Protect Colorado’s Future, a union front group fighting this November's Right To Work initiative, titled Amendment 47, is hypocritically pointing the finger at "out-of-state" interests the group alleges are trying to “divide Coloradans.”
“When you have these out-of-state, or narrow corporate interests trying to divide Coloradans, it's bad for all Colorado," said Jess Knox, the group’s spokesman in an interview with Channel 7 last week.
PCF opposes Amendments 47, 49 and 54—all considered anti-union—while it supports Amendments 53 and 55.
It’s no secret that out-of-state money is flooding Colorado from both sides. In the unions’ case, the out-of state money is coming from the pockets of hard-working union workers across the country, who most likely are unknowingly funding a ballot fight in Colorado they probably don't care about.
Meanwhile, individuals who aren't forced to give political contributions through their union dues can contribute to any campaign willingly and intentionally. If Knox is going to the be critical of “narrow” out-of-state interests playing ball in Colorado politics, than he need not look further than his own employer. Protect Colorado’s Future has seen 98 percent of its $3.3 million in contributions since March come from unions, and 67 percent, or $2.2 million, came from out of state.
Knox is also the quintessential carpetbagger. He has worked on campaigns in Maine for over a decade and is a member of the Maine Democratic Party and Portland, Maine networks on Facebook. Knox worked for Al Gore’s New Hampshire primary in 2000, and was employed by John Edwards for President until the campaign dissolved in January of this year. A few months later, he appeared on the scene in Colorado as the executive director of Protect Colorado’s Future.