Actions Of Colorado Lawmaker Harmful To Limited Government Movement

By Jessica Peck Corry, 1-18-08

On Monday, Colorado state Rep. Douglas Bruce didn’t just kick a newspaper photographer. When he refused to apologize, he also launched a blow to his beloved limited government movement.  While the first mistake was forgivable, the second is not.

As was widely reported by media around the nation, including USA Today, Bruce became upset after a news photographer crouched before him during the chamber’s morning prayer continued to take his picture.  He responded by swiftly kicking Rocky Mountain News photographer Javier Manzano in the knee.

A simple apology for the childish outburst could have been enough.  We all lose our tempers every now and then.  Surrounded by a barrage of media-types, he may have become overwhelmed.  Instead of apologizing, however, Bruce feebly attempted to defend his actions by saying, “I think the Rocky Mountain News photographer ought to apologize to the House and to me and to all the people whom he disrupted.  He needs to get a lesson in manners and decorum.”

If Bruce were just an ordinary freshman legislator, it’s more likely than not that the political damage resulting from the outburst would have only hurt him.  But Bruce is anything but ordinary. 

For years, he has been a leading voice of the libertarian anti-tax movement in Colorado.  As his license plate proudly proclaims, he is “MR. TABOR”, a self-coined title in honor of the Colorado Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights, a constitutional amendment he drafted. 

A more personable Bruce could have become a Colorado folk hero.  Without Bruce, we wouldn’t have had the bill of rights, which was ultimately responsible for keeping the state’s budget from ballooning in the late 1990’s and from falling off a cliff after the September 11th terrorist attacks.  That’s exactly what happened in California, resulting in near bankruptcy and the recall of a governor.  So successful was TABOR that the state’s political leaders, including then-Gov. Bill Owens, toured the country touting it as their own.

As a policy analyst with the Independence Institute, I’ve been asked frequently over the years what it is like to work with Bruce.  We have partnered on occasion to defend a shared agenda fighting for smaller government.  I will say only this: Bruce’s ego and temper - both seen in full force this week - should not be confused with his brilliant mind.  At times, he has been an essential voice of courage demanding protection of Colorado’s petition rights process. 

In every political movement, there comes a time when change is no longer optional.  For free-market activists, we must openly and loudly condemn Bruce’s actions if we want our movement to survive and flourish. We must find a better way to communicate our objectives when thousands of Colorado’s families face rising taxes that endanger their livelihood.

These families themselves - and not Bruce - should be the face of our movement. The business personal property tax threatens their small businesses; a property tax increase successfully championed by Gov. Bill Ritter during last legislative session jeopardizes their ability to meet rising mortgage payments; and multiple tax increase proposals currently being mulled by Democratic legislators could make driving to work or owning a car out of reach for those already on or near the financial brink.

Democrats are excitedly cheering Bruce along as he continues his stomp through the Capitol as a one-man public relations tornado.  But they should avoid the temptation of confusing Bruce with TABOR.  The former is, like all of us, a flawed human being.  The latter is a spectacular law that saved Colorado from almost-certain economic devastation.

Bruce must apologize.  And if can’t, he must accept that his legitimate policy suggestions will be relegated to sidebars of newspaper stories.  I, for one, do not intend to work with Bruce until he apologizes.  As the mother of two young children and the wife of a small business owner, I’ve got too much riding on the movement dedicated to protecting my family’s future economic freedom. 

Editor’s note: Jessica Peck Corry’s weekly blogs are part of NewWest.Net/Politics’ “Diary of a Mad Voter” feature, a group blog, published in partnership with the Denver Post’s Politics West intended give a glimpse into the hearts and minds of several independent-minded voters and thinkers in the Rocky Mountain West in the ‘08 election cycle. For more columns check in with www.newwest.net/madvoter. And for more information on each of the bloggers, click here.