A top Democratic lawmaker Saturday accused a Republican campaign group of breaking the law by making automated phone calls criticizing seven Democratic lawmakers’ votes during the special session on immigration.
Democratic House Majority Leader Alice Madden said Trailhead Group violated state lobbying laws when it urged callers to contact the lawmakers because neither the group nor its executive director is a state-registered lobbyist.
But Alan Philp, Trailhead’s executive director, said the group has not “done anything illegal.” The phone calls were “issue advocacy,” not lobbying, he said.
“Alice Madden is, once again, trying to politicize the Capitol, and it’s unfortunate,” he said.
The news came the same day that Republican Gov. Bill Owens, a founding member of Trailhead, blasted a Democratic proposal to limit services to illegal immigrants as “ineffectual.”
Asked if it was appropriate for Trailhead to attack Democrats as Owens was working on immigration policy, spokesman Dan Hopkins said he did not want to answer because he can’t be associated with Trailhead.
Hopkins said Owens “has nothing to do with the day-to-day decisions of Trailhead.”
Staff writer Chris Frates can be reached at 303-820-1633 or cfrates@denverpost.com.
