiotic magazine ban.
2.) Immediate proposal to repeal the Universal Background Check law.
3.) Immediate proposal to repeal the gun show background check law.
4.) An open invitation to any and all companies related to guns and gun accessories to open up shop in Colorado. This should be accomplished by offering tax incentives and the like.*
5.) Incentives to aid in the construction of shooting ranges.
6.) Some sort of public support for Colorado's hunting, plinking, and competitive shooting cultures. I don't know what this would look like, but a bill geared at bringing back the hunters and competitions driven out of the state would be great. (I'd like to hear suggestions on what form that could take.)
7.) Allow anyone with a valid concealed carry permit to carry in schools.
8.) Constitutional carry.


Weed:
1.) Whatever it was that Morse was dragging his feet on regarding Amendment 64, get rid of it, and institute the will of the people.
2.) Get behind the bill to allow dispensaries access to financial institutions.

-This helps build a coalition with some of the hippy-libertarian types, and also allows them to play the "job creator" card, even if those jobs aren't the sort of thing a typical Republican would approve of.

Taxes/Business Development
1.) Look into passing bills that would incentivize BD in Colorado and boost job growth. (I'm not savvy enough to know what such a bill would look like.)


Rural Power
1.) I'm not familiar enough with this issue to weigh in, but the bill that caused power bills to go up for people in rural districts should probably be repealed.

General Infrastructure Development
1.) Propose bills to get back to the mainstay of government, which is to pave the roads.

Social Issues
Stay the fuck away from abortion, gay rights, or anything to do with the pill. That stuff's a third rail that will drive away libertarian types and moderate voters, and is the Democrat equivalent of the Bat Signal.




Would all of these bills pass?
Probably not, but the point should be to force the Democrats to blink. They're hurting right now, and a series of bills that would force them to either capitulate to us or double down on the same sort of idiocy that got two of their party leaders recalled is a win for us in either case. If they repeal the bills, things go back to being good. If they refuse to go along, it gives the Republicans yet another stick to beat their opponents with in the next election.


Thoughts?



*This offers us at least a couple of advantages. It gives the Republicans some talking points on helping to get Colorado's economy moving again, makes them look like job creators, and helps to build a base of businesses that have a vested interest in keeping Colorado pro-gun. MagPul did some amazing work fighting the idiotic gun control proposals, and I would love to live in a state that has a half-dozen Magpul-level companies.