Twin Rocky Columns: Things Looking Up for GOP

Put together, two columns in this Saturday's Rocky Mountain News for Colorado political junkies, both signaling that having reached its nadir the center-right political movement in this state is on the rebound. In one, Peter Blake assures us that indeed Dick Wadhams is serious about taking the helm of the state Republican Party and committing to see it through the next election cycle:

So why did he agree when Senate Minority Leader Andy McElhany asked him to consider the job? "It looked like a challenge that would be a lot of fun and I'm just dumb enough to think that there's a great opportunity here too."

And, of course, we know that there's a lot more behind the decision than what Wadhams is generating for the press. Keep your chin up, GOP.

The other piece - David Kopel's media review column - highlights how the liberal Denver media establishment is still busy trying to exaggerate and perpetuate divisions within the state Republican party (a close look at the background of the picture included with the article features a prominent local conservative blogger):

According to The Denver Post, former U.S. Rep. Bob Schaffer is "still seething" at former Gov. Bill Owens. This claim was made without a proper factual basis and, to make matters worse, the Post refuses to publish a correction or clarification.

We shouldn't be surprised to see the Post try to bait Schaffer into saying something derogatory about the outgoing Republican governor. But Owens is out of the political picture now, and the party is focusing on the future (witness the Blake column). We have no laurels on which to rest, so there's hardly room for complacency, but we don't have to commit ourselves to despair, either.

Cross posted at Mount Virtus