Bad decision on Guantanamo

"Enemy fighters seized in a battle zone have no presumption of innocence. This is a dangerous decision," says John Andrews in the June round of Head On TV debates. Wrong, counters Susan Barnes-Gelt; the court was right to rebuke Bush's "abuse of executive authority." John on the right, Susan on the left, also go at it this month over oil prices, Ritter's tax plan for scholarships, Right to Work, and the presidential race. Head On has been a daily feature on Colorado Public Television since 1997. Here are all five scripts for June: 1. SUPREME COURT RULES ON GUANTANAMO

Susan: Bush has suffered a string of defeats at the hands of the conservative-leaning Supreme Court. They recently restored the right of habeas corpus - the right to trial - to Guantanamo detainees. In a previous ruling the Supremes ruled Guantanamo was within US jurisdiction and thus subject to the Constitution.

John: The court’s Guantanamo ruling was radical, not conservative. Five judges invented from thin air a judicial veto on the duty of Congress and the President to protect us all from foreign enemies in wartime. Enemy fighters seized in a battle zone have no presumption of innocence. This is a dangerous decision.

Susan: After being incarcerated for nearly six years, on soil deemed to be American, the courts had to weigh in. Bush's war has put Americans in great peril including his abuse of executive authority. The Supremes were right to slap him.

John: Not so, Susan. Congress and the President have acted together against our jihadist enemies in Afghanistan and Iraq. The result is seven years without another 9/11. The “great peril” lies in this outrageous court ruling, which as Justice Scalia warned, will lead to more American deaths.

2. SOARING OIL PRICES

John: Sky high gasoline prices are one more reason to prefer McCain over Obama for President and Schaffer over Udall for Senate. Republicans understand you solve the energy shortage by producing more, not by regulating more. America needs to drill here and drill now. America needs nuclear energy. Democrats don’t get it.

Susan: Neither McCain nor Obama can control oil prices. Wall Street speculators and global demand are in charge Behavior change is the only long-term strategy - alternative fuel and transportation options, green building practices, compact development and innovative farm policies are the real answers.

John: Behavior change, you say? That’s the Al Gore religion in a nutshell. Liberals want to make energy scarce and expensive so they can tell us how to live our lives. Abundant, affordable energy is inseparable from personal freedom. To have it we should drill here, drill now, and vote Republican.

Susan: John, and what's the zip code in the State of Denial? Abundant petroleum - an oxymoron. Ditto for fossil fuel. Personal freedom is not about being captive to foreign oil sheiks or corporate agriculture. Except perhaps in Washington DC!

3. LABOR ISSUES ON BALLOT

John: Colorado’s economic competitiveness will get a boost if voters pass the Right to Work law on this year’s ballot. Amendment 47 prevents labor union bosses from slowing down job creation, and we need it in this sluggish economy. Most other Western states have this protection. We should catch up with them.

Susan: Right to work has nothing to do with a right to a job or employment. On the contrary - the average worker in a “right to work” state earns nearly $7,000 less a year; 20% more don't have health insurance and the state spends less on K-12.

John: While your statistics say that, mine say Right to Work states have much faster economic growth, expanding opportunities for everyone. But Amendment 47 isn’t just about data, it’s about fairness. No Colorado worker should have to pay money to a union he disagrees with, in order to earn a living.

Susan: Even the business booster Greater Denver Chamber of Commerce opposes the ill-conceived right-to-work initiative, reasoning that existing Colorado labor law provides the right balance for businesses and unions. Less than 10 percent of Coloradans belong to unions. It's a solution looking for a problem.

4. THE FINALISTS: OBAMA & MCCAIN

Susan: Dems are in great shape with Obama at the helm. Polling shows McCain behind with every interest group except suburban women and white men. Obama's up 15 points with female voters and holds a 6 point lead with all voters. Fourteen Congressional R's won't endorse - and the far right's MIA.

John: Summer polls are like summer love, Susan – fickle and fleeting. Obie is a heart throb now, but wait till voters learn about his leftwing views and checkered past. War hero John McCain has been counted out before. It happened a year ago, and before that in Hanoi. Mac will be back.

Susan: You're right about one thing - McCain has as many lives as a black cat on Halloween. Trouble is, he's taken almost as many positions on issues ranging from a woman's right to choose to tax cuts and entitlements. George Bush's third term is a turn off for voters.

John: Twelve straight years in the White House are seldom achieved by either party, so odds favor the Democrats. But be honest. McCain is a leader, Obama’s a talker. McCain was huge in the Senate, Obama was wallpaper. McCain went to war, Obie went to Harvard. Advantage, Mac.

5. SEVERANCE TAX & COLLEGE SCHOLARSHIPS

Susan: Colorado's higher ed funding is 50th in the nation. Increasing severance tax for college scholarships is a start at bridging that gap - start is the operative word! Oil and gas will spend a fortune fighting the measure - Colorado has a foolishly low severance tax - 12% of Wyoming's.

John: College for all sounds good, but Ritter botched the design of his plan and now can’t muster a coalition to support it. University presidents are lukewarm and business groups are opposed. Another entitlement for nonworkers at taxpayer expense is the last thing Colorado needs. This tax hike is going nowhere.

Susan: Not sure I'd call deserving but needy high school grads "non-workers." Even with the scholarships most will have to work to stay in college. Colorado's parents want their kids to have the chance at a quality education. The severance tax passes.

John: No, the severance tax never even makes the ballot. Our universities don’t need additional subsidized students. They additional operating dollars. They’ll tell you that themselves. On top of which, $4 gasoline is the wrong time to raise taxes on oil production. This Bill Ritter brainchild is DOA.

This Republican is disgusted

"This Republican is disgusted with my party’s record in Washington. Did GOP congressional leaders learn nothing from their drubbing two years ago?" asks John Andrews in the May round of Head On TV debates. "The Republican so-called brand needs a major makeover," agrees Susan Barnes-Gelt, trying not to gloat. John on the right, Susan on the left, also go at it this month over the legislature's record, term limits, DNC preparations, and the presidential race. Head On has been a daily feature on Colorado Public Television since 1997. Here are all five scripts for May: 1. SPECIAL ELECTIONS FOR CONGRESS

John: Republicans need to be plenty concerned about recently election losses for previously safe congressional seats in Illinois, Louisiana, and Mississippi. This isn’t three strikes and out, but it’s fourth down and long. The Democrats under Pelosi and Reid are a bust. My party needs to fire up and get that message out.

Susan: The Republican so-called brand needs a major makeover. There is simply no way to spin the failed war in Iraq, food shortages, $4 gasoline and policies benefiting the wealthy. Pelosi and Reid have been too cautious, but the Republican decline should put starch in their spines.

John: This Republican is disgusted with my party’s record in Washington. Did GOP congressional leaders learn nothing from their drubbing two years ago? A political party is not a brand, it’s an idea in action. The Republican idea used to be individual freedom and limited government. Now who knows?

Susan: Forgive my crocodile tears - and poor - dare I say it? - old John McCain. His party is in shambles; he doesn't know whether to recruit from the right, far right or furthest right - and, his straight talk express is hopeless mired on the doubletalk expressway!

2. LEGISLATIVE REPORT CARD

Susan: It's tough to give this year's legislative session anything higher than a solid B-. There was great progress on sustainability, k-12 curriculum reform and funding for higher ed capital projects. No progress on transportation, healthcare or serious support for higher ed, suggest timid leadership.

John: B minus nothing. The legislature gets a D. Democrats in control from top to bottom, Ritter, Romanoff, and the rest, were reduced to blaming Republicans for their failures. Unable to exert leadership under the dome, the governor and the speaker will now go the ballot for the tax increases they dream of.

Susan: Coloradans consistently vote to tax themselves to improve transportation, higher ed and, K-12. Voters understand that failing public infrastructure means economic disaster. Eight years of Republican leadership has left Colorado in sorry shape. You've heard? - Mississippi's new state slogan? Thank God for Colorado!

John: In the legislature since 2005, Democratic leadership has been zilch. Likewise with Gov. Ritter since 2007. His nutty tax hike on oil and gas isn’t likely to fly with voters with the economy soft and pump prices soaring. Republicans may also gain seats in the state House and Senate.

3. PRESIDENTIAL RACE FOREVER

John: It’s our all-purpose presidential campaign spot. As you watch this in early summer, with Denver feverishly making convention preparations, Hillary will either be in the race or out of it. Obama will either be the second coming or the mystery man. McCain will either be inspirational or insufferable. What a year, Susan.

Susan: This is truly the first presidential campaign of the 21st Century. Younger voters and previously passive interests are having an enormous impact on the shape of the election. The page is turning and it is wonderfully exciting to witness this tectonic shift in the will of the electorate.

John: I don’t know, Susan. The last tectonic shift destroyed a good part of China. An Obama earthquake hitting America in November could leave us in rubble and ruins. Obie’s radical domestic policies and his naivite about deadly enemies abroad are a scary prospect. The safe choice is John McCain.

Susan: If you loved the past eight years, vote McCain. Your anti-Obama rhetoric is soooo last century. This country is ready for change - domestic policies favoring the rich, foreign policy based on unbridled aggression have cost too much. American lives, prosperity and moral authority have been squandered. Turn the page.

4. DENVER GIRDS FOR CONVENTION

Susan: The final $8 million Denver committed to the Democratic Convention is elusive. The Hillary / Obama contest ate a lot of oxygen and the DNC may have to cut back some frills. The threat of protests looms, and safety is the highest priority for Denver's political leaders.

John: “Be careful what you wish for” is the summer theme song for Colorado Democrats. Convention worries include fundraising, security, and internecine food fights. Mayor Hickenlooper quit as a super-delegate, staying in his foxhole rather than face the crossfire. But the big concern for Democrats is the Re-create ’68 hoodlums.

Susan: Let's face it - there is a very fine line between maintaining order and encouraging free speech. I worry that the cops have a tendency to over-react in the face of harmless, but emotionally charged crowds. Recreate '68 doesn't resonate with me - particularly in the current climate.

John: Memo to former councilwoman from former senator: don’t slur our men and women in blue. We both know the Denver Police Department is high in professionalism and self-sacrifice, low in brutality and corruption. No matter what the provocation by convention radicals, I expect them to reflect credit on Colorado.

5. HAVE TERM LIMITS FAILED?

John: The big media with their fondness for activist government are bemoaning the departure of Speaker Andrew Romanoff and other legislators under Colorado’s rule of eight and out. Fact is, term limits on career politicians and tax limits on the spending lobby are a big plus for we the people.

Susan: Term limits are a bust. Local and state government are paralyzed by term limits. Term limits are great for the permanent bureaucracy, special interests and inefficient governing. The public is tired of the politics of polarization. Term limits is an ideas whose time has come . . . and gone!

John: Limited government used to be the essence of America. Then came bloated budgets and bossy bureaucrats. Elected officials lost touch. Voters responded with term limits. Colorado is lucky to have them. Our economy ranked 7th best in a recent national survey. Part of the reason is tax limits and term limits.

Susan: Term limits have nothing to do with Colorado's tepid fiscal performance. Short termers don't build relationships across the aisle and aren't motivated to collaborate. Dedicated career politicians move from the state House to the Senate to city councils - a game of musical chairs where everyone loses.

Don't go, Mr. President

"Bush dishonors America’s commitment to freedom by unconditionally pledging that he will go to Beijing this summer," says John Andrews in the April round of Head On TV debates. "Distraction," counters Susan Barnes-Gelt, who says Tibetan human-rights protests shouldn't derail the Olympics. John on the right, Susan on the left, also go at it this month over Iraq, Judge Nottingham, Right to Work, and the presidential race. Head On has been a daily feature on Colorado Public Television since 1997. Here are all five scripts for April: 1. OLYMPIC BOYCOTT OR NOT?

Susan: Pressure on world leaders to boycott opening ceremonies at this summer's China Olympic games, because of Tibet, is a distraction. Truth is, neither the president of the United States nor other world leaders attend the Opening Ceremony. Unless you count the 1936 Berlin Games when Hitler lit the torch.

John: Communist China violates the God-given rights of more human beings more brutally than any country on earth. They should never have been awarded the Olympics to begin with. Bush dishonors America’s commitment to freedom by unconditionally pledging that he will go to Beijing this summer. Bad decision, Mr. President.

Susan: The vision of the Games as an event to enhance moral virtue has long passed. The 1968 massacre in Mexico City; Black September's Israeli hostages, Munich 1972; the 1980 U.S. boycott in Moscow; 1996 bombing in Atlanta; steroids, corruption. The Olympics - an ideal whose time has passed.

John: Lots of us aren’t ready to give up on moral virtue or the family of man -- but you don’t advance those things with liberal sentimentality, commercial cynicism, and blindness to evil. The Beijing Olympics deserve tough scrutiny, not a free pass.

2. UNIONS & THE BALLOT

Susan: Responsible political and business leaders must take action before hot heads on both sides of the labor-business kerfuffle. None of the constitutional amendments make sense - not right-to-work, not job-protection, wages or mandated health care, belong in Colorado's already dysfunctional constitution. Get-a-grip children - Grow up!

John: Coloradans deserve constitutional protection against having to join a union or pay union dues against their will. Right to Work makes sense as a freedom issue and an economic competitiveness issue. Without it we’ll keep losing jobs to other states with a friendlier business climate than ours. Unions are economic dinosaurs.

Susan: All workers deserve quality, affordable healthcare, individual pension plans, and enforceable job protections against discrimination and abuse. In the 21st Century, unions may not be the most effective or comprehensive way to deliver those mandates and Colorado's constitution is not the place to fight that battle.

John: History lesson: business and labor were getting along fine in Colorado, until last year. Then came the Ritter administration, an unsuccessful union power grab and an executive order to unionize state workers. Business fought back with a Right to Work ballot issue. It’s called self-defense, Susan, and it’s going to pass.

3. MORE PLOT TWISTS IN PRESIDENTIAL RACE YET

John: A funny thing happened on the way to this year’s Democratic presidential landslide. Barack Obama is tarnished by his 20-year association with an America-hating black supremacist pastor. Hillary Clinton is out of money and tangled in her own tall tales. Gen. Petraeus is winning the war, and Howard Dean is worried.

Susan: Winning what war? Petraeus admits, "we haven't turned any corners, we haven't seen any lights at the end of the tunnel. The champagne bottle has been pushed to the back of the refrigerator." Pro-war, pro-Wall Street, cozy up to the wing-nuts McCain has got trouble with a capital T.

John: Susan, come on. This is PBS, but it’s not Barney. Anyone but a preschooler can see that your party is in a pickle. No matter whether the saintly Barack or the sinister Hillary wins, the other side will feel robbed. The convention will be a debacle. Advantage: Republicans and John McCain.

Susan: Hmmmm. The vast majority say the country's on the wrong track; want to exit Iraq and are worried about the economy. Four more years of Bush's war and economic policies - I don't think so. John McCain: If you liked the last 8 - just wait for the next 4!

2. IMPEACH JUDGE NOTTINGHAM?

John: Senator Ken Salazar, with whom I don’t often agree, is correct and courageous in talking about possible impeachment to remove Edward Nottingham, that playboy judge on the US District Court in Denver. He has disgraced himself with escort services, drunken carousing in strip clubs, and hassling handicapped people. Nottingham must go.

Susan: Ordinarily I'd agree. However at a time when Bush's Justice Department is making deferred prosecution deals with over 50 corporations including nonprosecution agreements, where companies pay fines and hire monitors to watch them - Nottingham, who came down hard on Nacchio, ain't all bad.

John: Think again, Susan. This isn’t about whether you like or dislike Judge Nottingham’s rulings – including the Nacchio verdict, which was tossed on appeal, don’t forget. This is about bad behavior, which the constitution prohibits. Liberals and conservatives alike need a judiciary that is above reproach. Nottingham must go.

Susan: No question - the judge's arrogance and tone deafness are liabilities. And his Nacchio verdict wasn't tossed - merely sent back for review. Those in authority should be above reproach, though is reputation as a smart, prepared judge is excellent. It's a tough call - my jury is still out.

3. IRAQ

Susan: For the past five years, the U.S. has occupied a country torn apart by civil war - that we started! Now thanks to Bush's boys, Al Qaeda's in Iraq, we've lost more than 4000 troops, 30,000 brave soldiers suffer permanent injuries and we've spent $600 billion. Enough's enough.

John: Those are the talking points for the surrender lobby, Susan, and you know better. Saddam Hussein was an accomplice of the radical Islamist enemy that seeks America’s destruction. We removed him to protect ourselves and to liberate 25 million Iraqis from tyranny. Quit now -- Al Qaeda wins and Iran wins.

Susan: Wake up John. Nearly 3 million Iraqi refugees have fled the country in fear. One thousand Iraqi soldiers deserted their posts in Basra. There's no evidence of political progress. Military leaders insist that the demand for troops exceeds any sustainable supply. Denial is a powerful sleeping pill.

John: The ones in denial are Americans foolish enough to hand a victory to Iran and Al Al Qaeda. What a disaster for the free world. Maliki’s offensive in Basra was itself evidence of huge progress, military and political. The US can prevail in Iraq if we keep our backbone.

Schaffer sounding senatorial

"Bob Schaffer on the campaign trail is sounding more and more like our next US Senator; what a contrast to Mark Udall, the Boulder liberal turned Washington insider," says John Andrews in the March round of Head On TV debates. "Hardly," scoffs Susan Barnes-Gelt, who contends Schaffer is far from the mainstream. John on the right, Susan on the left, also go at it this month over Spitzer, McCain, CU, and Cuba. Head On has been a daily feature on Colorado Public Television since 1997. Here are all five scripts for March: 1. SCHAFFER vs. UDALL

John: Bob Schaffer on the campaign trail is sounding more and more like our next US Senator. The businessman and former congressman has clear answers for the economic worries and political staleness of this election year. What a contrast to Mark Udall, the Boulder liberal turned Washington insider, who’s still flirting with earmarks.

Susan: Schaffer is the 14th most conservative out of 3400 lawmakers to go to Congress since 1937. Hardly a mainstream candidate for Colorado - a state that's elected a Democratic governor, senator and majority of Congressional reps in the past 4 years. He is out of step - marching backwards.

John: The Democrat from Boulder should be called U-Turn Udall. He’s been on both sides of the Iraq war. He now wants to accept defeat and leave immediately. He won’t swear off the earmarks that Americans are disgusted at. As a senator, Bob Schaffer would be in the mainstream. Mark Udall would not.

Susan: Bob Schaffer panders to every wing-nut idea the right imagines. His record is more consistently conservative than Goldwater's, Helms & Cheney's combined. Bob Schaffer wouldn't know the Main Stream if it hit him over the head with a diving board!

2. SPITZER SCANDAL

John: The sensational downfall of New York Gov. Eliot Spitzer was not about sex, it was about dishonesty. Many people have bedroom secrets, but those who hold a public trust must be trustworthy. Spitzer built his career as a crusader of righteousness. When that was unmasked as a fraud, he had to go.

Susan: Eliot Spitzer is the epitome of ambition gone awry. The arrogance of his violation of the public trust - not to mention that of his wife and daughters is stunning. His wife should have kicked him under a bus instead of standing next to him at press conferences.

John: Those liberals who idolize political power as a force for good should take the Spitzer case as a reminder that power can also corrupt. Neighboring governors in New Jersey and Connecticut, one from each party, also fell in recent scandals. Thank goodness in America no one is above the law.

Susan: The power of politics for positive change is very different than idolizing political power. No party has a lock on its abuse for personal or political gain. Spitzer's problem was far more troubling - the fool believed he was Untouchable - Now - he is one.

3. PRESIDENTIAL RACE INTENSIFIES

John: Susan, the presidential race keeps changing faster than we can tape new debates. This thing has more plot twists than a soap opera. War hero John McCain will be the Republican nominee after all. Hard-boiled Hillary Clinton looks stronger on the Democratic side as Barack Obama’s halo begins to tarnish.

Susan: The dynamic of the presidential race is remarkable. The Obama-Hillary struggle is good for the Democrats, allowing voters to observe the strengths and weaknesses of both candidates. McCain is being pulled to the far right in the meantime and he'll have a tough time come November.

John: If you think the growing anger of many Democrats at Clinton’s harsh tactics is good for your party -- if you think the time bomb of Obama’s screaming racist pastor and shady Chicago connections is good for your party – more power to you. Straight-talking John McCain looks awfully good by contrast.

Susan: John, look at history. The incumbent president's party, has never held on to the White House in the face of economic turbulence - that and McCain's commitment to stay in Iraq for the next 100 years, suggests - pass the marmalade - he's toast!

4. BENSON AS CU PRESIDENT

Susan: Bruce Benson is exactly the right person to lead Colorado's flagship university right now. His political savvy, fundraising skills and passion for Colorado are what's needed to shore-up our faltering higher ed infrastructure. He's not serving as chief academic officer - his role as president is very different.

John: Benson as CU president will in fact help to set the academic tone, tilting it away from multicultural leftism and back to the common-sense recognition that America is good and Western civilization is a treasure. That’s why Democrats like Regent Cindy Carlisle and Majority Leader Alice Madden didn’t want him.

Susan: Benson and his wife Marcie did the right thing by letting the Republican party and the individuals they've supported over the years know that they will no longer contribute to nor work on behalf of campaigns or causes. They understand that true leadership knows no political party.

John: Benson brings good tools to the CU presidency, but he better watch his back politically. Republican Regents Pat Hayes and Paul Schauer are in the faculty’s pocket and often vote with the Democrats. They’re the reason Hank Brown left. Schauer faces a primary from Dr. Jim Geddes, a highly qualified conservative.

5. CUBA AFTER FIDEL

Susan: Our country's bizarre relationship with Cuba stemming from the 1963 missile crisis needs to change. The economic embargo is unjustifiable at a time when the U.S. is trading with China. Our policy, based on the myopia of immigrants from a half-century old revolution, must adjust to the 21st Century.

John: Communist Cuba under Raul Castro not only remains a brutal prison camp as it is was under Fidel Castro. It also remains a dangerous pawn of America’s enemies. Venezuela, Iran, and yes, China, have evil designs on us through Havana just as the Soviets once did. The embargo should stand.

Susan: C'mon John - an embargo against a teeny island with no military and few resources hardly makes sense. We must allow Americans to travel to Cuba - just as they travel to Iran and North Korea. The most potent weapon against totalitarianism is the influence of ordinary Americans.

John: Thank you for admitting that Cuba is totalitarian. I’ve been there. I've seen it, and it's appalling. Yet you take the threat from America’s sworn enemies less seriously than I do. An axis of evil seeks our destruction. Venezuela and Cuba seek to help them. The embargo should stand.

What's ailing the economy?

"Business expansion is slowing right now, mainly from fear of Democrats taking the White House and rolling back the Bush tax cuts," says John Andrews in the February round of Head On TV debates. "That would be a brutal job-killer." Oh no, says Susan Barnes-Gelt, recession worries are the fault of a feckless Republican administration with its war and deficits. John on the right, Susan on the left, also go at it this month over teacher unions, misbehaving legislators, and the presidential primaries. Head On has been a daily feature on Colorado Public Television since 1997. Here are all five scripts for February: 1. WHAT'S AILING THE ECONOMY

Susan: Putting $300 in the hands of consumers is probably not going to put our economy on track. Tax cuts for the rich, too many bridges to nowhere, lax regulatory oversight and a trillion dollar, endless war have taken a harsh toll on American's security - at home and abroad.

John: Economic ups and downs will continue until human beings stop being naturally careless, Susan. Don’t hold your breath for that to change. Business expansion is slowing right now, mainly from fear of Democrats taking the White House and rolling back the Bush tax cuts. That would be a brutal job-killer.

Susan: Business expansion is slowing because of the feckless policies of a Republican administration with no respect for a balanced budget, oversight of irrational Wall Street greed and consumers alarmed by high energy prices and a costly and unnecessary war. It is time to turn the page!

John: Deliver me from flat-earth economics. Deficits and defense spending heat up the economy. What cools it off is burdensome taxes and regulation, or even the possibility of those. The better that Hillary and Obama do in the polls, the more American companies will hunker down and prepare for the worst.

2. THE DEMOCRATIC CONTEST

Susan: March madness won't be limited to college hoops this spring. The Dem nomination remains neck and neck between Obama and Hillary and likely won't be settled until March at the earliest. Two great candidates generating unprecedented enthusiasm - great news for Democrats!

John: Enthusiasm is high, but your happy talk overlooks the deep wounds inflicted on Democratic unity by the Clinton attack machine, and the embarrassing problem of a potential un-democratic solution to the nominating deadlock by insider super-delegates. And either nominee could be too far left for many Americans. McCain owns the center.

Susan: Poor John McCain will be in big trouble if the evangelicals boycott. He needs their active engagement to turn out voters. The only happy Repubs are the wing-nut dittoheads salivating at having a Dem in the White House to whine about - endlessly!

John: Overconfidence is deadly. This Republican is very happy about taking on a Democratic ticket that’s way out of the mainstream. People know too little about Obama, and far too much about Hillary. They don’t want to lose in Iraq. They don’t want soft socialism, European style. Let the games begin.

3. THE REPUBLICAN CONTEST

John: Not since General Eisenhower in the dark days of Korea and the Cold War has a commanding leader and genuine war hero stood one step from the presidency as John McCain does now. The timing is right. America faces a global enemy even more dangerous than the Soviets. This could be McCain’s moment.

Susan: You’re right. It could be McCain's moment. Problem is he needs another four years and eleven months to realize his vision. And, thanks to the petulance of your party's right wing and his admission that economic leadership is not his strength - his moment may be fading. Tick Tock.

John: Those victory chicks you’re counting may never hatch, Susan. Hard scrimmaging by Republicans in the spring won’t keep us from putting a unified team on the field next fall. Nor will an economics quiz decide the next president. We’re choosing a commander in chief, and it’s advantage McCain.

Susan: The majority of Americans don't agree with you. Economic concerns top the list of issues all voters are worried about A reasonable exit strategy from Iraq is also important. McCain's 100-year plan doesn't cut it for Americans on both sides of the aisle. It's the economy, John.

4. BRUCE RANDOLPH SCHOOL SEEKS AUTONOMY

Susan: Public education in urban districts like Denver continues to be challenging. Reform faces many obstacles. The teacher's union, district administrators and school board must figure out how to work together, stop protecting their own turf and power base and explore solutions that work for kids.

John: Teachers and administrators at Bruce Randolph and Manual specifically asked to work together, with unanimous board approval and big foundation incentives. Teacher union bosses stonewalled shamelessly until finally relenting. Union selfishness is the problem. Senator Peter Groff has a tough bill to fix that. Let’s hope it passes.

Susan: I agree - Senate President Groff's bill is the right solution. It circumvents union approval. His challenge will be getting the votes - on both sides of the aisle. Unions are a powerful voice at the Capitol especially in an election year.

John: Albert Shanker, the late president of the American Federation of Teachers, admitted his union cared little for kids, because kids don’t pay union dues. That should offend Democrats, who always say it’s about the children. They can prove it by passing the Groff bill to make union bosses put kids first.

5. LEGISLATORS BEHAVING BADLY

John: When legislators misbehave, the double standard is glaring. News media went nuts when Larry Liston criticized promiscuous teens and Douglas Bruce pushed a photographer. Both are Republicans. The media were far less aggressive when leading Democrat Michael Garcia resigned for persistent sexual misconduct. Interesting contrast, Susan.

Susan: Thank goodness for Speaker Andrew Romanoff's strong and steady hand. Shame on Garcia for his behavior. I'd hardly say the media treated him with kid gloves. What might have been a very promising future for this talented young Dem ended abruptly with his timely resignation. He's paying a heavy price.

John: Could it be the Speaker’s strong hand was busy trying to hush things up? What did Romanoff know, and when did he know it? News media aren’t asking. They sat on the story for days until conservative bloggers broke it. Garcia had a long history of misconduct. Democrats blew it.

Susan: When it's all said and done, a promising young man behaved foolishly and gave up a bright future as a consequence. Conservative paranoia is just that and beside the point, to boot. Romanoff is a straight shooter and did the right thing.