Bill Ritter for Governor of Colorado

July 6 - Letter to Colorado Sportsmen

Dear Colorado Outdoorsmen,

The campaign trail is a breathtakingly beautiful place. Over the past year, I've visited every corner of Colorado and met with thousands of people in some of the most stunning natural settings this state has to offer. I've even managed to sneak away from the campaign trail for a few hours of solitude and fly fishing. We are blessed to live in Colorado. Our pristine wilderness areas, rivers, streams, and forestlands are second-to-none. The same goes for our rich history of hunting, fishing, and sportsmen activities. As governor, I will serve as a stubborn steward of the land. I will provide strong leadership that protects our outdoor heritage for generations to come. I will bring together sportsmen, conservationists, and others to stand up to Washington when necessary. I will seek a balanced approach when it comes to public access and private property rights. And I will make sure that outdoorsmen are well-represented on state boards and commissions.

As the November election draws near, I invite you to get involved in my campaign. We have created a Sportsmen's Page where you can read my Sportsmen and Our Great Outdoors position paper. You also can sign up to volunteer, receive Sportsmen News updates and weekly e-mails, request a yard sign, make a contribution, and view the latest photos and videos from the campaign trail. With your help, we can fulfill what I call the Colorado Promise. Please take action and get involved today!

Independence Day Parades

While Bill joined Creede's July Fourth celebrations, Barbara O'Brien marched in two Independence Day Parades, first in Vail and then later in Frisco.

July 5 - Congressman Beauprez 'Sells Out Western Colorado'

Gubernatorial candidate Bill Ritter today accused Congressman Beauprez of being out of touch with Colorado by voting in favor of energy legislation that much of the Western Slope strenuously opposes.

The Congressman co-sponsored H.R. 4761, known as the Deep Ocean Energy Resources Act (DOER). Opponents of the measure object to provisions that:

• Could rapidly accelerate exploration and production of oil shale deposits.
• Unravels the royalty rate process established in the Energy Policy Act of 2005 so that states and local communities could get a drastically reduced share.
• Requires the Bureau of Land Management to process drilling permits within 10 days or pay a fine to energy-company applicants.

"The Congressman proudly claims to be a supporter of local control," Ritter said. "Yet he just voted for a measure that hurts local communities. He claims nobody from local government contacted him beforehand to express concerns. But this was not a big secret. Newspaper editorials, environmental groups, and other members of Colorado's congressional delegation all sounded alarms. The Congressman very clearly was not listening to the people of Western Colorado. Once again, the Congressman is trying to have it both ways. He did it last week by flip-flopping on Amendment 38 and he's doing it again on this. If this is how he represents Colorado in Congress, what will he do as governor? The Junction Daily Blog said it best: `Beauprez sells out Western Colorado.'"

One of the most objectionable pieces of the legislation is the reduction of royalties. The current mineral-extraction royalty rate is 12.5%, with half going to the states for pass-through to local governments to offset the impacts of mineral exploration, development, and production. This new provision could reduce the rate to as low as 1%. In addition, Ritter said that accelerating oil-shale development and forcing the BLM to process permits within 10 days brings back fears of Colorado's boom-and-bust energy cycles, including "Black Sunday" in 1982.

"We absolutely must end our addiction to foreign oil and establish a secure and independent energy future," Ritter said. "But at a time when permit applications are at an all-time high, we need to move cautiously, not with a reckless abandon for water and air quality as well as our communities." Ritter encouraged Colorado's U.S. senators, Wayne Allard and Ken Salazar, to work with their Senate colleagues to reverse the damage caused by Congressman Beauprez and the House before this bill becomes law.

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Additional coverage in the Grand Junction Daily Sentinel - July 5: "Ritter: Beauprez is a 'sellout'

June 30 - Beauprez Flip-Flops on Amendment 38

Media and blog coverage of Beauprez's about-face on Amendment 38:
Denver Post	July 1 article:	"Beauprez slams it into reverse"
Rocky Mountain News	July 1 article:	"Beauprez switches Amendment 38 stand"
ColoradoLib.com	July 1 blog posting:	"Ritter firm on Amendment 38. Beauprez, not so much."
ColoradoPols.com	July 3 blog posting:	"Beauprez fuels 'Both Ways Bob' himself."
Denver Post	July 5 editorial:	"Beauprez should do the right thing again"
Rocky Mountain News	July 5 editorial:	"Never Mind, says Beauprez"
Full statement from Greg Kolomitz, campaign manager for Democratic candidate Bill Ritter, on Congressman Beauprez's Amendment 38 reversal: "Without question, Congressman Beauprez earned his `Both Ways Bob' nickname today. He can expect to wear it around his neck from now until Election Day. And I want a list of every other issue he's going to flip-flop on. We still don't know how the Congressman really feels about Amendment 38. It was politically expedient for him to support Amendment 38 when he faced a Republican primary. Now he doesn't have a primary fight, so he's changing his position based on the political tide, and that's not a responsible leadership quality. Flip-flopping on issues is a Washington-style political tactic. Congressman, Colorado is not Washington D.C. The Congressman's not-so-surprising flip-flop doesn't change the fact that he opposed Ref C and is still supporting Initiative 88. Colorado's business community and moderate Republicans are 180-degrees opposed to Initiative 88 and the Congressman is going to feel the heat. If he thinks flip-flopping on 38 is going to save him, he couldn't be more wrong."

June 30 - Ritter Lauded for Work as District Attorney

Republican DA's Praise Ritter & Deplore Attack Ad

Democratic gubernatorial candidate Bill Ritter denounced a Republican attack ad today, challenging Congressman Beauprez to disavow the statewide radio spot that distorts Ritter's record as District Attorney.

"I'm proud of my record as Denver's District Attorney," said Ritter, who served as Denver's top law enforcer from June 1993 to January 2005. "Our top priority was to protect the citizens of Denver and deliver a nationally recognized level of public safety. We were tough on crime and sent more habitual criminals and other offenders to prison than any other jurisdiction in the state. That includes El Paso County, where Colorado's current attorney general, John Suthers, served as DA. I'm proud of the work that the men and women of the Denver Police Department and Denver District Attorney's Office did while I was DA. This isn't just an attack on me. It's an attack on Denver's entire law enforcement community."

Ritter sent 12,006 defendants to prison while he was DA, nearly double the amount committed to prison by Colorado's other large counties. Jefferson County sent 6,474 and El Paso County sent 6,195 defendants to prison from 1993 through 2004.

Ritter called on Congressman Beauprez to immediately denounce the ads. "Anything short of a public condemnation says to me that he supports it," Ritter said. He encouraged members of the public to phone the congressman's campaign office at 303.996.8388 and urge him to denounce the ad. "For the Republicans to go negative with this kind of attack ad four months before Election Day is a clear sign that Congressman Beauprez is desperate and flailing," Ritter said. "He's trying to divert attention away from his own record. By opposing Referendum C last year - and supporting Initiative 88 and Amendment 38 this year - he's saying that he's not interested in fully funding the court system, the prison system or the state's law officers. The congressman has done nothing to fight crime here in Colorado. He can't have it both ways."

Republican district attorney's immediately deplored the ad's disgraceful mudslinging. "To say Bill is soft on crime is a gross misstatement of facts. His office served not only as a model in Colorado but nationally," said Tom Raynes, district attorney for the 7th Judicial District, which serves Gunnison, Montrose, Delta, Ouray, San Miguel, and Hinsdale counties.

"He's a man of great integrity and character. He did great things for prosecution in Colorado from the minute he took office right before the `Summer of Violence.'" said Larimer County's former Republican district attorney Stu Van Meveren: "I worked with Bill for many years and his integrity is beyond reproach. A district attorney has to make tough decisions and Bill did an outstanding job as Denver's DA."

Additional highlights of Ritter's career as Denver's DA:

• He took 1,632 felony cases to trial. He sought the death penalty seven times.
• He established one of the nation's first drug courts and the first in Colorado.
• His Economic Crimes Unit earned a national reputation and served as a model for the U.S. Attorney's Office. The unit attacked violent street gangs, white-collar criminals, and those who preyed on senior citizens. From 1992 to 2003, cases filed or handled by the Economic Crime Unit increased more than 400%.
• He increased the use of the grand jury in complex and gang cases considerably. Cases charged by grand jury indictments increased from one in 1992 to an average of 43 per year from 1999 to 2003. In 1996, Ritter indicted 10 leaders of the notorious Bloods street gang for racketeering.
• In 1997, long before the public recognised identity theft as a serious problem, he used the grand jury and the racketeering statute to prosecute a gang of identity thieves, sending its leader to prison for 72 years. In 2001 and 2002, Ritter broke up two large identity theft rings, charging more than 70 members of these organizations.
• He created the nation's first Victim Services' Network and was widely praised for his work on domestic and sexual abuse prosecution.
• He served as vice president of the National Association of District Attorneys, chairman of the American Prosecutors Research Institute, and on the board for the National Association of Drug Court Professionals.

June 30 - New Fundraising Mark Reached - Momentum Keeps Building

Democratic gubernatorial candidate Bill Ritter raised more than $360,000 in June, setting a new monthly fundraising record for the campaign. The figure brings the former Denver District Attorney's fundraising total to nearly $1.9 million. From January through May, Ritter out-raised Republican challenger Congressman Beauprez $822,000 to $588,000. That includes $156,000 that Ritter raised in April and $200,000 in May.

"We continue to gain momentum as we campaign in every corner of Colorado," Ritter said. "We're picking up support from business groups who want to preserve the gains we made from the passage of Ref C. We're generating support from our Republican friends across the political aisle who are frustrated with the inaction in Washington and inattentiveness, inconsistencies, and hypocrisies here at home. Outdoorsmen, conservationists, physicians, military veterans, senior citizens, and college students are all rallying around the campaign."

To date, the campaign has received 5,435 contributions - including contributions from 967 new donors in June - with an average donation amount of $257.

"One of the benefits of our strong fundraising numbers is that we've been able to make a significant media buy early in the campaign," campaign manager Greg Kolomitz said. "This allows us to lock in the best TV times at significantly lower rates than we would pay later in the year."

June 29 - RITTER CALLS ON BEAUPREZ TO REJECT WEDGE POLITICS

Democratic gubernatorial candidate Bill Ritter called on Congressmen Beauprez today to reject Washington-style wedge politics and push for speedy federal action on illegal immigration.

"In Colorado, the problem of illegal immigration has caused the governor to call the legislature back into special session, at a cost of $15,000 a day, to continue the pursuit of responsible, substantive immigration reforms," said Ritter. "This speaks to both the urgency of the issue and the importance of taking what limited actions that states can take to address the problem. "But in Washington, where the most meaningful immigration reform must occur, Congressman Beauprez and the Congressional leadership are playing typical wedge politics."

Congressional Republicans are refusing to convene a conference committee to reconcile differences between House and Senate immigration legislation. Instead, they are planning to hold "field hearings" around the country. Congressman Beauprez has joined U.S. Sen. Wayne Allard in asking for a hearing to be held in Colorado.

Ritter challenged Congressman Beauprez to call on Speaker of the House Dennis Hastert to end the stalemate and convene the conference committee.

"The field hearings are nothing more than symbolism over substance," Ritter said. "That's the kind of Washington-style inaction that got us to this place to begin with and it's exactly the kind of hypocrisy that we will not tolerate. Congress must act with the same sense of dispatch that we are moving forward with here in Colorado."