Face the State

Face The State Staff Report

Kelley Harp and Jon Caldara, with Jess Knox's empty chairFTS Staff Photo

KBDI Channel 12 has been playing host to a series of debates about Colorado’s 14 ballot initiatives, giving both sides of each issue a chance to meet face-to-face. But Monday night's shows will feature an empty chair where Jess Knox, executive director of Protect Colorado’s Future, would have sat. Knox pulled out of two "Colorado Decides" debates, taped Friday, leaving producers no time to seek an alternative representative.

Knox earlier confirmed his attendance and according to KBDI producers, the station had adjusted its taping schedule to accommodate him. A last minute letter sent to KBDI said PCF would only debate if all three of the initiatives it is actively opposing, Amendments 47, 49 and 54, were discussed together in one show. The "Colorado Decides" format is the same for all 14 ballot initiatives, with proponents and opponents of each individual initiative squaring off for a half hour.

After the station declined Knox's request, Kelly Harp, spokesman for Amendment 47, and Jon Caldara, president of the Independence Institute and Amendment 49's lead backer, each appeared solo for back-to-back tapings, with an empty chair left where Knox would have sat. Caldara and Harp instead fielded questions from CBS 4's Raj Chohan, Rocky Mountain News reporters Kevin Flynn (for 49) and Joanne Kelley (47) and KBDI moderator Eric Sondermann. Amendment 47 would prohibit private sector workers from being forced to join unions, and Amendment 49 would prohibit government payroll systems from being used to collect dues for private membership organizations.

Harp said he was looking forward to a vigorous debate with Knox, given PCF's significant investments in paid advertising. "They've put out TV ads which are sleazy and false," he said. "For them not to be here to answer for those ads, to justify those ads, and to engage in a conversation about the actual merits of Amendment 47 is indicative of how their campaign has been run to date."

PCF also opposes Amendment 54, which would prohibit political donations from government contractors who are awarded no-bid contracts. KBDI has yet to tape a debate for that measure.

“Amendment 54 is about campaign finance, and it has no relationship to the other two amendments,” said Tom Lucero, campaign manger for Clean Government Colorado. Referring to PCF as “Protect Colorado’s culture of corruption," Lucero says his opponents prefer to "lurk in the shadows instead of come into the light of day to debate us."

"I’ve had a standing debate challenge to Jess Knox going on for two weeks now," Lucero added.

Reached by Face The State by telephone late Friday, Knox repeated the explanation for his absence given to KBDI earlier. He did not take questions.