Colorado: D.c.

Democratic Rep. Anne McGihon, a Denver lawyer known for fighting for health-care issues, teared up Monday when she told her colleagues she was resigning her seat.

McGihon said she has rejoined her former law firm and now must split her time between Denver and Washington, D.C. "I'm so proud of what we've accomplished in health care," she said.

The resignation is effective March 27, setting off a race to succeed her in House District 3, in Denver, Englewood and Cherry Hills Village. A Democratic vacancy committee will appoint her successor.

McGihon in November was elected to her fourth and final term in the House. Two days later, she lost her bid to become House speaker to Rep. Terrance Carroll, D-Denver.

Carroll was among those Monday who praised McGihon for her contributions. Lynn Bartels, The Denver Post

Perhaps the moment you've all been waiting for--given Scott McInnis' track record of expressing 'interest' in running for everything, from the U.S. Senate to Mesa County dogcatcher, we'll only fully believe it when the Secretary of State gets the papers. But no question there's intense jockeying going on behind the scenes in the GOP right now, as the Grand Junction Sentinel reports:
The battle for the Republican nomination for governor in 2010 could be a Western Slope affair, pitting former Congressman Scott McInnis against his onetime aide, Josh Penry.

McInnis, who retired from Congress in 2004 after six terms representing the 3rd District, is interested in the job, as is Penry, now the minority leader in the state Senate.

(Photo/Keith Bacongco, Flickr)

And to Poundstone, the change Colorado needs comes in the form of a ballot initiative she’s co-sponsoring that would drastically limit state revenue by slashing taxes and fees. The plan, which is making its way through the review process on its way to the 2010 ballot, stands in stark opposition to the stimulus-spending mantra coming out of Washington, D.C.

The Colorado initiative is alarming at least two state lawmakers who have examined it. Sen. Chris Romer, D-Denver, said the initiative would “end government as we know it.” And House Speaker Terrance Carroll, D-Denver, suggested it would move the state down the road to anarchy.

Interior Secretary Ken Salazar announced Tuesday afternoon that fourth-generation Colorado resident Will Shafroth, who ran unsuccessfully for Congress last summer, will be the department’s deputy assistant secretary for fish, wildlife and parks. A few weeks ago Salazar nominated another Colorado politician as Shafroth’s boss, naming former Senate candidate and one-time U.S. Attorney Tom Strickland as his assistant secretary for fish, wildlife and parks.

The announcement from Salazar’s office:

Salazar Names Land Conservation Leader Will Shafroth Deputy Assistant Secretary for Fish, Wildlife and Parks

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar has named Will Shafroth, a land conservationist executive and founding director of the Colorado Conservation Trust and Great Outdoors Colorado Trust Fund, as Deputy Assistant Secretary for Fish, Wildlife and Parks.