In this week's newsletter, we take a moment to celebrate the appointment of Chris Wright to head the Department of Energy. Nash Herman readies for the 2025 legislative session. Pam Benigno updates readers on an important conference she attended. Shayne Madsen explores improvements to the Colorado Open Records Act and Rob Natelson gives Texas some hope in the fight against illegal immigration.
It looks like Colorado is going to get some representation in the next Presidential administration. President-elect Trump officially announced Chris Wright, the founder and CEO of Denver-based Liberty Energy, as his choice to be the next Secretary of the Department of Energy.
He also revealed plans to have Wright join a newly created National Energy Council, a body comprised of members from all executive branch agencies involved in energy permitting, production, generation, distribution, regulation, and transportation tasked with cutting red tape and supporting American energy dominance.
Chris Wright grew up in the Centennial state and helped support its transformation into an oil and gas powerhouse during the Shale Revolution. He’s also been a major booster of other innovative and reliable energy sources, like advanced nuclear and geothermal.
Journalist Sherrie Peif shares a nuanced take on the recent election.
Tomorrow, Joshua Sharf is speaking to an Arapahoe County group about how retirement plans will change under the new administration.
The Fiscal Policy Center is also keeping a close eye on the Joint Budget Committee, which is meeting several days this week to discuss next year’s budget.
Did you know 46% of the voters in Colorado are unaffiliated? Have you ever wondered why? Hear from the experts at Independence Institute talk about the issues important to Colorado and how to bring some sanity to this increasingly leftist state.
Devil's Advocate with Jon Caldara is a current events show not to be missed. Each week it features lively - and sometimes heated - debates between elected officials, journalists, activists, concerned citizens, subject-matter experts, and hard-pressing host Jon Caldara, president of the Independence Institute. Jon is not afraid to express his "free-market" views, and his guests are not afraid to take on those opinions. It all makes for an informative, lively public affairs program.
PowerGab focuses on unique energy issues facing Colorado. Hosted by Amy Cooke, Independence Institute's Energy and Environmental Policy Center Director, and Jake Fogleman, Director of Policy. PowerGab tackles the complexities of energy policy and solutions for a broad audience to educate and illuminate all while having a few laughs along the way.
This podcast includes several series of commentaries about the Constitution. Each series will cover a different aspect of the document. This series thumbnails the lives of 14 American Founders and their specific contributions to the Constitution. It covers both well-known Founders, such as James Madison, and those who are lesser known, but who exercised an out-sized influence.
Recently, I mentioned attending the Coalition for Empowered Education’s Leadership Summit in California. Institute for Liberal Values was one of the primary organizers of the event. Never have I attended such a politically, religiously, and ethnically diverse conference. Though not all sessions were recorded, you can view panel presentations here.
The Coalition for Empowered Education is a Multi-Ethnic Coalition of parents, educators, and concerned citizens who oppose dogmatic, politicized agendas in K-12 education nationwide. They support pluralistic Ethnic Studies and counter the spread of radical agendas in the classrooms.
Students in California are required to take a course in Ethnic Studies. The radical left is pushing its own brand of curriculum. From the coalition’s website: “A pedagogically sound Ethnic Studies course promotes respect and understanding among students by teaching about ethnic groups’ diverse histories, cultures, obstacles faced, and contributions made to our nation. Unfortunately, instead, many schools around the country are inculcating kids in “critical consciousness” training, i.e., the supposed ability to see hidden systems of oppression everywhere around them.”
Denver Public Schools offers an Introduction to Ethnic Studies course, and beginning with 2027 graduates, the course will be required to graduate. To see the contents of the course, view this post by Parents Defending Education. It includes lessons such as “Building a Collective Society” and “Beyond Binary.”
Parents and school board members need to be on the look out for similar programs and meticulously examine all new curricula up for adoption.
Early in the morning after election night, I sat down with veteran Colorado Politics reporter Marianne Goodland to make sense of the night before. What does it all mean for Colorado?
A letter reveals the Colorado Governor's Office is beginning to worry about the price tag that comes along with wind, solar, and battery power for the state. PowerGab Hosts Jake Fogleman and Amy Cooke discuss this along with an update on local election results.
We at Independence Institute have been alarmed with the recent action by the Colorado Legislature to deny transparency by both exempting itself from Colorado’s Open Meetings laws and by denying access to records under the Colorado Open Records Act. We are moving to reinstate and strengthen transparency by convening a task force made up of groups from the right and the left as well as media groups to develop an action plan, whether by legislation or by going directly to the people on the ballot to establish real and permanent change. We will keep you posted.
I spoke before an audience of 250 at the Dallas (TX) Women's Club on Nov. 13. My presentation---on how, under the Constitution, states can respond to illegal immigration---was very well received. Several members of the audience told me that Texas was facing great pressure from unauthorized border crossings and that---contrary to gaslighting from the media---it was refreshing to know that state authorities actually can do something about it.
