FIND MY BALLOT GUIDE RIGHT HERE Just click here to get it.
HEIDI IS THE RIGHT PERSON TO FIX SO MANY OF OUR PROBLEMS I went to a rally last night for Heidi Ganahl. I've been to a LOT of rallies for a lot of politicians, but nothing like this. Instead of a bunch of dry speeches from politicians telling us why this candidate MUST be elected, it was speaker after speaker talking about some awful situation they had endured followed by how Heidi has simply reached out to them to hear their stories. Speaker after speaker recounted how Heidi was not only willing to listen, she showed up again and again when they needed her. John Castillo, the father of Kendrick Castillo the brave young men who stopped a school shooter with his own life, as he spoke of his frustration that even after his son's death nothing has been done to secure our schools. He spoke of the futility of his meetings with our current Governor and why he things Heidi is going to be the one who takes on that problem head on. A grieving mom named Miki recalled how she found her daughter's lifeless body after she took what she was told was a Xanax from a friend, only to find out it was laced with a fatal dose of fentanyl. I heard from parents whose five year old child was told that gender is a choice based on how you "feel" who then had to announce, after a discussion with another five year old, what gender she "chose". When they asked the Boulder Valley School District to opt out their child from such lessons they were told that request "could not be accomodated". I heard from a mom whose daughter was lured under false pretenses to an art club where kids were encouraged to be trans and gay. I heard from a Cuban American who is horrified that her children are being taught that the oppressive ideology that her family escaped from in Cuba is a-okay. We heard the most beautiful song from a high school student that he wrote about having his life stripped away from him during covid. These are mad moms and mad dads and mad aunts and mad uncles and mad kids. I cried like five times. Heidi has to win this race. She's right for the job and unlike our current Governor, she not only listens, she shows up. No matter what.
i ASKED ONE OF THE SPEAKERS TO SHARE HER COMMENTS LAST NIGHT So I could share them here. This is what Lindsay Datko had to say last night:
Heidi Mad Mom Rally Speech
Lindsay Datko
As a previous 1st grade teacher, I recall receiving a message from a parent. “Mrs. Datko, they’re serving pepperoni pizza today. My child doesn’t eat pork products. Would you be sure to make sure he eats the cheese pizza?” I bolted to the cafeteria and as that precious boy was about to chomp down that pepperoni pizza, I switched it out for the cheese. You see, it didn’t matter that I do eat pork products. What did matter was that both the parent and the child’s needs were met inside the school doors. As an educator and a parent I feel the importance of parental rights in my bones.
I think of my sister who has endured infertility, premature births, pregnancy conditions that have led to debilitating and unyielding discomfort, and countless doctor appointments to ensure her children are thriving. I think of a dear friend, who, at 6 weeks pregnant found out she had breast cancer. By the time she gave birth, her body was frail and her bones were shattering. She sacrificed all of herself for her child and lived to tell the story. I think of a fellow school shutdown advocate in a nearby district who was called by the military to fight overseas. She had to leave her child behind in the hands of those who would step up to care for him and honor her parental values while she fought for our country. And each of you has a very personal story of sacrifice and a unique family perspective that deserves to be honored by all who love, teach, and work with your children.
The emotional and physical strain. The sleepless nights. The debilitating worry and stress it takes to raise a child rightfully belong to parents and guardians raising the 886,517 students enrolled in Colorado schools. Your children belong to you. The family, in all of its uniqueness, is the most essential unit of our society.
I formed a group in Jeffco that has grown to just under 6,000 families. We fought hard. We influenced and forced executive change at our county health department, fought to remove masks earlier than our board of health planned, and accomplished many small wins that have united a large portion of the Jefferson County community behind parental choice. During the pandemic, I met with Governor Polis. I poured my heart out to him about the emotional, physical, and mental state of our children. Governor Polis did not acknowledge or validate the hardship. He blandly stated that Covid relief funds were coming to our schools and made his way to his next meeting. He was not there for our children. Through weekly updates on the TV screen he gave empty words that led to no action. He gave false hope to desperate parents and hid behind local control. Let’s be clear: it was parents who returned kids to normalcy, not Governor Polis. Now, our children are in need of healing as they prepare to compete on a local and world stage where children from other states and countries returned to the classroom. One person was there for us. Her name is Heidi Ganahl.
I met her at a coffee shop, by her invitation. The shop was closing soon after we arrived. My 3 month old son was with me. I thought we might have to reschedule but instead Heidi packed up my newborn and we headed to her car. As we finished our conversation the thought crossed my mind...next baby book entry: was fed in the backseat of Heidi Ganahl’s car. I have talked to Heidi Ganahl nearly every single day since then about issues facing parents and children.
And every single day on this campaign trail Heidi has advocated, strategized, and poured her heart out for parental voices, worries, and concerns. She is a mom who understands the impact of the pandemic and breech of transparency on your children and individual families. As Governor, she will do everything in her power to give you a voice. She will listen. She will suggest bills that put children and students first and work with the legislature to ensure your rights as parents. She will propose a budget that puts more money in classrooms, honors teacher pay appropriately, and removes administrative bloat! She will work to remove the adversarial tone currently vibrating through this state towards parents. She will inspire collaboration and a culture of working together. As a person who values integrity, I stand here and express to you that Heidi is a woman of compassion. A woman of her word. She is a woman of intelligence. A woman of unity. A woman who cherishes all children and wants them to thrive.
The morning after the primary I reached out to Heidi assuming she was at her campaign headquarters. I was surprised and delighted as a multi-tasking “mad mom” to receive this text: “Making breakfast for the kids after doing radio interviews all morning-Let’s roll up our sleeves and get back to work to fight for our kids.
Heidi is a Mom on a Mission through and through.
With your help, in 1 week, I’ll be changing that baby book entry: Was fed in the backseat of Governor Ganahl’s car.
Let’s do this!
IT'S TIME FOR WEATHER WEDNESDAY WITH FOX 31'S DAVE FRASER He's going to be in studio this week and I'm excited to ask him what happened to fall. Did we go from summer to winter already? Send your questions my way at mandy@koanewsradio.com!
YES, PROP FF AND GG ARE JUST ABOUT FUELING FINANCIAL ENVY And our pal Jon Caldara writes about it here. Vote NO on both, please.
POLIS WANTS TO ADD SIX BILLION TO THE STATE BUDGET Did you get a six billion dollar raise last year? I didn't but that's what the budget just submitted by Jared Polis asks for. With a looming recession and empty promises by Polis to "make Colorado more affordable" this is exact opposite of what we need to do. Why would he submit such a bloated budget? He knows when all the new taxes and fees the Dems passed without our permission kick in, the state will have the money. OUR MONEY. This man is NOT a libertarian, he doesn't care that our inflation rate is one of the highest in the nation and everything he keeps saying in commercials is a flat out lie. He needs to go. I welcome him on the show to defend his record. He won't come, but I welcome him. Odd how he doesn't mention the laws the Dems changed to make crime easier in our state when he says this:
"Like the rest of the nation, Colorado has seen an increase in crime during the social and economic crisis caused by COVID-19. As we turn the page on the pandemic, my administration is making bold new investments to support local law enforcement, address novel safety concerns as they arise, and support the services Coloradans need to live healthy, productive lives," the governor said in his budget proposal.
THE FED IS GOING TO YANK INTEREST RATES AGAIN TODAY And so don't look at your 401k today. Read more here.
HOW DID THE FED ALLOW INFLATION TO SOAR? The short answer in my view is incompetence and ego, but you can read this for the four reasons for the insane inflation we are seeing now. Spoiler alert, the pandemic is only ONE of them and it's not the biggest driver by any stretch.
HAVE YOU TURNED IN YOUR BALLOT YET? A LOT of people have, with turnout jumping early this week with almost 20% of ballots already returned. For the love of God, PLEASE turn in your ballot. Republicans have to show up FULL FORCE if there is any chance of getting these candidates over the finish line. Use my ballot guide above if you need help.
TEN FORD TRUCKS WERE STOLEN IN A WEEK FROM DIA And Chuck and I were just talking about not parking at the airport anymore. This story is courtesy of AG Phil Weiser, who is only concerned when someone steals four or five cars in a two or three month period.
TIMELINE CLEANSER Here's a tiny kitten with a baby duck.
ANOTHER YOUNG PERSON DIES OF A HEART ATTACK And this time is the author whose work inspired Julie and Julia about her efforts to make every recipe in Julia Child's The French Kitchen cookbook. Julie Powell was just 49.
JUST IN CASE, DO YOU KNOW THE SYMPTOMS OF A HEART ATTACK? They differ for men and women but it is a good idea, especially if you've had covid, to know what to look for regardless of gender. Find the list of stuff to watch here.
DID YOU GET YOUR POWERBALL TICKET YET? The jackpot tonight is a whopping $1.2 BILLION dollars. See how big that number looks when you might win it? It doesn't seem that big to Jared Polis as he wants to grow our government budget by over six BILLION.
WHAT ARE THE BEST PLACES TO VISIT IN 2023? This list according to National Geographic has several US destinations on it and more places for me to add to my bucket list. They did list San Francisco as a top family destination but I'm just not sure about that one right now.
LOOKING FOR SOME AWESOME THANKSGIVING JOKES? I've got you covered here.
MARVEL FANS WITH CASH CAN NOW BUY THEIR OWN INFINITY STONES But I'm pretty sure half the world doesn't disappear when you snap your fingers. Unless you're a Wuhan lab. Hey-oooo. Read about these pricey souvenirs here.
DUDE, THE JAMES WEBB TELESCOPE IS SENDING INCREDIBLE IMAGES FROM SPACE And you should look at these stunning photos here.
THIS DODDERING OLD MAN IS OUR PRESIDENT Just watch this.
BILL MAHER POSITIVELY ROASTS GEN Z JUSTICE WARRIORS And there is some bad language (NSFW) but it's so worth it.
PRE-K AND HEAD START PROGRAMS ARE A WASTE OF MONEY And you don't have to take my word for it, the Federal Government did a multi year study on Head Start and they found:
In terms of children’s cognitive outcomes, access to Head Start had an impact on children’s language and literacy development while children were in Head Start. However, these early effects rapidly dissipated in elementary school, with only a single impact remaining at the end of 3rd grade for children who entered at age 3 and a single impact for children who entered at age 4.
You can read the entire study here, but keep this in mind when Jared Polis is bragging about this huge benefit for the teachers unions.
VOTERS KNOW WHEN THEY ARE BEING LIED TO And this editorial lays out the whoppers and says voters will hold them to account.
I WISH I HAD THIS KIND OF TIME Because this is cool. Check it here.
I DON'T CARE WHAT YOU GAVE AWAY AT HALLOWEEN, THIS GUY WINS Click here for more.
IS IT TIME TO WORRY ABOUT AN EARTH DESTROYING ASTEROID? The answer seems to be maybe. Watch this.
HE'S NOT WRONG They had one job. Click here if it doesn't load.
THERE NEEDS TO BE A NEW SHERIFF IN TOWN IN PUEBLO Because a candidate for sheriff is literally lowering crime rates already by personally busting and hog tying a shoplifter until cops could arrive. This is badass.
WHY DON'T WE HAVE MUSICAL ROADS??? This song in Hungary makes music if you hit the right speed and now I want one. Click here if it doesn't load.
THIS JURASSIC PARK HOUSE IS NEXT LEVEL And you thought your Halloween decorations were cool. Click here if it doesn't load.