It has been a few weeks now, but I had somewhat recent occasion to be reminded just how far Telluride is from Ouray, particularly when taking the short cut – on foot. Immediately after that rather painful reminder – to which I subjected myself and in fact paid good money for the privilege of participating in the Imogene Pass Run – I was also reminded just how far Telluride is from Grand Junction as I drove from one to the next to be a panelist for the Club 20 debate between Gov. John Hickenlooper and his challenger, former Rep. Bob Beauprez. Thank goodness I was sitting down for this.
The event, held as part of Club 20’s annual meeting, is the traditional kick-off of debate season. Candidates for statewide and West Slope races debate issues raised by the group of western Colorado counties in front of what is historically a red-hued crowd. This year’s debate – at least that between Beauprez and Hickenlooper – was no exception and the candidates offered relatively unsurprising takes on key state issues like water (store it or conserve it?), job creation (is Colorado really good or terrible at it?), and regulation (onerous or not?).
Hickenlooper and Beauprez traded the appropriate and predictable jabs that reflect both their ideology and experience. Beauprez, as the challenger who has never held statewide office, made bold statements about all the sweeping actions he would take – or would have taken – to address various conundrums. On new water storage, Beauprez did not stutter: “We need to stop talking. On my watch, we’re going to build,” he said. He had similarly strong words for how he would have resolved the near-stalemate between anti-gas development advocates, including Rep. Jared Polis, and their industry adversaries, suggesting that Hickenlooper was weak for having crafted a compromise – that avoided a costly and divisive ballot initiative campaign.
It is clear Beauprez is accustomed to being the boss, whereas Hickenlooper – who has plenty of bossly experience of his own – has been schooled in the realities of governing. It takes a certain level of nuance, consensus-building, cat-herding and compromise, all with an ear tuned to what is both real and possible.
Not to say that Hickenlooper has been perfect – nor is he altogether stoic about his mistakes. Blaming his own political naïveté for a flubbed comment after signing the 2012 gun control legislation did not evoke much sympathy from the Club 20 crowd, nor should it have. It was all pretty much par for the course.
That is until Beauprez answered my question about whether bringing federal lands in Colorado under state control was a good idea. The former congressman surprised me with his resounding yes, claiming that the land in question is actually ours already. “This is supposed to be Colorado’s land, not the federal government’s,” Beauprez said. “This is a fight we’ve got to win.”
I’m not sure we want to. On my run earlier that day, I traveled through some of the lands in question – through the San Juan National Forest, over hill, dale, scree and tundra – followed by a drive that transected both the Uncompahgre and Grand Mesa national forests. These backdrops are key to Colorado’s economy and identity and they are largely well-managed by federal agencies with the resources and expertise to care for all the values the lands contain – preserving access for all who rely on and use these lands, as well as protections for its most treasured and irreplaceable resources. Doing so requires balance.
It also requires money – and lots of it, as Hickenlooper quickly pointed out when asking Beauprez where he would find the $200 million it would take each year to manage the lands. It is a particularly pertinent question for a candidate who talks frequently about how the need for government in Colorado to do less – regulating, spending, and legislating. Budget crunches in recent years have forced a purse-string tightening in Colorado that has affected access to state lands. In 2012, the state reduced its parks budget by $3 million. Locally, that reality has played out in the Lake Nighthorse hot potato game. When the Animas-La Plata Project began, the state was in line to inherit the recreation management. When money trouble hit, Colorado politely declined the invitation. Ever since, the lake has been looking for a manager – and the funding it requires. In the meantime, no one gets to go swimming.
The notion of putting $200 million and 24 million acres – 36 percent of the state! – on the Colorado dole is antithetical to Beauprez’s claim to want to reduce the state’s obligations. It is absolutely the wrong way to go, budget-wise, and is far outside the state’s league in terms of management capacity. It is patently absurd. The notion that so many of our public lands could as a result be restricted, compromised or otherwise changed is conceptually distressing; driving back from Grand Junction to Telluride after the debate, it became more concrete. Rhetorical or not, the idea is not right for Colorado.
Megan Graham is a Herald editorial writer and policy analyst. Reach her at meg@durangoherald.com.
