We all remember Democrat’s outrage over civil unions legislation that died during the 2012 special session. Civil unions would have passed on the House floor, and the Democrats’ line at the time was that the GOP should allow it a debate and vote before the full chamber.
All eyes on Speaker Dickey Lee Hullinghorst
In order to prevent that, however, leadership sent the bill to a so-called “kill committee” where the members represent safe districts and can confidently vote down legislation without fear of political consequences.
Now, the Democrats hold the majority in the House and appear poised to employ this exact same tactic with Senate Bill 175, which would repeal the arbitrary magazine limit set a few years ago. As a result of the mag ban limit, jobs were literally driven out of Colorado. Magpul Industries Corp., formerly located in Erie, left the state because of the limit and has been up and running in Wyoming for months.
SB 175 already passed the Senate Judiciary Committee on Monday, and it is expected to pass on the Senate floor with bipartisan support.
At that point, all eyes will turn to House Speaker Dickey Lee Hullinghorst to see if she assigns the bill to a “kill committee” or allows it to reach the House floor where it is likely to pass. House Republicans have already attempted a repeal of the mag limit with House Bill 1009, but the House State Affairs Committee quickly killed that in February – essentially, not a good sign for the Senate led effort.
True to form, Gov. John Hickenlooper was mum on the issue at a press conference yesterday. He refused to say if the mag ban repeal deserves floor debate in the House. Clearly, if you’re a Democrat, only the bills you support deserve floor debate.
Look, we get it. Sometimes bills just aren’t allowed a fair hearing because of politics. Our point is this: that sucks. No matter what side of the aisle you’re on.