Jon Murray
@jonmurraydp.bsky.social
Senior editor for public affairs at @denverpost.com. Into politics, cities, transportation and running. @jonmurray on X, @jonmurrio on Threads. Contact: jmurray(at)denverpost .com.
Reposted by Jon Murray
National Laboratory of the Rockies, based in Golden, axes another 134 positions trib.al/BwJ6r6J
National Laboratory of the Rockies, based in Golden, axes another 134 positions
The National Laboratory of the Rockies let go 134 employees on Monday, the second time in less than a year that the facility formerly known as the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, or NREL, has…
trib.al
February 10, 2026 at 5:42 AM
National Laboratory of the Rockies, based in Golden, axes another 134 positions trib.al/BwJ6r6J
Reposted by Jon Murray
NYT reporting that Trump, who will speak at the upcoming NGA meeting, specifically blocked Gov. Jared Polis from attending a dinner with the president, governors and their spouses. Maryland Gov. Wes Moore was also blocked. www.nytimes.com/2026/02/06/u...
Trump Is Hosting Governors at the White House, but Only Republicans
www.nytimes.com
February 7, 2026 at 3:59 AM
NYT reporting that Trump, who will speak at the upcoming NGA meeting, specifically blocked Gov. Jared Polis from attending a dinner with the president, governors and their spouses. Maryland Gov. Wes Moore was also blocked. www.nytimes.com/2026/02/06/u...
Reposted by Jon Murray
Last year, a Democratic lawmaker readying a congressional run voted against a bill limiting state cooperation with ICE. This morning, the candidate, Shannon Bird, put out a plan to “hold ICE accountable.” On the shifting dynamics of Democrats’ immigration politics: www.denverpost.com/2026/02/08/c...
Colorado Democrats ramp up anti-ICE strategy after raids, killings: ‘The community’s been calling for it’
“The biggest change I’ve seen is they’re actually talking about (immigration), and they’re not scared,” an activist said of federal and state lawmakers. “It̵…
www.denverpost.com
February 9, 2026 at 3:53 PM
Last year, a Democratic lawmaker readying a congressional run voted against a bill limiting state cooperation with ICE. This morning, the candidate, Shannon Bird, put out a plan to “hold ICE accountable.” On the shifting dynamics of Democrats’ immigration politics: www.denverpost.com/2026/02/08/c...
Colorado drastically cut child poverty last year by giving $$ to low- and middle-income parents. @coltrain.bsky.social writes today about how that helped a Denver family -- and the problem the credits' costs pose for the budget. www.denverpost.com/2026/02/09/c... via @denverpost.com
Colorado’s family-oriented tax credits gave ‘light and hope’ to one mom — but costs make their future uncertain
A study led by researchers at Washington University and Appalachian State University found that the three tax credits helping families lifted more than 52,000 Colorado children out of poverty last …
www.denverpost.com
February 9, 2026 at 6:13 PM
Colorado drastically cut child poverty last year by giving $$ to low- and middle-income parents. @coltrain.bsky.social writes today about how that helped a Denver family -- and the problem the credits' costs pose for the budget. www.denverpost.com/2026/02/09/c... via @denverpost.com
New today: Lisa Calderón will run against Denver Mayor Mike Johnston in 2027 www.denverpost.com/2026/02/03/l... by @elliottwenzler.bsky.social
Lisa Calderón will run against Denver Mayor Mike Johnston in 2027
Lisa Calderón, who is the first person besides Johnston to enter the race, placed third in the last mayoral election, narrowly missing the final runoff.
www.denverpost.com
February 3, 2026 at 7:47 PM
New today: Lisa Calderón will run against Denver Mayor Mike Johnston in 2027 www.denverpost.com/2026/02/03/l... by @elliottwenzler.bsky.social
Reposted by Jon Murray
Expensive beer, millions overpaid to a Medicaid program’s providers and more from the Colorado legislature this week
trib.al/wEi3bLJ
trib.al/wEi3bLJ
Expensive beer, millions overpaid to a Medicaid program’s providers and more from the Colorado legislature this week
For years, Colorado Medicaid mistakenly paid a program’s providers several times too much — costing millions.
trib.al
February 1, 2026 at 12:39 AM
Expensive beer, millions overpaid to a Medicaid program’s providers and more from the Colorado legislature this week
trib.al/wEi3bLJ
trib.al/wEi3bLJ
Reposted by Jon Murray
Suspect in 16th Street mall stabbings is ruled mentally incompetent, stalling criminal case trib.al/ZQZub4S
Suspect in 16th Street mall stabbings is ruled mentally incompetent, stalling criminal case
Elijah Caudill’s arrest in the 16th Street mall stabbings came after years of homelessness, illegal drug use, escalating violence, jail, prison and severe mental illness, a Denver Post invest…
trib.al
January 30, 2026 at 9:45 PM
Suspect in 16th Street mall stabbings is ruled mentally incompetent, stalling criminal case trib.al/ZQZub4S
Reposted by Jon Murray
The 15-member elected RTD board would be cut to nine members, four of them appointed by the governor, if the Colorado legislature adopts recommendations of an RTD accountability committee they created last year.
RTD board should be smaller with appointed and elected members, panel recommends
“What they need is more expertise. The only way to guarantee expertise is to do it through an appointed system and Senate confirmation.”
trib.al
January 30, 2026 at 10:52 PM
The 15-member elected RTD board would be cut to nine members, four of them appointed by the governor, if the Colorado legislature adopts recommendations of an RTD accountability committee they created last year.
Sen. Michael Bennet says he’ll seek public option for health insurance if elected Colorado governor
www.denverpost.com/2026/01/30/b...
www.denverpost.com/2026/01/30/b...
Bennet says he’ll seek public option for health insurance if elected Colorado governor
Bennet also proposed allowing school districts, county governments, certain small businesses and people between 25 and 35 to buy into the state employee health plan.
www.denverpost.com
January 30, 2026 at 10:46 PM
Sen. Michael Bennet says he’ll seek public option for health insurance if elected Colorado governor
www.denverpost.com/2026/01/30/b...
www.denverpost.com/2026/01/30/b...
Reposted by Jon Murray
Public schools across Aurora will close tomorrow — a day targeted for a nationwide "ICE Out" general strike — as the district says it "will not have enough staffing capacity to safely operate schools" because so many teachers are calling out // by @tamaraddunn.bsky.social
Aurora schools to close Friday due to anticipated staff absences
Aurora Public Schools and Pickens Technical College will be closed Friday as the school district anticipates “a higher than anticipated number of staff absences,” officials announced Th…
www.denverpost.com
January 30, 2026 at 4:31 AM
Public schools across Aurora will close tomorrow — a day targeted for a nationwide "ICE Out" general strike — as the district says it "will not have enough staffing capacity to safely operate schools" because so many teachers are calling out // by @tamaraddunn.bsky.social
Update: In a new statement - sent 12 hrs after publication - Gov. Polis' spokeswoman said the office is "taking this very seriously and (is) demanding that HCPF ensure it never happens again."
"We are taking actions like requesting future audits ... and are working to ensure full transparency."
"We are taking actions like requesting future audits ... and are working to ensure full transparency."
“We paid 10 times what we were supposed to pay?”
It’s unclear how much the incorrect billing guidance has cost Colorado's Medicaid program. But an analyst told the Joint Budget Committee that the fixed billing error would save $60.5 million in the 2026-27 fiscal year.
It’s unclear how much the incorrect billing guidance has cost Colorado's Medicaid program. But an analyst told the Joint Budget Committee that the fixed billing error would save $60.5 million in the 2026-27 fiscal year.
For years, Colorado Medicaid mistakenly paid a program’s providers several times too much — costing millions
“You either laugh at this one, or you cry,” Rep. Kyle Brown said. ” … So maybe it’s $20 million in a given year, and it’s been going on since 2020. That’s …
trib.al
January 30, 2026 at 1:37 AM
Update: In a new statement - sent 12 hrs after publication - Gov. Polis' spokeswoman said the office is "taking this very seriously and (is) demanding that HCPF ensure it never happens again."
"We are taking actions like requesting future audits ... and are working to ensure full transparency."
"We are taking actions like requesting future audits ... and are working to ensure full transparency."
Reposted by Jon Murray
Democrats and the White House have struck a deal to avert a partial government shutdown and temporarily fund the Department of Homeland Security as they negotiate new restrictions for President Trump’s surge of immigration enforcement.
Democrats, White House strike spending deal that would avert government shutdown
Democrats want an enforceable code of conduct for ICE agents.
trib.al
January 29, 2026 at 11:56 PM
Democrats and the White House have struck a deal to avert a partial government shutdown and temporarily fund the Department of Homeland Security as they negotiate new restrictions for President Trump’s surge of immigration enforcement.
Reposted by Jon Murray
"To our fellow Coloradans: If this can happen in Minneapolis, Chicago and Portland, it can happen in Denver, Durango and the Western Slope." — @denverpost.com op/ed from a former Homeland Security assistant secretary and a special agent
We served the Department of Homeland Security for years. Trump’s ICE operations are a threat to America’s rule of law. (Opinion)
“Citizens have a duty to exercise their First Amendment rights peacefully. But the greater burden of restraint rests with the state.” — Eric Balliet and Elizabeth Neumann
www.denverpost.com
January 30, 2026 at 12:01 AM
"To our fellow Coloradans: If this can happen in Minneapolis, Chicago and Portland, it can happen in Denver, Durango and the Western Slope." — @denverpost.com op/ed from a former Homeland Security assistant secretary and a special agent
Reposted by Jon Murray
“We paid 10 times what we were supposed to pay?”
It’s unclear how much the incorrect billing guidance has cost Colorado's Medicaid program. But an analyst told the Joint Budget Committee that the fixed billing error would save $60.5 million in the 2026-27 fiscal year.
It’s unclear how much the incorrect billing guidance has cost Colorado's Medicaid program. But an analyst told the Joint Budget Committee that the fixed billing error would save $60.5 million in the 2026-27 fiscal year.
For years, Colorado Medicaid mistakenly paid a program’s providers several times too much — costing millions
“You either laugh at this one, or you cry,” Rep. Kyle Brown said. ” … So maybe it’s $20 million in a given year, and it’s been going on since 2020. That’s …
trib.al
January 30, 2026 at 12:17 AM
“We paid 10 times what we were supposed to pay?”
It’s unclear how much the incorrect billing guidance has cost Colorado's Medicaid program. But an analyst told the Joint Budget Committee that the fixed billing error would save $60.5 million in the 2026-27 fiscal year.
It’s unclear how much the incorrect billing guidance has cost Colorado's Medicaid program. But an analyst told the Joint Budget Committee that the fixed billing error would save $60.5 million in the 2026-27 fiscal year.
Reposted by Jon Murray
Cherry Creek Schools superintendent resigns following report of ‘toxic culture’ trib.al/hxDcgsN
Cherry Creek Schools superintendent resigns following report of ‘toxic culture’
Christopher Smith, who took the helm of the district in 2021, submitted his resignation during a closed meeting with the Cherry Creek Board of Education on Tuesday evening.
trib.al
January 29, 2026 at 1:48 AM
Cherry Creek Schools superintendent resigns following report of ‘toxic culture’ trib.al/hxDcgsN
Reposted by Jon Murray
Yesterday, I spoke with Molly Long, whose brother, Dennis Coyle, was kidnapped by the Taliban in Afghanistan a year ago.
He remains in detention w/no bed & no light in his room.
"He had all his rights and freedoms taken away," Molly said.
www.denverpost.com/2026/01/29/d...
He remains in detention w/no bed & no light in his room.
"He had all his rights and freedoms taken away," Molly said.
www.denverpost.com/2026/01/29/d...
Family of Coloradan detained in Afghanistan: ‘He had all his rights and freedoms taken away’
The family’s first contact, Molly Long told The Denver Post in an interview Wednesday, was not until July 3.
www.denverpost.com
January 29, 2026 at 4:37 PM
Yesterday, I spoke with Molly Long, whose brother, Dennis Coyle, was kidnapped by the Taliban in Afghanistan a year ago.
He remains in detention w/no bed & no light in his room.
"He had all his rights and freedoms taken away," Molly said.
www.denverpost.com/2026/01/29/d...
He remains in detention w/no bed & no light in his room.
"He had all his rights and freedoms taken away," Molly said.
www.denverpost.com/2026/01/29/d...
Reposted by Jon Murray
“The federal government has manufactured a fake emergency to revive a coal plant that was literally broken at the time DOE claimed the plant is needed,” Colorado Sierra Club director Margaret Kran-Annexstein says // Story by @thenoellephillips.bsky.social
Colorado AG, environmental groups challenge order to keep Craig coal plant open
The two petitions argue that there is no emergency surrounding Tri-State Generation and Transmission Association’s plans to shutter its Unit 1 power plant in Craig and that the closure makes …
www.denverpost.com
January 29, 2026 at 5:49 PM
“The federal government has manufactured a fake emergency to revive a coal plant that was literally broken at the time DOE claimed the plant is needed,” Colorado Sierra Club director Margaret Kran-Annexstein says // Story by @thenoellephillips.bsky.social
U.S. negotiating for release of Colorado man detained by Taliban for past year www.denverpost.com/2026/01/26/d... via @samtabachnik.bsky.social
U.S. negotiating for release of Colorado man detained by Taliban for past year
Dennis Coyle, a 64-year-old from Pueblo, was kidnapped on Jan. 27, 2025, near his workplace by the Taliban General Directorate of Intelligence, his family says.
www.denverpost.com
January 26, 2026 at 10:25 PM
U.S. negotiating for release of Colorado man detained by Taliban for past year www.denverpost.com/2026/01/26/d... via @samtabachnik.bsky.social
Man killed in Minneapolis shooting, Alex Pretti, had Colorado ties www.denverpost.com/2026/01/24/a... via @denverpost.com
Man killed in Minneapolis shooting, Alex Pretti, had Colorado ties
The Colorado parents of Alex Pretti, who was fatally shot by a U.S. Border Patrol agent in Minneapolis on Saturday, said they told him to be careful during protests.
www.denverpost.com
January 25, 2026 at 12:23 AM
Man killed in Minneapolis shooting, Alex Pretti, had Colorado ties www.denverpost.com/2026/01/24/a... via @denverpost.com
Reposted by Jon Murray
The @startribune.com has the most up to date and complete information I've seen on this morning's shooting. No paywall.
www.startribune.com/ice-raids-mi...
www.startribune.com/ice-raids-mi...
Live: Man shot and killed by federal agents in Minneapolis this morning, police chief says
A video appears to shows federal agents wrestling a man to the ground then shooting him. The Department of Homeland Security said the man was armed with a gun.
www.startribune.com
January 24, 2026 at 5:42 PM
The @startribune.com has the most up to date and complete information I've seen on this morning's shooting. No paywall.
www.startribune.com/ice-raids-mi...
www.startribune.com/ice-raids-mi...
Denver opens cold-weather shelter at former hotel amid squabble between mayor, council www.denverpost.com/2026/01/23/d... via @elliottwenzler.bsky.social
Denver opens cold-weather shelter at former hotel amid squabble between mayor, council
“It’s the mayor’s responsibility to run the city as the executive. And if he doesn’t run the city as the executive, then … we might need to switch seats,” Denver City Councilwoman Shontel Lew…
www.denverpost.com
January 24, 2026 at 1:14 AM
Denver opens cold-weather shelter at former hotel amid squabble between mayor, council www.denverpost.com/2026/01/23/d... via @elliottwenzler.bsky.social
Reposted by Jon Murray
Denver jam-band scene fixture and former Grateful Dead-themed bar owner #JayBianchi was sentenced to more than a decade in prison after his 2025 sex-assault convictions.
More details and comments from the DA, for @denverpost.com
More details and comments from the DA, for @denverpost.com
‘Serial sexual predator’ Jay Bianchi sentenced following 2025 convictions
The former Grateful Dead-themed bar owner was convicted on five counts in November.
www.denverpost.com
January 23, 2026 at 11:53 PM
Denver jam-band scene fixture and former Grateful Dead-themed bar owner #JayBianchi was sentenced to more than a decade in prison after his 2025 sex-assault convictions.
More details and comments from the DA, for @denverpost.com
More details and comments from the DA, for @denverpost.com
Wild Friday story: An advocacy group says ICE agents involved in arrests in the Colorado mountains this week left behind ace of spades cards in the detained immigrants' vehicles, with ICE's local info printed on them. ICE is now investigating, a statement says www.denverpost.com/2026/01/23/c...
ICE investigates after Colorado group says agents left ‘death cards’ in arrested immigrants’ abandoned cars
Immigration agents operating near Vail left branded ace of spades playing cards in cars left behind after immigrants’ arrests this week, an advocacy group alleged. ICE is investigating.
www.denverpost.com
January 23, 2026 at 11:14 PM
Wild Friday story: An advocacy group says ICE agents involved in arrests in the Colorado mountains this week left behind ace of spades cards in the detained immigrants' vehicles, with ICE's local info printed on them. ICE is now investigating, a statement says www.denverpost.com/2026/01/23/c...
Reposted by Jon Murray
A Medicaid fraud scheme targeting a free transportation program that shuttled patients to medical appointments cost an estimated $25 million, Colorado's Medicaid authority revealed Tuesday, more than 2 years after the fraud first came to light // Story by @sethklamann.bsky.social
Colorado Medicaid driver fraud cost $25 million — and state blocked payments worth nearly as much, officials say
A Medicaid fraud scheme that targeted a free transportation service that shuttled patients to clinics cost the state $25 million, the state’s Medicaid authority revealed Tuesday.
www.denverpost.com
January 21, 2026 at 3:12 PM
A Medicaid fraud scheme targeting a free transportation program that shuttled patients to medical appointments cost an estimated $25 million, Colorado's Medicaid authority revealed Tuesday, more than 2 years after the fraud first came to light // Story by @sethklamann.bsky.social
Reposted by Jon Murray
House Rules cmte meets this afternoon to discuss last minibus. CO Reps
Boebert & Hurd submitted Finish the AVC text language as an amendment. Will find out if Rs on cmte allow it be be brought to the floor for a vote. #copolitics
Boebert & Hurd submitted Finish the AVC text language as an amendment. Will find out if Rs on cmte allow it be be brought to the floor for a vote. #copolitics
January 21, 2026 at 3:19 PM
House Rules cmte meets this afternoon to discuss last minibus. CO Reps
Boebert & Hurd submitted Finish the AVC text language as an amendment. Will find out if Rs on cmte allow it be be brought to the floor for a vote. #copolitics
Boebert & Hurd submitted Finish the AVC text language as an amendment. Will find out if Rs on cmte allow it be be brought to the floor for a vote. #copolitics