Dan Walters: Former Lawmaker Dan Boatwright Was Colorful In All Ways

Colorado Gov. Jared Polis donned safety glasses and seized the handle of the electric saw, guiding the buzzing blade down through a stack of printed-out executive orders dating back decades. Polis’ pre-Christmas news conference was designed to highlight how he was repealing unnecessary regulations, and it caught the eye of a prominent Republican — one the Democratic governor’s party has grown to despise. “Nice work,” wrote Vivek Ramaswamy, the brash MAGA-disciple who President-elect Donald Trump tapped to help slash government spending, on the social media site X.

Matthew Ball, Denver’s policy director, won election to represent central and eastern Denver in the state Senate on Tuesday night, the third person elected to the legislature via a vacancy committee appointment in the past four days. Ball beat six opponents over five rounds of voting to replace outgoing Sen. Chris Hansen, who announced shortly after his reelection in November that he was taking a job leading the La Plata Electric Association.

Lawmakers were set to gather Wednesday morning at the State Capitol in Denver for the 120-day marathon of the upcoming legislative session. Stay tuned for updates on new developments by The Denver Post’s state government reporters. This story will be updated throughout the day. 10:40 a.m. update: The House and Senate are officially back at work for the 2025 session. After the early pomp and circumstance, plus a land acknowledgement from a Ute Mountain Ute tribal leader, the House began the session with two Republican lawmakers — Reps.

By LINDSAY WHITEHURST and MARK SHERMAN WASHINGTON — President-elect Donald Trump is asking the Supreme Court to call off Friday’s sentencing in his hush money case in New York. Trump’s lawyers turned to the nation’s highest court Wednesday after New York courts refused to postpone the sentencing by Juan M. Merchan, the judge who presided over Trump’s trial and conviction last May on 34 felony counts of falsifying business records. Trump’s attorneys asked for an immediate stay of Friday’s sentencing “to prevent grave injustice and harm to the institution of the Presidency and the operations of the federal government.” Related Articles National News | Gov.

Denver auditor Tim O’Brien plans a fresh review of a large portion of Denver International Airport’s $2.1 billion expansion after a follow-up of a 2023 audit found persistent oversight problems. “I’m concerned,” O’Brien said. “What we are recommending goes beyond just documentation. The whole procurement of contracts and subcontracts needs to be open and fair and competitive.” DIA officials on Tuesday said they aren’t considering any changes. “The airport remains confident that it has adequate controls in place to ensure proper oversight of its projects,” airport officials said in an emailed response to Denver Post questions. Launched in 2018, DIA’s expansion was budgeted to cost up to $770 million and be done within five years.

Legislative leaders gave a peek Tuesday at the fights coming to the Capitol, highlighted by a contentious proposal to reform laws around unionizing in the state, stabs at regulatory reform and efforts to patch a massive budget hole. Speaking on a panel hosted by the Denver Metro Chamber of Commerce ahead of the legislative session’s start Wednesday, the lawmakers emphasized a need to make Colorado more affordable while hinting at some of the ideas they’d pursue.  Senate President James Coleman, a Denver Democrat, endorsed the idea of reexamining business regulations and incentive packages designed to lure companies to the state.