Colorado: Rob Witwer

Having a family is great. But as the recent decision by former state Sen. Mark Hillman, R-Burlington, to not run for any elected position in 2010 shows, it can provide a (happy) speed bump for even the brightest and most ambitious of pols.

From the letter Hillman sent out to his friends and supporters: “Much has changed since I last ran in 2006 — my wife and I have ‘settled down’ in my hometown of Burlington and a six-month-old boy has drastically changed our priorities. Campaigning for statewide or federal office is very demanding and our party deserves candidates who are willing to make that campaign a top priority.

With the 2009 legislative session jumping into full swing, Gov. Bill Ritter is scheduled to deliver his State of the State speech today where it is expected he will introduce his plan for a more transparent government by proposing to make the state budget available online. The plan is just the latest is a string of instances where the Democrat has utilized Republican ideas to suggest changes to state law.

Government transparency has been a priority for Republican lawmakers in recent sessions. Face the State has obtained a copy of draft legislation (PDF) that Sen. Mike Kopp, R-Littleton, and Rep. Don Marostica, R-Loveland, were planning to introduce this session to make the itemized state budget available online, but which Ritter may enforce by executive order instead.

Assistant Colorado House Majority Leader Terrance Carroll said he expects close races in three GOP-held districts but also said he expects Democratic incumbents Bernie Buescher and John Kefalas to hold on to their seats.