Colorado Ballot Guide: Protecting Your Vote and Why Trump Earned Four More Years

On this October 16, 2020 broadcast, Kim Monson welcomes Rick Turnquist to break down their comprehensive voter’s guide on Colorado ballot measures, with Lorne Levy of Polygon Financial Group providing analysis on the mortgage market. Congressional candidate Casper Stockham makes the case for Trump’s Platinum Plan for Black America.

The Case Against National Popular Vote

Start listening at 39:02 – Hour 1

Rick Turnquist sounds the alarm on Proposition 113, the National Popular Vote compact that passed the Colorado legislature in 2019. The measure would bind Colorado’s electoral votes to the national popular vote winner, effectively surrendering the state’s voice in presidential elections to population centers like Los Angeles, San Francisco, Chicago, and New York.

Turnquist explains that this represents an end-run around the U.S. Constitution. Rather than pursuing a constitutional amendment to abolish the Electoral College, proponents have devised an interstate compact that subverts the founders’ intent. If adopted, it would disenfranchise Colorado voters in presidential elections and hand their voice to coastal population centers. The recommendation: vote no to preserve Colorado’s voice.

Trump’s Platinum Plan and Moving the Needle

Start listening at 08:00 – Hour 1

Casper Stockham, Republican candidate for Colorado’s 7th Congressional District, outlines President Trump’s Platinum Plan for Black America. The plan contains four pillars: opportunity, security, prosperity, and fairness. Stockham attended the plan’s launch in Atlanta on September 25th and argues it builds on accomplishments the president has already achieved.

Stockham makes a bold claim that no one has yet challenged: Trump has done more for the Black community than the last four presidents combined, including eight years under a Black president. He discusses joining a coalition of over 29 Black Republican congressional candidates nationwide who plan to launch an advertising campaign highlighting how their victories would undermine race-based political tactics.

“President Trump has done more for the black community than the last four presidents combined, including a black president who was in office for eight years.”

Casper Stockham, Congressional Candidate, Colorado CD7

Mortgage Markets in the Pandemic Era

Start listening at 17:06 – Hour 1

Lorne Levy of Polygon Financial Group reports that mortgage rates remain at historic lows, with 30-year rates in the twos. The Federal Reserve continues backing the mortgage market by purchasing securities, which keeps rates suppressed despite economic uncertainty. This intervention, Levy explains, differs from the 2008 housing bubble because it prevents home values from crashing rather than inflating them artificially.

The demand for refinancing has created backlogs, but lenders are extending rate locks without charge to protect borrowers. Levy also addresses reverse mortgages as a tool for seniors seeking additional income without monthly payments, emphasizing the importance of involving adult children in these decisions to prevent complications as parents age.

“They don’t want to be told they can’t stay in their neighborhood where they love their neighbors, and so a reverse mortgage allows them the opportunity to access the equity in their home and stay there, but not increase their payments.”

Lorne Levy, Polygon Financial Group

Ballot Measures: Wolves, Taxes, and Family Leave

Start listening at 42:59 – Hour 1

The voter’s guide addresses Proposition 114, which would introduce gray wolves west of the Continental Divide. Rick Turnquist and Kim Monson argue this represents Boulder and Denver Democrats imposing predators on the farming and ranching communities of the Western Slope. The measure threatens property rights and livelihoods of rural Coloradans who would bear the consequences of decisions made by urban voters.

Proposition 117 would strengthen the Taxpayer Bill of Rights by requiring voter approval for government enterprises generating over $100 million in their first five years. This closes the “fee” loophole that allows politicians to fund new programs without voter consent. Proposition 118, the paid family leave program, would create an unsustainable bureaucracy funded by a payroll tax that disproportionately burdens lower-income workers.

The Case for Four More Years

Start listening at 49:42 – Hour 1

Turnquist recounts his evolution from reluctant Trump voter in 2016 to enthusiastic supporter. Originally a Ted Cruz backer, he ultimately chose Trump over allowing a Hillary Clinton presidency. Since then, Trump has governed as a conservative, brokered historic Middle East peace deals earning four Nobel Peace Prize nominations, and fought against the cultural left’s agenda.

The conversation addresses media bias, with Savannah Guthrie’s hostile moderating of Trump’s town hall serving as the latest example. Despite mainstream media opposition, 56 percent of Americans report being better off than four years ago, a metric that would typically guarantee reelection.

“And I said to myself, if I wake up tomorrow morning and Hillary Clinton is the president-elect and I didn’t do everything in my power to prevent that, then I’ll never forgive myself.”

Rick Turnquist, Author, To Advance Freedom