As Rep. Lauren Boebert enjoys the glow from Donald Trump’s endorsement in her run for the 4th Congressional District seat, we’re witnessing her solid footing in high heels on the national stage. She’s leaning into her passions to stop illegal immigration, support gun rights, boost the oil and gas industry, and give what she calls “radical Democrats” a hard time.
Yet, a quick internet search reveals where her attention is not going –our 3rd Congressional District.
Clearly, Boebert has moved on, buying a home in Windsor and focusing on winning votes in CD4’s primary election on June 25. By choosing not to run in the special election on the same day to replace Rep. Ken Buck, whose resignation takes effect today, she holds onto her seat in CD3 and that salary of $174,000.
No matter that she’s campaigning elsewhere, she’s still on the clock in CD3.
Yes, CD3 will receive more than $20 million for water and infrastructure projects. On Monday, Boebert said 10 of the community funding projects she requested were approved as part of H.R. 4366, also known as the Consolidated Appropriations Act, which President Joe Biden signed into law on March 9.
But the pesky problem of being widely known across the U.S. comes with scrutiny and fact checks. National media outlets wasted no time in pointing out Boebert voted “no” on the bill that secured this funding.
Of course, we don’t know all the unfinished business crossing her desk. Her greatest local accomplishment, though, was in 2022, backing the Dolores River National Conservation Area and Special Management Act, along with Sen. Michael Bennet. Grateful for this bill.
But before she leaves CD3 for good, we need more work completed to benefit Southwest constituents.
Boebert’s new $60,000 TV ad is running on cable channels and streaming services for three weeks in CD4, which covers Douglas County, parts of Larimer and Weld counties, and the Eastern Plains. The announcer says Trump endorses this “America first warrior.”
Boebert’s trajectory is obvious, moving up and out, away from rural communities. Her TV ad does not include images from CD4 – none of the landscapes or wide-openness or subtle beauty of the plains. None of the people and their varied ways of life. What they need to support their families, be successful and, ultimately, be free.
The ad closes with “stand with President Trump and vote Lauren Boebert for Congress.”
The announcer notes Trump’s message that Boebert is a “proven conservative.”
Know who else are proven conservatives? The pack of Republican primary candidates running against Boebert. They’re mostly MAGA-attired, Trump-devoted, hardworking people who understand the day-to-day wants of CD4 constituents.
It must feel crummy to be upstaged by a newcomer.
Already, many Coloradans see Boebert as settled in on the other side of our state. On Monday, a news story in Colorado Politics even opened with CD4 as Boebert’s “new congressional district.”
Hey, not so fast. Boebert is currently our representative here in CD3. We’d like to see more legislation that confirms this.
Ann Marie Swan is Opinion Editor at The Durango Herald and The Journal in Cortez. These views are hers and don’t reflect the editorial board’s.
