Bernie Buescher and Gov. Bill Ritter after the governor, right, in December 2008 appointed the former state lawmaker to serve as secretary of state. (The Denver Post)
Bernie Buescher has settled on his next career: He’s joined the Keystone Policy Center as a senior policy affiliate.
The center is run by Christine Scanlan, a former lawmaker who .
“Bernie has been on the frontlines of public policy at the state and national level for decades. Throughout that time he has crafted collaborative solutions to some of the most vexing public policy challenges, including how to better develop our energy resources,” Scanlan said today.
Buescher, a Grand Junction Democrat, has served secretary of state; an attorney in Republican Attorney General John Suther’s operation; as a cabinet director for Gov. Roy Romer; the running mate for gubernatorial candidate Gail Schoettle in 1998; a state lawmaker; a businessman Buescher was named interim manager of the Colorado State Fair after retiring in 1996 as president of West Star Aviation, a flight-services operation in Grand Junction.
last September. He made it clear then he wouldn’t be retiring. “I’ve tried that a couple of times and failed pretty miserably,” he said. “I suspect I’ll be working somewhere, doing something. I may not be full time.”
Buescher is a 1974 graduate of University of Colorado Law School and a 1971 graduate of the University of Notre Dame.
“I am honored to join Christine and her team at the Keystone Policy Center,” Buescher said. “Keystone’s long record of work bridging differences and promoting collaborative public policy solutions is without peer. I look forward to contributing to their mission and vision for progress through collaboration.”
What Keystone says about itself: Keystone Policy Center brings together crucial teams of stakeholders who have diverse individual perspectives but recognize a common need to address urgent issues with lasting solutions. For more than 40 years, The Center has helped leaders move beyond fixed positions toward collaborative, action-oriented approaches to problem-solving. In this age of polarized debate on nearly every major topic in public policy, The Keystone Center offers a refreshing yet proven blueprint for progress.
