New York Times and Washington Post Feature Colorado’s Fracking Wars

As Governor Hickenlooper tries to engineer a compromise to remove some of the more credible and The Buzz: Washington Post Covers Polis and Fracking Wars, 6-2-14) of what could be the first crack in the Colorado Democratic Party’s unity.

Gov. John Hickenlooper

moneyed environmental advocates from the looming November fight over anti-fracking ballot initiatives, the national press is increasing its coverage (see

Jack Healy in the New York Times opening paragraph sums up the view Colorado is ground zero in the nation’s and especially the Democrats’ climate and energy fractures.

DENVER — An impassioned national debate over the oil-production technique known as fracking is edging toward the ballot box in Colorado, opening an election-year rift between moderate, energy-friendly Democrats and environmentalists who want to rein in drilling or give local communities the power to outlaw it altogether.

As I opine, the most at risk interest in the fight is the Democratic Party establishment, which is watching a revolt of its environmental rank and file, many of whom would ban all gas and oil production if they could to force their utopian dream of renewable energy now.

“This is a fight within the Democratic Party,” said Floyd Ciruli, an independent political analyst in Denver. For prominent Democrats, he said, “this is dangerous. It might turn off environmental forces. It will create a tremendous amount of noise between the Democratic establishment and its rank and file.”