Colorado: Debbie Benefield

As President-Elect Barack Obama pledges to use taxpayer money to hand out cash and prizes in the name of jump-starting the economy, it's clear Colorado Democrats are taking notes. But perhaps they should start taking a basic college economics course. Their chosen model just won't work.

A quick read through the daily papers and opening day remarks by the state's leading Democrat lawmakers reveal their plans to increase government regulation and taxation, two actions all but guaranteed to worsen the state’s economic prospects.

Here’s just a quick sample of their plans. Democrats want to mandate new business regulations. Rep. Mark Ferrandino, a Denver Democrat, is introducing legislation to force banks to give loan defaulters a “temporary timeout” to renegotiate their loans.