A sampling of recent editorials from Colorado newspapers:
NATIONAL:
Aurora Sentinel, Aug. 3, on U.S. debt deal:
Failure was never an option.
For all the heated talk among members of Congress, a debt deal was hammered out, approved and signed by President Obama this week.
It averted what was sure to be an economic catastrophe that would have shaken not just our nation’s financial system, but the world itself. As banks and governments would have taken the hit from a diminished U.S. credit rating, it’s clear the effects would quickly trickle down to higher costs for businesses of all sizes and consumers rich and poor alike.
The severity of this vote was not lost on Aurora’s congressional contingent, as both Reps. Ed Perlmutter, a Democrat, and Mike Coffman, a Republican, joined together in the House to send the bill on to the Senate and ultimately the President’s desk.
More telling is that our senators—Mark Udall and Michael Bennet—joined the ‘ayes’ despite very vocal objections to the deal, which (by most accounts from Beltway insiders) favored the demands of Republicans.
That we have representatives in Washington, unsatisfied with a pact that was “bipartisan” inasmuch that it received votes from both sides of the aisles, who still voted for the best interests of Coloradans and the country as a whole is encouraging for the coming year of legislative work leading to the 2012 general election.
And there’s plenty of work to be done.
There are a mountain of issues left untouched in the deal to raise the debt ceiling and cut $2.1 trillion from the budget over the course of a decade. The “Gang of Six” will give way to a joint committee of six Democrats and six Republicans to negotiate a way to slash about $1.2 trillion from the federal rolls by Thanksgiving for action by Congress before year’s end.
If this “super congress” of representatives does not complete its task in time, there’s a slate of programs and departments that will automatically receive $1.2 trillion in cuts.
Simply put, they have three and a half months to determine the kindest cuts possible, and virtually everything is on the table. This includes defense spending, Medicare and Medicaid and Social Security.
There are plenty of frameworks for this joint committee to work from, including the failed talks led by Vice President Joe Biden prior to the final version of the debt deal.
But we’ve seen just how drawn-out these spending debates can be. It’s time to call on our elected officials to again show their aptitude for getting deals done by urging their colleagues in the “super congress” to make the right moves to protect core services and programs that benefit the quality of life for Colorado residents.
The debt deal was just the beginning. There is much left to accomplish to maintain the full faith and credit of the United States, and failure is not an option.
Editorial:
———
The Daily Sentinel, Aug. 7, on the national economy:
Wall Street watchers witnessed a wild ride Aug. 5. When they opened, markets rose rapidly on the news of better-than-anticipated jobs numbers.
But the gains quickly evaporated with more disturbing news of potential European-nation insolvency.
By midday, the Dow Jones industrial average was back up—138 points ahead of the Aug. 4 bleak closing. But it fell again, then regained some of the loss and ended the day 15 points to the good.
That Friday’s stock market gyrations could be a metaphor for the economy as a whole right now. There are sparks of encouragement quickly followed by embers of disappointment.
Furthermore, no one seems to know which signposts are most meaningful. How much of a threat do Europe’s financial travails pose to the U.S. economy? What about emerging problems in China and Japan? Will the debt deal hammered out last week to prevent the possibility of a U.S. government default ultimately be good or the economy or not?
The dollar is getting stronger and oil prices are dropping, but neither seems to generate the same economic enthusiasm as they once did.
The number of jobs created in July was more than that of May and June combined—much higher than economists expected—and was particularly strong in the private sector. But job expansion in the manufacturing sector appears to have stalled, along with new manufacturing orders.
The “Black Swan” effect has always been present—those unexpected events that throw economic forecasts out the window. But there seem to be more black swans than ever now.
In short, the economy staggers from the good to the bad like a drunken man stumbling down a narrow hallway, bouncing from one side to the other.
We can only hope this binge of confusion, contradictory information and lost confidence is nearing an end, and a more steady economic road is before us, even if it does head uphill for the immediate future.
Editorial:
———
STATE:
The Denver Post, Aug. 6, on Colorado Court of Appeal’s upholding of secret ballot law:
A recent Colorado Court of Appeals decision upholding the casting of secret ballots by public officials is an astonishing break with the intent of the state’s open meetings laws.
The court ruled there was nothing in the state’s sunshine laws that explicitly required Fort Morgan City Council members to reveal how each of them voted to fill several vacant positions.
We disagree with the court’s legal analysis in the case and worry about the decision’s potential reverberations.
It’s not too outlandish to think that any number of county commissions, school boards, special districts or even the General Assembly could use this decision as legal backing to conduct secret votes on public business.
It cannot be allowed to stand.
We hope the matter will be appealed to the state Supreme Court and ultimately overturned.
We were heartened to see in The Post’s news story on the decision that several state lawmakers are ready to address the issue if the ruling stands.
We hope they don’t wait for high court action, which could take a while. If public bodies were to begin to use the ruling as justification for casting votes without ever having to be individually accountable for them, it would be terrible policy.
The public’s opinion of elected officials is already low. Just imagine how citizens would react if they couldn’t find out how each school board member voted on a controversial charter school application—or any number of hotly debated issues.
It is neither in the public’s best interest nor ultimately the best interests of elected officials for such a situation to exist.
Frankly, we were surprised the case got this far.
The broad policy declaration for the Colorado open meetings law is a clarion call for transparency.
“It is declared to be a matter of statewide concern and the policy of the state that the formation of public policy is public business and may not be conducted in secret.”
That’s pretty clear direction about how public business ought to be decided.
The Court of Appeals judges decided that since the statute doesn’t specifically say that votes to fill vacancies cannot be secret, that means they can.
It boggles the mind.
The Colorado Supreme Court has previously said the state’s open meetings laws must be interpreted “broadly” and “favorably” in allowing public access to how governments make decisions.
We hope the higher court takes this approach to the issues in the case if it is appealed to them, as expected.
In the meantime we urge state lawmakers to consider modifications that will keep this facet of public business where it belongs—out in the open.
Editorial:
———
The Coloradoan, Aug. 3, on CSU system working to broaden its reputation:
Just as fall semester approaches, Colorado State University received some encouraging news this week: The Princeton Review recognized CSU by naming it among the nation’s best for undergraduate education.
The recognition is deserved, but it also is helpful for CSU as it works to develop a national reputation for quality education and affordability.
CSU, like other Colorado institutions, is in a challenging place because the state has dramatically reduced its share of funding for higher education. That means colleges and universities in our state are forced to shift the cost for education to those paying the tuition bill. Earlier this year, the CSU Board of Governors approved a 20 percent tuition increase for resident undergraduates, meaning those students will pay $6,307 a year, up by $1,051 a year.
Despite the increase, CSU remains one of the more affordable institutions. In fact, university officials say they are providing a college education at an inflation-adjusted cost of 4 percent less than they did two decades ago. The University of Colorado, for example, charges about $1,300 a year more for undergraduates.
The issue of affordable college education remains a deep concern for Colorado. Barring a broader solution that both holds down the cost of education and increases accessibility for all students, CSU is doing a commendable job in telling its own story.
Editorial:
