Happy Valentine’s Day to all our readers out there. For this week’s round-up of extremism, we are looking at some anti-trans activism, another Project 2025 author joining the Trump Administration, and a convicted felon being elected chair of the Jefferson County GOP. We are featuring two articles from James O’Rourke who looked into anti-trans activists’ plans for the coming years and Trump’s appointment of Kathleen Sgamma, an oil and gas lobbyist, to lead the Bureau of Land Management. Owen Swallow gives an update on the Colorado GOP’s ongoing feud with a Durango school district and the divide that is beginning to form between La Plata County Republicans and State GOP leaders. Finally, we are featuring reporting from Westword’s Hannah Metzger, who covered Rich Wyatt’s ascension to lead the Jefferson County GOP. Wyatt, a convicted felon and election denier, first made a name for himself on a shortlived reality TV show that featured his Wheat Ridge gun shop, which he would later be convicted of running without a license.
As Trump Steps Up Anti-Trans Attacks, Activists in Colorado Revive Ballot Initiatives Targeting Transgender People
Galvanized by the Trump administration’s growing hostility to trans youth, anti-trans activists in Colorado like the Colorado Parent Advocacy Network (CPAN) and Gays Against Groomers (GAG) renewed their efforts to limit the types of care trans people can receive. Lori Gimelshteyn, the director of CPAN, is one of a handful of activists, predominantly from the Christian right, who tried to several initiatives on Colorado’s ballot last year, but these measures failed to qualify for the ballot. Another anti-trans activist, Rich Guggenheim went to the capitol to support HB25-1068, which would have allowed insurance companies to deny malpractice insurance to doctors who offer gender-affirming care had it passed. In his testimony, Guggenheim implied he was a medical doctor. In actuality, Guggenheim has a Ph.D. in plant science and is not a licensed medical professional. Guggeinheim and other activists have been trying to revive these anti-trans measures in 2025 after failing to convince enough Coloradans that they were even worth putting on last year’s ballot.
Brief: Colorado Oil & Gas Advocate Nominated to Lead Bureau of Land Management Worked With Boebert on Legislation
Trump has nominated Kathleen Sgamma, president of the Western Energy Alliance (which advocates for policies that benefit oil and gas companies), to serve as head of the Bureau of Land Management. Sgamma ties to right-wing politics run deeper than her oil and gas advocacy, as she authored the energy section of the now infamous “Project 2025”, the extremist agenda put forth by The Heritage Foundation to lay out the groundwork for the next Republican President. Project 2025 proved to be too radical for most voters and the Trump campaign distanced itself from the effort, but once in office, it has been adopting key parts of the platform. Sgamma’s nomination was praised by Rep. Lauren Boebert who has worked with Sgamma to try to loosen regulations on oil drilling.
Brief: Colorado GOP Officials Want Trump Administration to ‘Freeze’ Funding to Durango School District
State GOP leaders held a meeting with La Plata County Republicans to discuss the next steps they plan to take against a Durango school district over their decision to allow pride flags to be displayed. However, some La Plata Republicans disagreed with how State GOP officials were going about their campaign, saying that threats made in the paper were damaging to the Republican Party’s image, especially in Durango. Nevertheless, State party leaders say they still plan on bringing a lawsuit and will try to get the Trump administration to freeze funding to the school district.
Westword: Jefferson County GOP Elects Ex-Reality TV, Convicted Felon as Party Chair
The Jefferson County Republican Party recently elected Rich Wyatt as chair. Wyatt gained notoriety for appearing on American Guns, a reality show that ran on Discovery Channel and featured Wyatt and his gun store in Wheat Ridge. After the show finished airing, Wyatt surrendered his firearms license due to violating federal law and regulations. He was then sentenced to 78 months in prison in 2016 for conspiracy, dealing firearms without a license, and failing to report over $1.1 million in income to the IRS. More than a convicted felon and ex-reality star, Wyatt is also a vocal 2020 election denier. Wyatt takes over from former GOP Chair Nancy Pallozzi, who was formerly criticized for her petition to remove Dave Williams as current Colorado GOP Chair.
