Winners and the loser

Lawmakers hand Doug Bruce the distinction of being the session's biggest clunker. The high point? Not so clear.

By Lynn Bartels, Rocky Mountain News (Contact)

Tuesday, May 6, 2008

Ken Papaleo / The Rocky

Rep. Douglas Bruce, R-Colorado Springs, was the biggest loser of the 2008 session. He kicked a photographer and referred to seasonal workers as "illiterate peasants" among other missteps.

The biggest loser of the 2008 legislative session?

That's easy.

Lawmakers, lobbyists and longtime Capitol observers - polled for their take on winners and losers this session - pointed to Rep. Douglas Bruce as a loser.

The Colorado Springs Republican turned into a one-man headline machine. He so antagonized his colleagues they refused to vote with him even when they thought he was right.

The winners?

Well, the answers are much less clear cut.

Democrats control the House and the Senate and the governor's office, but Republicans said it was an extraordinary year for the GOP.

Gov. Bill Ritter got behind one of their key education bills. They avoided devisive social issues that made them look silly in past elections. They had a clear message during the budget debate: In a bad economy, the state should save more, spend less.

"We drove the agenda on many levels - and stopped some proposals from the other side of the aisle," said Rep. Rob Witwer, R-Genesee.

"They've gotten a lot of press coverage, but they didn't drive any agenda," countered House Majority Leader Alice Madden. "They got things done where Democrats agreed with them."

Majority party reviews

Madden, D-Boulder, pointed out that when Republicans controlled the legislature, bills often were killed soley because they were sponsored by Democrats. Only Republicans and several hand-picked Democrats were allowed to carry high-profile bills.

"Now if someone has a good idea, it's a good idea. There's no monopoly on good ideas," she said.

Democratic leaders drew mixed reviews.

Senate President Peter Groff, D-Denver, was universally praised for bucking the teachers' unions in pushing for education reforms. "Not many senators can say that the other 34 like them. Peter can," said Sen. Josh Penry, R-Grand Junction.

But others panned Groff's laidback style, saying his caucus appeared to have no clear agenda.

House Speaker Andrew Romanoff the witty political wunderkind, often is called the poster child for why term limits are bad. But the Denver Democrat saw his constitutional reform plan unravel in the final weeks.

Minority party news

As for the minority leaders, Rep. Mike May, of Parker, was lauded for refusing to be bullied by Bruce.

Beloved Sen. Andy McElhany, of Colorado Springs, who used to jokingly call his own colleagues the "geezer caucus," is also considered one of the casualties of term limits.

But the real winners, pundits say, are the people of Colorado who are close to letting out a big sigh of relief: By law, the session must end by midnight Wednesday.

Mixed bag under the gold dome

WINNERS

Thirsty procrastinators: Starting July 1, Coloradans will be able to buy liquor on Sunday, ending the state's Prohibition-era "blue law" banning such sales.

* Rep. Christine Scanlan: The Dillon Democrat just took office in January but got rave reviews, from her performance on the House Education Committee to fighting to stop tolls on Interstate 70.

* Kids: More youngsters will be in preschool and full-day kindergarten than ever before. More kids will get health care, and more disabled children and their families will receive services.

* Political consultants: They stand to make a killing this year, fighting for the passage of or defeat of a record number of ballot initiatives, some spawned because of what happened - or didn't happen - under the gold dome.

* Rep. Rob Witwer: The Genesee Republican, hailed on both sides for brains and political saavy, leaves office this year to spend more time with his wife and four young sons.

* Crumbling schools: Several bills addressed the need to repair or build school buildings, both for K-12 and higher education.

* Rep. Bernie Buescher: The perennial voice of reason in the House, the Grand Junction Democrat took on a variety of issues while leading the Joint Budget Committee. Many consider him an odds- on favorite to be House Speaker next year.

LOSERS

* Purple Heart recipients: A bill to give post- 9/11 medal winners free tuition died after Colorado's ailing colleges and universities pointed out they couldn't afford it.

* GOP gender gap: Female Democrats outnumber or nearly equal their male counterparts the House and the Senate. It's a different story with the GOP. Only four women are among the 25 House Republicans, and one woman among the 15 Senate Republicans.

* Former Rep. Mike Garcia: The Aurora Democrat was a shoo-in to win his Senate race this fall but resigned his seat and dropped out of politics in February after a lobbyist complained he unzipped his pants and made lewd comments to her at a bar.

MIXED BAG

* The Lancer Lounge: The Denver bar got lots of publicity, but probably not the best kind, after reports that Garcia exposed himsef to a lobbyist after they played a game of pool.

* Rep. Larry Liston, R-Colorado Springs: His own caucus was furious after he called unwed teenage parents "sluts," but Liston turned it around by apologizing and later meeting with teen mothers.

* Pot of gold: Gov. Bill Ritter dipped into $2.7 billion of oil and gas money the state expects to get over the next decade to revive higher education building projects and create a "rainy day" fund. Republicans said the bonanza spared Ritter and his fellow Democrats from making tough choices.

* Election jitters: Secretary of State Mike Coffman decertified most of the state's electronic voting machines in December, prompting lawmakers to introduce a bill requiring paper ballots. County clerks balked, Coffman recertified the machines and the bill was pulled. But voters remain leery.

Coffman's fellow Republicans and the Democrats called him a flip-flopper who contributed to possible chaos on Election Day.