October 23, 2014 VOLU M E 1 4 8 | I S S UE 46 | 5 0 ¢
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Perlmutter, Ytterberg compete for district By Vic Vela
vvela@colorado communitymedia.com Congressman Ed Perlmutter will have to win over a few different demographics Nov. 4 in order to keep his congressional seat – and the canine vote could be his toughest hurdle. “My dogs don’t like this because they don’t get walked on as regular of a basis as they’d like to,” Perlmutter said of his two loyal companions, who have had to deal with less quality time their owner campaigns for re-election. “The golden (retriever) is 14, so he’s been through a few campaigns, but the puggle is younger so it’s not quite so considerate.” Yes, politics is a dog-eat-dog business, but Don Ytterberg doesn’t seem to mind. “Oh, I think politics is a snap – I have girls,” Ytterberg said of his daughters among his five children. But the two candidates’ focus over the next couple of weeks will be on winning over voters in the 7th Congressional District who are not members of their own family. The Democrat Perlmutter is seeking his fifth term in office, with the Republican Ytterberg vying to unseat him.
Perlmutter
Ytterberg
While the two share a love for their respective families, they have little in common when it comes to politics. They disagree on immigration reform, the Affordable Care Act and other policy areas. Ytterberg, who is the former chairman of the Jefferson County Republican Party, believes he would be a better fit as the district’s representative, but he faces an uphill climb in beating the Jefferson County-born incumbent. The district – which includes the cities of Arvada, Golden, Lakewood, Wheat Ridge, Westminster and Thornton – is about 35 percent Democrat and 28 percent Republican. The majority of registered CD7 voters are unaffiliated. A ratings system created by political guru Larry Sabato of the University of Virginia Center of Politics indicates that Perlmutter’s seat is safe. Political analyst
Charlie Cook also rates the race as being solidly in Perlmutter’s favor, as detailed in his Cook Report ratings. Ytterberg knows the landscape. “When we got into the race last year, I probably heard from many people who said, ‘Long shot, what are you doing?’ kind of a question,” he said. But Ytterberg feels good about his chances. He points out thirdparty candidates who ran against Perlmutter in previous elections hurt Republicans’ chances. This year, the Libertarian candidate dropped out of the race early and threw his support toward Ytterberg. Ytterberg also believes that voters will reject Perlmutter’s support of President Barack Obama’s policies, especially the congressman’s vote in favor of Obamacare. Ytterberg, who owns a metal plating business, said the changes put in place through Obamacare were burdensome to him and his employees. If elected, Ytterberg said he would vote to “substantially overhaul” the law. “He has lent his support to the president’s signature bill,” Ytterberg said of Perlmutter. “He has continued to double down and say, ‘No, it’s good the way it is.’ I don’t know anybody, not any-
body, who believes it’s good the way it is.” But Perlmutter is an Obamacare believer. He said that parents being able to keep children on their health insurance coverage through the age of 26 is a positive change for families. And he said that prohibiting insurers from denying coverage to those with preexisting conditions is a “huge civil rights step toward a more perfect union” Perlmutter also dismisses the political consensus that Obama is hurting Democrats’ chances of winning seats this midterm election cycle. “I’m not hearing a lot of outright negativity toward the president,” Perlmutter said. “I haven’t seen it, and I don’t think that’s going to be the case.” Perlmutter believes that congressional Republicans are the source of the problems in Washington D.C. And that’s especially true when it comes to immigration reform, he said. Perlmutter supports immigration reform that increases border security and is tough on drug cartels and those involved in human trafficking. And he said there ought to be a path to citizenship available for undocumented immigrants living here, so long as they are contributing to society
and have not committed any crimes. And that’s what Perlmutter said is in the Senate-passed immigration reform measure that has yet to receive a vote in the House. The inactivity of the bill is a result of a House that is dominated by a “Tea Party element” that isn’t interested in dealing with the issue, Perlmutter said. “When they won’t even take up a bill that’s passed in a bipartisan fashion in the Senate and won’t even have a hearing, we’re in serious waters,” he said. Ytterberg has seen firsthand the complexities surrounding immigration policy. His daughterin-law was born in Mexico and struggled to obtain citizenship, even after she married Ytterberg’s son, he said. Ytterberg doesn’t believe that a “one size fits all,” comprehensive reform package is the answer to the immigration issue. And he’s not sure that there should be a path to citizenship for many who come to the country illegally. Ytterberg would prefer to take up illegal immigrant claims on a case-by-case basis. “It will slow down the system, but maybe it needs to be slowed District continues on Page 2
AIRBUS TO HEALTH
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GOLDEN TRANSCRIPT (ISSN 0746-6382)
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P L EA SE R ECYC L E T H I S C OPY
St. Anthony, Flight For Life celebrate new helicopter By Clarke Reader
creader@colorado communitymedia.com Colorado is home to some of the most active residents in the nation, and while that’s a benefit for most, the mountainous locations can make for a tricky situation if someone needs medical help. After years of fundraising Flight For Life Colorado, headquartered in St. Anthony Hospital in Lakewood, has a new Airbus As350 B3e Emergency Medical Helicopter to assist in medical emergencies. “It made look like our other helicopters but it’s got a bigger engine, which gives us an increased safety margin,” said Rod Balak, aviation manager with Flight for Life. “It has a great new autopilot feature for us that doesn’t add much to the weight of the helicopter.” The St. Anthony Health Foundation and Summit Medical Center Foundation both led the charge to raise the $1 million needed to purchase the Airbus. According to information provided by Flight Fore life, the medical interior of the new craft includes United Rotorcraft’s Articulating Litter Loading System (ALLS) to easily load and secure critically injured patients and neonatal isolettes for transport. On board medical systems include liquid oxygen (LOX), compressed air, suction, mounts to accommodate carry-on medical equipment as well as an abundance of AC power. The interior lighting is fully night vision system compatible. The new helicopter will be stationed at the St. Anthony Summit Medical Center in Frisco, according to Balak. Its speed and range will allow it to cover the western front range as well as ski areas near Aspen and Steamboat. No one knows the importance of Flight For Life in that area than Brittany Gilbert, who made use of its services after getting into a bicycle accident in Breckenridge. “The accident was in August 2012 and I was Airbus continues on Page 2
St. Anthony’s new Airbus As350 B3e Emergency Medical Helicopter has more power and enhanced systems to make it easier and safer to pick up patients in dangerous situations. Photos by Clarke Reader
The pilots of the new Airbus As350 B3e helicopter have logged more than 4,000 hours and will use the new helicopter all over the front range and western slope.