Congressional Exodus and Colorado’s Political Reckoning

On December 14, 2023, Kim Monson explores the growing exodus of congressional Democrats with Epoch Times reporter Mark Tapscott and examines Colorado’s most consequential political battles of the year with policy analyst Pam Long, a former Army captain and West Point graduate. The Best and Worst of Colorado Politics 2023 Start listening at 73:16 – Hour 2 Pam Long delivers a comprehensive assessment of Colorado’s political landscape in 2023. The former Army captain and West Point graduate awards the best legislative victory to Rocky Mountain Gun Owners for defeating the assault weapons ban, noting that five bills to restrict gun rights were introduced and four were signed into law by Governor Polis. The worst state policy award goes to the fallout from 2020’s defund the police legislation. FBI data now ranks Colorado fourth highest nationally for combined property and violent crime rates, third for property crime, and eighth for violent crime. Denver specifically ranks third in property crime, fourth in motor vehicle theft, and 20th in violent crime compared to other U.S. cities. Long awards best defense of TABOR to fiscal hawk Natalie Metten, whose articles educated voters on how local governments could reduce property taxes without Proposition HH. The worst attack on TABOR goes to Governor Polis and the deceptive language of SB 23-303, which attempted to steal TABOR refunds for generations. The special session cost taxpayers $96,000 for four days and delivered only 0.065% property tax relief. Secretary of State Jenna Griswold earns worst elected official for her press tour promoting a lawsuit to remove President Trump from the 2024 ballot based on an incitement charge he has never been formally charged with. Long questions whether Griswold disqualified herself from supervising fair elections through her demonstrated bias. The best grassroots support for public decency goes to Castle Rock, where 75 men wearing Stand Up for Children shirts blocked a Pride Fest stage after elected officials failed to act on community concerns. The town council subsequently updated decency codes for taxpayer-funded venues. “Colorado as of 2022 has ranked fourth highest nationally for combined property and violent crime rates, according to the FBI data. Colorado ranks third in the nation for property crime rates and eighth in the nation for violent crime rates.” Pam Long, Children’s Health Defense Mortgage Rates Drop as Fed Signals 2024 Cuts Start listening at 24:08 – Hour 1 Lorne Levy breaks down the Federal Reserve’s latest decision to hold rates steady and signals plans for three rate cuts in 2024. The mortgage specialist explains how the 10-year Treasury yield dropping below 4% has already pushed mortgage rates from their 8% peak down into the mid-6% range. Levy notes this creates immediate opportunities for homeowners with 7% or 8% mortgages to refinance, and for prospective buyers who were priced out of the market to reconsider their options. Veterans and FHA borrowers have particularly attractive streamline refinancing options available, with rates now in the lower 6% range. Levy emphasizes the adage about marrying the home and dating the rate, suggesting now may be the time to act before rates potentially fall further. “The mortgage market is loosely tied to the 10-year U.S. Treasury, which used to be at 0.5 when rates were in the 2.5s. It went all the way up across 5 when rates hit 8%. It broke back down under four yesterday.” Lorne Levy, Polygon Financial Group Democrats A...