Colorado 1st

Colorado lawmakers promised voters that marijuana legalization would create a safer, regulated market. Track every plant from seed to sale. Test every product for safety. Build trust through transparency. But when hemp-derived THC flooded into the state's dispensaries, that promise started to crumble. Today, we investigate how toxic chemicals, an honor-system testing regime, and a $12-per-gram price collapse have allowed potentially dangerous products to slip past Colorado's once-model regulatory system.  Host Steve Hayward sits down with investigative reporters Chris Osher and Evan Wyloge to discuss their groundbreaking investigation—conducted in partnership with ProPublica—that reveals the scope of hemp infiltration in Colorado's marijuana market, and what it means for consumer safety.

Colorado's charitable bingo games bring in $110 million a year--but who runs the games, how are they regulated and where does the money go? Investigative reporter David Migoya found that some nonprofits get pennies on the dollar—and the state doesn't actually check whether games managers are convicted felons. 

Rep. Lauren Boebert defied the White House on the Epstein files vote--and then President Trump vetoed her signature water bill. Colorado Politics reporter Thelma Grimes takes us inside her exclusive interview with Boebert about what really happened in the Situation Room, whether she's changed as a lawmaker, and what comes next.

Colorado's economy is sending mixed signals--housing costs are rising, GDP growth is slowing, and regulations are piling up--yet the state is building rockets, pioneering farm technology, and has just landed the Sundance Film Festival. Denver Gazette investigative reporter Thelma Grimes takes us through her comprehensive "Fiscal Colorado" series, revealing why a single person needs $105,000 to live comfortably here and what that means for the state's future. From the aerospace dominance of Lockheed Martin to the surprising innovation happening in rural potato fields, this episode explores whether Colorado can maintain its competitive edge or if affordability will drive away the workers and families that fuel its economy.