Perhaps the criticism from those who support victims’ rights and/or the death penalty following Colorado’s Democratic Governor John Hickenlooper’s decision to grant clemency (sort of) to Chuck E. Cheese killer Nathan Dunlap shouldn’t come as a surprise. But Hick might have issues when the former chairman of the Colorado Democratic Party, pollster Floyd Ciruli, adds his own critique and prediction that Hick will “pay a political price”. From Ciruli’s own blog post last night:
“The reprieve approach, combined with his explanation, sounded confused. He apparently has ‘evolved’ to being anti-death penalty. Why not just say it and provide clemency? Hickenlooper claimed during his gubernatorial campaign in 2010 to be willing to enforce the death penalty. So, this decision makes him vulnerable to the charge of failing to keep a promise – a trait politicians are often accused of, and Hickenlooper hates to be considered just another politician.”
We couldn’t have said it better ourselves. But, Ciruli is right. His temporary reprieve, like so many of his “complex policy decisions” (if that’s what we’re calling them now) sounded muddled. And, as Ciruli correctly points out, the death penalty is popular:
“Hickenlooper recognized Colorado voters had approved it twice and national polls repeatedly show it has more than 60 percent support from the public.”
In Colorado, support for the death penalty is even higher. The Colorado Observer reported on a December 2012 poll by Dave Sackett’s The Tarrance Group, which polled the Centennial State about the controversial issue:
“…a whopping 68 percent of poll respondents saying they oppose abolishing the death penalty in Colorado, compared to just 27 percent who said they favored an end to capital punishment.”
Drilling down into the poll, The Tarrance Group uncovered sentiment specifically about Dunlap:
“Support for the death penalty jumped to 69 percent when respondents were told that abolishing the death penalty could lead to overturning Nathan Dunlap’s convictions for the grisly 1996 murders of four Denver-area Chuck E. Cheese restaurant employees.”
The problem with Hick’s approach to this, as well as other controversial issues (ahem, gun control), is that he thinks by explaining or taking (what he perceives to be) the middle road, he will seem reasoned. The truth is that the actions themselves speak so loudly that the din drowns out the accompanying explanation crafted by his team. The Governor ought to use his pulpit to rail for the little guy, in this case, the victims’ families. Instead, he stands up for a killer, a member of his staff, and his liberal base. Coloradans get it, no explanation needed.
I gather Colorado apportions using a non-partisan commission … so, it won't be easy for the GOP to use gerrymandering to undo Democratic gains. I've been seeing whether a right-wing journal wouldn't want me [a strong Democrat] to do an article on all the outroads the Republic party has made in what used to be very competitive territory. One very interesting example: Cook County, Illinois, and Chicago itself to a lesser extent. They used to be somewhat competitive – but now even the richest neighborhoods there are at least competitive, and really leaning Democratic …
Tom Tancredo's response to the Denver Post gives me hope:
http://www.denverpost.com/opinion/ci_23347601/tancredo-defends-his-record-candidacy
Hopefully is able to rally the party and more behind him. Virtually everywhere we look we have a left-leaning media and against that you're not afforded many mistakes. But I agree fully w/you Chris – too many times the GOP is their own worst enemy and seems to want to out play the DNC here at their own game.
I don't know. Hickenlooper has clearly made himself vulnerable, in a race that many thought would be a pretty easy win for the incumbent. But I don't see a whole lot of evidence out there that he or his party will suffer much. Maybe they will, or maybe they won't. I think that the fact that the GOP cannot recruit a top-tier candidate for the Senate race, and may struggle in the gubernatorial race, too, doesn't bode well against Hickenlooper.
Further, I can't believe that conservatives could only muster enough support for one or maybe two recalls. With redistricting, the fact of the matter may be that the Democrats have pretty effectively consolidated power. I sure hope not.
We're beginning to sound a lot like Cubs' fans here. We get destroyed when we shouldn't, and then vow to fight on and "get there next year." How many more elections do we have to lose before we admit that we've really lost the state? 2014, a low-turnout election after a dramatically liberal legislative session, combined with national scandals in the White House, all points to a very strong year for the GOP. And yet we're handing over the Senate race to Udall and may not be able to get close enough to Hick. 2016, with a much higher turnout and younger, more diverse electorate, won't be any easier.
I just don't sense that the GOP is serious about winning this state. And it really shows.