Welcome to the first actual new Substack edition of the Get More Smarter Podcast, thank you for being a subscriber! We’ll add some additional notes you won’t get on any other platform in these, preview guests, and generally get all up in your inboxes. This episode was especially fun to record, even though it’s just Ian and Jason. The intro for this episode is brought to you by Ian’s son Davis. We talk about Dark Brandon’s secret trip to Kyiv which, for some reason, really upset the used-to-be-pretty-tough-on-Russia-party. Governor Jared Polis has a 61% approval rating, 53% of Coloradans say that the state is heading in the right direction, AND the Colorado State Legislature which is one Senate Seat short of a Democratic supermajority in both chambers, has a 47.3% approval rating, in a new poll from a REPUBLICAN INTEREST GROUP.
Democrats cleaned up in special elections all over the country, including special elections for the New Hampshire House of Representatives (the third largest legislative body IN THE WORLD, it turns out), the Wisconsin Supreme Court (well it’s actually headed to a runoff but Democratic candidates outperformed Republican candidates and got a majority of the vote so they should win the runoff), and a congressional special election in Virginia. So, are Democrats Really Good? Yes!
And just in case you were getting too excited, here’s 538 to pour cold water on your enthusiasm.
In response to the President’s visit to Ukraine, our 8th favorite congressperson from Colorado said we should stop giving Ukraine money while habitual-Vladimir-Putin-praiser Donald Trump praised Vladimir Putin.
Colorado Republicans are trying to elect a new chair and every single candidate is a 2020 election denying conspiracy theorist. Every one. There isn’t even a person running just to represent basic reality. We don’t believe that the election of a new chair, especially if they’re out of this particular pool, will break the Colorado GOP’s several-cycle-long losing streak. So, are Republicans Really Bad? Yes!
A former candidate for GOP chair, Stephen Varela, changed his party affiliation *18 times* and even did it twice in one day!
Guns are still a problem, suicides, homicides, and general gun violence just keeps increasing, and more and more guns just keep making their way into the streets. Could these two facts possibly be related? Not if you ask openly racist claymore mine lobbyists, Rocky Mountain Gun Owners, but the good news is that basically nobody cares what they think anymore, unless you’re one of the 31 out of 100 lawmakers in Colorado who happen to be Republicans. That’s right, only 31% of the state’s lawmakers are members of the GOP, and you can really actually thank RMGO for that in many ways.
Some rich guy meanwhile is pretending to be moderate while pushing legislation and potential ballot efforts to try and save the Colorado GOP from themselves by eliminating the caucus candidate nominating process while at the same time Colorado GOP chair candidates are trying to close the primary off to Unaffiliated voters. Things are going great over there.
Some Libertarian lady threw shade directly at State Sen. Barb Kirkmeyer in a committee hearing, and we’ve got the audio!
Larry Sabado’s Crystal Ball House ratings are out, and two Colorado seats make the list. Both Congresswoman Yadira Caraveo (CO-08) and Congresswoman Lauren Boebert (CO-03) are on the list, Lean Dem and Lean Republican respectively. Wife of the show, Congresswoman Brittany Pettersen (CO-07), however, despite being Lean Dem or Likely Dem in many forecasts over 2022 (don’t ask how Ian knows this) isn’t on this list or any others that have been published so far.
We also found one of the most horrendous anti-Semitic clips we’ve seen in a very long time thanks to, you guessed it, Florida.
Warm up those brains, plug in those headphones, and get ready to GET MORE SMARTER. Listen to the pod above or on any of your favorite podcatchers by clicking here.
Okay, here’s the episode boilerplate:
This week on the Get More Smarter Podcast, are Colorado Democrats really good, or are Colorado Republicans really bad? We have a one word answer for you. In the worst game of musical chairs ever played in Colorado, who will lead the Colorado GOP into the next era of electoral failure, finger pointing, backstabbing, and utter delusion? We take bets!
Speaking of sore losers, we’ve got another tragic tale of a Colorado Republican trying to save themselves from themselves and, if we had to guess, it’s not looking good. Democrats are bringing bills to a gunfight; how many Republicans will misplace loaded firearms in the Capitol during this latest effort to curb mass shootings? The battle for the U.S. House majority in 2024 runs right through Colorado, but the districts in play will look very different this time around. And finally, anti-Semitism is alive and well in America. Who could possibly be to blame for such a thing?
NEW PODCAST: The Answer is: Yes!