Today’s Denver Post editorial entitled "Ritter: All Labor and Few Results" reveals an administration that is intellectually bankrupt and a governor who has no idea what he wants to do other than continue to reward labor union bosses for their millions of dollars in campaign contributions.
The Denver Post points out, "Unless he takes a stand on transportation and a number of other issues, Bill Ritter risks becoming a do-nothing governor."
But let’s give Governor Ritter credit for something. After being in office for nearly fifteen months, Governor Ritter’s "accomplishments" are illegally increasing property taxes by $3.8 billion--and climbing!--on homeowners and small business owners; turning over state government to union bosses by executive order; and releasing felons onto the streets by his handpicked Parole Board.
This is quite a contrast to his predecessor, Republican Governor Bill Owens, who in his first two years in office successfully cut taxes, reformed education and improved transportation with major pieces of legislation passed to accomplish that agenda.
CONVICTIONS, INVESTIGATIONS OF STRYKER CORPORATION DOG BILLIONAIRE HEIRESS PAT STRYKER AND HER BAGMAN AL YATES
Billionaire Heiress Pat Stryker and her Bagman Al Yates continue to get bad news after their “Foot On Throat” campaign against Republicans was exposed by the Rocky Mountain News on January 29, 2008.
A front page story in the Tuesday, March 11, 2008 edition of the Washington Times blared “Medical Supplier Stryker Probed” detailing a criminal investigation into the practices of the Stryker Corporation which is the source of Billionaire Heiress Pat Stryker’s inherited fortune and continued source of millions in personal income.
Billionaire Heiress Pat Stryker and her Bagman Al Yates will contend that she has nothing to do with the operation of the Stryker Corporation but according to the newspaper Fort Collins Now, she controls 30 percent of the Stryker Corporation’s stock and is worth at least $1.8 billion. So the same Billionaire Heiress who loves to throw millions of dollars into Colorado politics is powerless to do something about her corporation’s operations?
The Stryker Corporation was convicted of Medicare fraud in South Dakota in 2006 and paid a $345,000 fine.
This past November 2007, the Stryker Corporation was successfully prosecuted again by the Justice Department for submitting false claims to Medicare, Medicaid, and the Department of Defense’s TRICARE program for American military families and was fined $16.6 million. What a trifecta! In one fell swoop the Stryker Corporation was convicted of bilking the very federal programs that protect the poor, the elderly and American soldiers and their families.
And now the Washington Times reports that the Stryker Corporation is being investigated by the Justice Department’s Criminal Division for possible violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act which prohibits U.S. companies from paying bribes overseas
Every dollar that Billionaire Heiress Pat Stryker and her Bagman Al Yates spend in this election cycle as part of their “Foot On Throat” campaign against Republicans will be tainted by these convictions and investigations of the corporation from where she derives her billions in personal wealth.
Having watched Labor Union Bosses get their just rewards for spending millions to elect Governor Bill “Jimmy Hoffa” Ritter and Democratic legislative majorities, Trail Lawyers are now getting their share of the largess.
Senate Democrats rammed through a Trial Lawyer Pay-Off bill through committee that would encourage costly lawsuits against doctors and drive up health care costs for patients.
To their credit, Democratic State Senator Bob Hagedorn and Bill Lindsay, who chaired the 208 Health Care Commission, publicly joined Senate Republicans in opposing SB 164.
Governor Ritter so far has been silent about the Trial Lawyer Pay-Off bill.
Governor Bill Ritter has been pretty busy this past year increasing property taxes on homes and businesses, turning over state government to union bosses, and trying to increase auto registration fees by $100 per year. But apparently he found time to direct his Parole Board appointees to release convicted felons early.
The Denver Post reports today that “More Inmates Leaving Prison Early” due to discretionary actions by the Parole Board that he almost entirely appointed. Early releases are up more than 38 percent since Governor Ritter took office following the much tougher policies under former Governor Bill Owens.
It will be interesting to see how Governor Bill “Early Release” Ritter’s fellow Democrats in the state legislature respond to State Senator Josh Penry’s calls for a state audit and hearings in the Senate Judiciary Committee on this dramatic and potentially dangerous change of parole policy.
While Colorado was fixated on Precinct Caucuses last week, the Democratic legislative majority continued to back Governor Bill “Jimmy Hoffa” Ritter while killing bills to protect the integrity of the voting process.
What is it about liberal Democrats that they just can’t bring themselves to vote for a common sense requirement to show some form of identification before being allowed to vote? Who are they protecting by opposing such an identification requirement?
A bill by Senate Minority Leader Andy McElhany of Colorado Springs and Representative Frank McNulty of Highlands Ranch would have required proof of citizenship to be allowed to register to vote. The Democratic majority recoiled from such an outlandish idea and killed the bill.
Meanwhile, Senate Democrats stayed in line with who the Denver Post has dubbed the “Jimmy Hoffa” of Colorado, Governor Bill Ritter, and killed a bill that would have repealed the executive order that turned over state government to union bosses. Paying back those union bosses for their millions in 2006 campaign contributions, the governor signed the executive order on a dark late Friday afternoon in November when he thought no one would notice.
Senate Democrats continued to show their deep appreciation to their union boss financiers by killing a bill by Senator Shawn Mitchell of Broomfield that would have reversed the labor union payback executive order.
The deeper we get into the 2008 legislative session, the real agenda of Governor Bill “Jimmy Hoffa” Ritter and his Democratic majority continues to be exposed.
