Commissioners Have To Sign It To Know What's In It...

I have a point here, so humor me by seeing the parallels:

Do you recall when Nancy Pelosi made this statement about the healthcare bill:




She signed it, but apparently some of her wealthier constituents didn't like what was in it. That's no problem, because the Obama administration just granted them some waivers:

"Of the 204 new Obamacare waivers President Barack Obama’s administration approved in April, 38 are for fancy eateries, hip nightclubs and decadent hotels in House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi’s Northern California district."

Good for them. If you know the right people, or just are the right person, no law applies to you.


Recently, our three county commissioners went out to Devil's Thumb Ranch and met up with--ahem-- idiot Governor Hickenlooper to unveil a 'historic' back room deal they've dubbed the Colorado River Cooperative Agreement. The only catch is they won't actually let us see what's in the 50 page document until after they sign it, along with 30 something other organizations. 


Now they, along with other interested parties, are trying to sell you on the idea so they can get buy in from Grand County voters. They don't need your approval, mind you--they're just trying to gauge the temperature of the pot of water they're dipping their toes into.


Here's a simple question. Where in Grand County can you find a private sector job that pays $100,000 or more? I'm not talking about superintendents, county managers or other public sector jobs here. I'm talking about honest-to-goodness private sector jobs. I'd wager there are fewer than I can count on one of my hands.


James Newberry--prominently displayed at the courthouse as a champion of Grand County water conservation--will be up for reelection in 2012. That means he's coming to the end of a pretty long career as a representative of Grand County. Where is Mr. Newberry going to find a job in this county that will pay him for his experience? Nowhere. Where are there lots of places for him to find a comfortable home once he leaves office? Denver and the Front Range is where.


So let me ask this. Would it be in his best interest to construct a deal that benefits Grand County at the expense of the other parties at the table? Parties, I may add that will provide lucrative employment once he leaves his post? No, it would not. Humans are creatures of survival for the most part--even ones in elected office. 


You can't watch the former House Speaker say something as ignorant and downright stupid as she muttered above without questioning the entire process all the way down to the county level. The rot is everywhere you look, and to think that this 'agreement' is anything but a screw job on the citizens of Grand County is foolish.


When public officials make non-public agreements with private entities without the discrimination of public discourse, you no longer have a representative form of government. Your county officials have adopted the stance of shoot first and ask questions later. Does that sound democratic to you?