A House divided: Session defined by dissension between progressives, establishment, GOP

Published by Colorado Politics on May 11, 2023.

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In the Colorado House of Representatives, the 2023 legislative session ended the same way it started: with conflict and division.

Lawmakers were almost giddy Monday, spending the last day of the session playing with toys and instruments, recording singalongs to "Bohemian Rhapsody," and sharing a meal on the balcony cooked by Rep. Ron Weinberg. But the carnival atmosphere quickly devolved when the sun began to set.

As the House considered one of the final measures of the session, Senate Bill 303, the Republican caucus staged a protest, walking out of the Capitol after Democratic leadership cut off a roughly two-hour debate on last-minute amendments to the bill. The bill, a property tax relief proposal, had been criticized by Republicans as being rushed through the legislative process. 

"We bring a lot of expertise to the table. Whether you agree with them or not, those voices should at least be heard," said House Minority Leader Mike Lynch, R-Wellington, during a news conference Tuesday. "We feel that didn't happen much this session." 

Republicans, who had been planning the walkout since the morning before debate was limited, did not return for the vote on SB 303 or for the last two votes of the year: re-passing of amended versions of Senate Bill 88 and Senate Bill 271. They were also absent as the chamber officially adjourned for the session.

The moment was a culmination of tensions present throughout the session between the chamber's supermajority and superminority. After the November election, the House had only 19 Republican members to the 46 Democrats this year — the largest Democratic advantage the chamber had seen in 85 years. 

The bipartisan conflict began on the very first day of session when Democratic Rep. Julie McCluskie was elected House speaker in a 55-8 vote, marking the second year that Republicans broke a decades-long tradition of both parties unanimously voting in support of the new speaker. Instead of McCluskie, eight Republicans voted for freshman Republican Rep. Scott Bottoms, who had sworn into office less than 10 minutes prior. 

Lacking the votes to prevent Democratic policies from passing, House Republicans repeatedly turned to stall tactics: asking for bills to be read at length and filibustering throughout the year. They spent hours, and sometimes days, delaying action on key Democratic legislation, including gun control and abortion rights measures. In response, Democrats applied rarely-if-ever-used House rules to limit debate and speed up votes. 

"Mid-session, we began to recognize that what was happening in our chamber was no longer respectful and productive," said House Speaker McCluskie, D-Dillon. "I am deeply disappointed that my colleagues walked out of the House. We are hired to do one specific thing in this General Assembly and that is to cast a vote." 

While no House Republicans were in the chamber for the last hours of the 2023 session, the drama did not cease. 

After the vote on SB 303, the House went into recess and the Democratic caucus held a private meeting to debrief on the Republicans' walkout. The meeting began with McCluskie condemning the GOP's behavior and other Democrats praising her handling of the situation and of the session, complete with standing ovations from the caucus.

Shortly after, Rep. Elisabeth Epps spoke. 

During Epps' 13-minute speech, the first-year Denver lawmaker echoed Republican criticisms of SB 303, calling the bill "inappropriately" rushed and its passage "predetermined." The bill was introduced one week before the end of session and continued to be amended mere hours before lawmakers adjourned for the year. 

Epps was one of seven House Democrats who voted against SB 303 in the final vote. All of the Democratic opponents were first-year lawmakers. 

"I am the most cynical person I know ... and even I didn't know this place worked like this," Epps said. "Most of our colleagues who were not there for those votes, they didn't do that in good faith. But the points that they're making are accurate. This was a ridiculous process. ... Party fealty isn't enough for me to vote 'yes' on something." 

Epps also said McCluskie has not done enough to support and defend Black lawmakers during the session. Epps said McCluskie didn't call out Republicans making offensive remarks on the floor and speaks to them "with a tone of voice that is not the tone that we had when we've had so many conversations one-on-one." 

"That sheet you gave us on Jan. 30 about leaning into hard conversations and the anti-racism workshop we go through, it means nothing if you don't do it when it's hard," Epps said. "You did ask to do this. ... I'm asking you to do much, much more." 

Several times throughout the session, Republican House members have been criticized for making offensive comments during floor debates. 

Rep. Richard Holtorf, R-Akron, likened people with physical disabilities to running with bulls in Spain, saying if "you're dumb enough" to get hurt, "you own it." Bottoms, R-Colorado Springs, attacked transgender people, saying gender is determined by chromosomes "no matter how much you lie to yourself and change it." Multiple Republicans shouted at Epps for "play(ing) the race card" during a debate on juvenile crime, with Holtorf saying: "We are not racist. The husband of my oldest daughter is half-Black." 

Responding to Epps, McCluskie said she will "lean in" and "do more" for her party, but she also doubled down on her commitment to working across the aisle. 

"I am as committed to your success and the success of every individual in this room and, truthfully, the success of our Republican colleagues. That is what this job is," McCluskie said. "My list of lessons learned is long, but I'm not giving up. I'm not quitting. And I'm going to work damn hard to get those Republicans back and for us to work with them, not against them. For us to come together."

Her message reflects what some political analysts predicted would be the defining conflict of the 2023 session: new progressive Democrats facing roadblocks from moderate establishment Democrats who hold most of the positions of power in the legislature. Even as Republicans say they feel silenced and disenfranchised by the majority party, many progressives accuse the leadership of coddling GOP members and working too hard to gain bipartisan approval when voters overwhelmingly chose to send Democrats to the legislature. 

Democrats like Rep. Judy Amabile of Boulder spoke up to defend McCluckie during the meeting, saying the Republican walkout and general chaos of the session are not her fault.

Others pushed back against McCluskie's insistence on bipartisanship. 

Rep. Stephanie Vigil, another first-term lawmaker from Colorado Springs, described some of the Republicans as "bad men, violent men," who "want to kill a lot of us," particularly pointing to GOP representatives from El Paso County. Vigil said she cannot work with "somebody who is my sworn enemy, they do not want me to carry on living." 

"They said back at home that they were not coming here to work with anyone, but they were coming here to force this thing to the ground," Vigil said. "We need to stop acting like trying to get along with our enemies is going to preserve this institution. I think we're past that." 

Asked about those comments, Lynch told reporters at a post-session news conference the difference between the Democrats and Republicans is that "I don't care if you're good or bad if they've got something to contribute to the conversation." He also said the Democrats need to "have some thick skin." 

Third-term, outgoing Rep. Serena Gonzales-Gutierrez of Denver similarly objected to McCluskie's call for Democrats to come together with Republicans. 

"I worked with Republicans. I have no problem doing that. What I have a problem with is when we have to sit there and endure the terrible things that they have said that harm our communities," Gonzales-Gutierrez said. "I don't think we should have to work with them when they are saying racist things. Why is that a learning opportunity for us?" 

Gonzales-Gutierrez also expressed disappointment for the session as a whole, saying she doesn't think Democrats did better than in previous sessions and doesn't think they did anything to substantially help renters or to keep people in their homes — achievements Democratic leaders claimed during their post-session press conference. 

She blamed the legislative process for these failures, saying bills that were worked on for years and properly stakeholded still didn't pass. 

Despite the Democratic supermajority, some major Democrat-sponsored bills passed by the House died on the calendar in the Senate in the last days of the session, including Gov. Jared Polis' controversial land use bill, Senate Bill 213, and Gonzales-Gutierrez's bill to prohibit evictions without just cause, House Bill 1171. 

The same group of House lawmakers will gather for another legislative session in January. Though McCluskie said she will work to improve communications within the Democratic caucus, it seems their sights are still set on the minority party. 

Assistant Majority Leader Jennifer Bacon of Denver said this abnormal session taught Democrats valuable lessons about their Republican colleagues. 

"We learned who our colleagues are. We learned what they are willing to say and do to people," Bacon said. "As we think about the interim and coming to next session, I hope we can learn from all we have seen here and be prepared for what it is that we will face." 

As for the Republicans, Lynch said he learned lessons from the session, too, but he's not sure he'd do anything differently. 

"We'll continue to build relationships on the other side," Lynch said. "As far as tactics, those are the only tools that we've got."