"Return to the Magic

“I believe most Coloradans want the same,” his statement continued. “I cannot speak to the motives of (Colorado GOP chair) Dave Williams in passing any resolution that would limit the free speech of any American or duly elected Colorado Republican — but I am positive that it doesn’t reduce the property taxes of a single Coloradan, increase housing for Colorado families, or make our communities any safer.”

Laydon, one of Douglas County’s three elected commissioners, noted in a statement that Republicans in Colorado have held little political power statewide in recent years.

“The Colorado Republican Party cannot afford further division, especially over Montana politics. The day we stop supporting the United States Constitution and the First Amendment in Colorado is the moment that we lose the final vestiges of confidence that our fellow citizens, our voters, and our donors have invested,” Laydon’s statement read.

He continued: “I will continue to actively fight censorship, book burning, and any other fascist behaviors which our brave men and women in the military fought and died to overcome. I have faith that as intelligent, right-minded Colorado Republicans, you will also continue to honor what our flag stands for and never bow to those that would censor speech, even speech we may disagree with.”

‘Lives on the line’

Zephyr’s silencing on the Montana House floor drew hundreds of protesters to the Montana Capitol, the AP reported. From the House gallery, Zephyr’s supporters chanted, “Let her speak!” Police cleared the gallery and arrested seven people for trespassing. Zephyr was voted off the House floor for violating its rules of decorum.

(Zephyr was to still be able to vote and participate in committees but not discuss proposals and amendments under consideration in the full House.)

Montana became the latest state to ban or restrict gender-affirming medical care for transgender kids when its Republican governor signed legislation in April.

The letter from Titone, who is transgender, framed the issue as one where “lives are on the line.”

LGBTQ+ youth, who “are relentlessly persecuted, ostracized, and denied basic rights,” are more likely to attempt suicide than their peers, Titone’s letter says.

Compared with cisgender, or not trans, heterosexual adolescents, transgender adolescents showed five times the risk of suicidal ideation and 7.6 times the risk of suicide attempt, according to a 2022 study in the Canadian Medical Association Journal.

“Gender-affirming care has been shown to improve mental health among transgender youth — in a Dutch study, rates of suicidal ideation among transgender adolescents receiving gender-affirming care were similar to those among their cisgender peers, whereas rates among transgender adolescents on the waiting list remained elevated,” the study notes.

Move ‘hypocritical,’ GOP says

In the email, Colorado’s GOP called Colorado Democrats “hypocritical,” pointing to the criticism Democrats had received this year for “silencing debate and stopping Colorado Republicans from representing the concerns of their constituents.”

On March 25, Democrats in the Colorado House used what’s known as Rule 14 to limit debate in the chamber for the first time in at least a decade, The Colorado Sun reported.

Democrats went on to use Rule 14 more than a dozen times, according to state Rep. Anthony Hartsook, a Parker Republican, citing data tracked by the House GOP caucus, the Sun wrote.

Colorado House Speaker Julie McCluskie, a Dillon Democrat, defended the decision to limit debate, the Sun wrote.

“We began to recognize what was happening in our chamber was no longer respectful and productive,” she has said. “Filibustering and delay tactics, by having bills read at length, is not why we were voted into office. We were voted into office to consider and debate policy. At the time we invoked House Rule 14, we wanted to drive more productive conversations.”