The More Guns the Merrier

I tried to bronze a mouse once. It didn’t go well.

Democrats have enough political bullets to shoot down several gun measures being introduced at the State Capitol. As Jennifer Brown of The Denver Post reports after the jump:

Senate Democrats are winning the gun battle at the state Capitol so far this year. The Senate State Affairs Committee, known unofficially as a graveyard for bills that leadership wants killed, shot down a proposal Monday to expand Colorado’s “make my day” law.

The three Democrats on the five-member committee rejected legislation that would have allowed business owners to shoot threatening intruders, as homeowners are already permitted to do.

The bill’s demise came three days after Senate Democrats thwarted attempts by Republicans to hijack a Democrat-sponsored bill that would tighten restrictions on concealed weapons.

Colorado Confidential’s Cara DeGette has more on the death of the “Make My Day Better” bill:

Colorado’s so-called “Make My Day Better” bill, which was approved two weeks ago by the House of Representatives with a four-vote majority, has been killed by Senate Democrats.

The proposal, by Rep. Cory Gardner (R-Yuma) and Sen. Ted Harvey (R-Highlands Ranch), would have expanded Colorado’s Make My Day law, which enables people to use deadly force against intruders in their homes, into stores and other businesses. The original bill also allowed people to use deadly force when they felt threatened in their vehicles, but that provision was removed before passing the House.

A number of concerns were raised over HB 1011, including that disagreements could quickly escalate into murderous violence.

Sen. Sue Windels (D-Arvada) also expressed concern that the proposal didn’t specify who could shoot whom in the place of business, meaning, ostensibly, that anyone who comes into a business uninvited could be shot – with the shooter claiming that he or she felt threatened.

Gun rights advocates are furious over the decision, and why shouldn’t they be? You should be allowed to shoot anybody, anytime, anywhere. It worked in the Wild West.

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Former Republican Rep. Scott McInnis made a formal step toward a long-expected run for the U.S. Senate in 2008. John Ensslin of the Rocky Mountain News has more:

The Glenwood Springs Republican announced that he is forming an exploratory committee. A formal announcement is not expected until later this year.

“I have been out in the field several weeks listening to the people of Colorado,” McInnis said in a prepared statement. “I will continue to seek their advice in determining what is best for our state, and this nation, with regard to the Senate race.”
His announcement came as no surprise. McInnis has been mentioned as a possible candidate for the seat since Allard announced in January that he would keep a term limit pledge and step down in 2008.

McInnis stepped down from Congress in 2002, also honoring a term limit pledge. He currently works as a lobbyist for Hogan and Hartson in Denver.

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Governor Bill Ritter was in Washington D.C. yesterday for a gathering of the National Governor’s Association and a meeting with President Bush. As M.E. Sprengelmeyer of the Rocky Mountain News reports:

Gov. Bill Ritter never got a chance to ask President Bush about renewable energy during a meeting Monday.

Still, he helped the nation’s governors present a united front on health care funding, education and National Guard issues during a visit to the White House.

Ritter is making his debut appearance at the National Governors Association’s winter meetings in Washington, D.C.

During the governors’ customary meeting with the president, Ritter had hoped to question Bush’s proposal to trim 3 percent from the budget of the National Renewable Energy Laboratory in Golden.
He never got the chance, and he told reporters later that he would “have to take that up through other channels.”

Still, Ritter called the meeting productive because, as a group, the governors shared some of their common concerns.

Many are concerned about funding for children’s health insurance programs administered by states. They’ve asked Bush to help states get more flexibility in the No Child Left Behind education reforms. And they told Bush that the Iraq war is taking a toll on National Guard units and the equipment they need to prepare for state emergencies.

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Democratic Presidential contender John Edwards will visit the Auraria campus on Thursday as part of his tour of college campuses. Edwards will be at the Tivoli Turnhalle at 3:45 p.m.

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For those of you hanging on every move over at the state legislature, the following bills are scheduled for committee hearings today in the senate:

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The debate over oil drilling isn’t just about the black gold