Dave Williams, the chair of the Colorado Republican Party, has used his position to put pressure on fellow Republicans who he deems not conservative enough. Earlier this year, he negotiated an agreement with Colorado Libertarian leadership that would encourage Libertarian candidates to run against insufficiently conservative Republicans.
"So everybody, send money to the GOP."
The Colorado Republican Party today not only announced its censure of state Sen. Larry Liston (R-Colo Springs), but shared a video calling on him to resign immediately.
The state Republican leadership’s failure to opt out of Colorado’s open primary at Saturday’s central committee meeting garnered the headlines, but another significant rule change did pass, with less fanfare if not less controversary. After a short debate and a “standing count” rule vote tally determined solely by Chair Dave Williams, the Colorado GOP changed its bylaws to allow leaders to both endorse and oppose their own candidates in primary elections, a likely unprecedented break from the longstanding party neutrality.
The GOP’s Centennial Dinners tend to have a notable guest, but Lake’s presence at the event shows an escalation from the past years.
The Colorado Republican Party spent nearly twice as much money as it raised last month. The party’s latest FEC filing shows it raised a little over $12,000 while spending about $22,000. The almost $10,000 shortfall equals the amount spent on party officers and staff, either for direct payments or travel reimbursement.
Last week a group of Coloradans filed a lawsuit to prevent Donald Trump from running for President in the state.
In May, the Colorado Sun reported on the Colorado Republican Party’s financial woes — they failed to pay any employees in April and only had about $1,500 in cash at the end of March. During an appearance on the Chuck and Julie Show on Monday, Ashe Epp, a former host of Joe Oltmann’s Conservative Daily podcast and a current columnist with the Glendale Cherry Creek Chronicle, claimed that the GOP’s financial problems stemmed from bonuses taken by former members of party leadership.
As many as five candidates are hoping to replace Priscilla Rahn, who resigned in late June, just three months into her second term to run for Douglas County Commissioner. Of the five potential candidates, four have publicly questioned the legitimacy of recent elections, from raising doubts about the potential for forged signatures to flat-out insisting that the 2020 election was rigged in favor of President Biden.
“I don't want to drag myself down and respond in kind. I'd rather not mention names. I'd rather stand on some general principles."
