Mark Karol

The @denverpost just spent 1,200 words trying to solve an alleged mystery I can solve in just 3 words. The question? How did Colorado lose its competitive edge? Why is the state in such steep decline? The Post wastes 1,200 words diplomatically dancing around one elephant in the room -- an elephant named Jared Polis archive.md/ks1ix But I can solve the mystery of Colorado's business climate decline in just three words: One. Party. Rule. The piece wrings its hands over job losses, plunging business rankings, and fleeing startups, while performing Olympic-level gymnastics to avoid naming the obvious culprit: one-party Democratic rule, complete with a billionaire “business wiz” governor who’s been at the helm for eight long years. Instead of confronting reality, the Post treats us to the usual ritual: quotes from concerned business leaders, vague nods to “headwinds,” and glowing coverage of Gov. Jared Polis bravely announcing . . . another task force and listening tour (as if we don't know what's really gone wrong in Colorado). Because nothing says “decisive leadership” like waiting until the final months of your term -- after the state shed 6,200 payroll jobs in just 18 months, ranked 12th-worst nationally in total job losses and 14th-worst in percentage terms, and watched its startup ecosystem suffer the largest numeric decline in the country -- to finally ask businesses what’s wrong. The numbers paint a brutal picture: Colorado has tumbled to 25th in CNBC’s “America’s Top States for Business” (from perennial top-10 darling, including #1 in 2011), dragged down by a pathetic 49th in cost of living, 38th in cost of doing business, and 32nd in infrastructure. The ALEC “Rich States, Poor States” index has it at a dismal 29th, a sharp fall from recent years and a far cry from its second-place ranking in 2008. Companies are bolting for greener pastures, talent recruitment has become a nightmare amid sky-high housing costs, and even the departure of big names like Palantir barely scratches the surface of the quiet erosion in entrepreneurial energy. Yet the Post frames this as some mysterious fog that rolled in, rather than the predictable result of years of accumulating mandates, regulatory piling-on, and a political culture that vilifies the private sector, decries the profit motive, and treats business as an ATM for funding pet "progressive" priorities. The Post does note, almost in passing, that Colorado has shifted from purple to solidly blue since 2011. But heaven forbid they connect the dots. Polis, the polished entrepreneur-turned-governor, gets portrayed as the thoughtful reformer riding to the rescue, not the architect of (or willing participant in) the very policy environment -- workplace mandates, housing strangulation, infrastructure neglect, a business-bashing legislature -- that made the state less competitive. Eight years of solid Democratic majorities in the legislature, a steady barrage of "progressive" meddling, and a general attitude that innovative companies should just be grateful to locate in this beautiful people’s republic -- and the Post acts shocked, shocked, that the state is now hanging out “under the bleachers” with the also-rans. The elephant isn’t just in the room -- it’s been trampling the state’s business climate for nearly a decade, passing bills, ballooning budgets, and appointing rogue regulators to runaway commissions, while the media politely averts its gaze. Colorado didn’t suddenly become expensive, regulated, and complacent by accident. It chose this path, repeatedly, at the ballot box and in the State House. The Post’s greatest contribution here is providing cover: acknowledge the decline just enough to seem serious, then pivot to process theater and hope readers forget who’s been in charge. #copolitics #coleg @GovofCO

The Justice Department is suing Colorado, claiming state laws that provide in-state tuition and some financial aid to undocumented students violate the Constitution denver7.com/news/politics/…