Washington Politician Ed Perlmutter Is Wrong For Colorado

Democrat Ed Perlmutter declared his candidacy for the 2018 Colorado governor’s race today, but as his far-left record shows, his policies would be a disaster at the state level.

While serving as a Washington Politician, Perlmutter has been one of the most liberal members of Congress, voting with Nancy Pelosi 98 percent of the time, while also accepting tens of thousands in contributions from her. Ed Perlmutter has more in common with Washington, D.C. liberals than Colorado families. He is out-of-touch with mainstream Coloradans.

In Congress, Permutter voted for the disastrous Obamacare law, voted to increase taxes and fees by billions, and risked thousands of Colorado jobs. Pelmutter has also been a staunch supporter job-killing Cap-and-Trade schemes pushed by Democrat congressional leaders that would have disastrous effects for working Coloradans.

And just this past January, Perlmutter stated his opposition to allowing Colorado to assume control of federal lands, contending that Washington bureaucrats are more qualified than Coloradans to make decisions that dramatically affect the state.

Ed Perlmutter has spent over a decade in Washington helping push far-left policies, high taxes and wasteful spending that have proven disastrous for the people of Colorado. He cannot be trusted to lead the state as governor.

BACKGROUND:

Perlmutter Voted For Obama’s Disastrous Health Care Law, Which Raised Taxes and Fees By More Than $525 Billion. “The historic overhaul of the nation’s health care system that President Obama signed Tuesday, when combined with the fixes making their way through Congress, will raise taxes over the next 10 years by more than a half-trillion dollars.” (Staff, “Health Tax Increases, Not Only On Wealthy,”The Washington Times, 3/24/2010)

Rep. Perlmutter is opposed to letting the state of Colorado assume control of federally protected land. “Rep. Perlmutter (D-Lakewood): Our public lands are a national treasure and I believe we have a responsibility to protect them for future generations. States should not assume control of federally managed public lands. These lands should be federally protected and preserved from overdevelopment, and we should not put pressure on state budgets or diminish outdoor recreation and tourism economies.” (Press Release, “Colorado Representatives Answer Your Questions,” Perlmutter for Colorado, 1/24/17)

Since 2006, Rep. Perlmutter has taken at least $26,000 from Rep. Nancy Pelosi. According to CQ Moneyline, since 2006, Rep. Perlmutter has taken at least $26,000 from Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and her leadership political action committee (PAC), as of March 29, 2017. (Rep. Ed Perlmutter contributions, CQ Moneyline, Accessed 3/29/17)

Since 2007, Rep. Ed Perlmutter has voted with Nancy Pelosi up to 98% percent of the time. According to a CQ vote study, Rep. Ed Perlmutter (D-Colo.) has had a party unity score of at least 94 percent from 2007 to 2010. The party unity score shows the frequency with which Rep. Perlmutter voted with his party, on occasions when a majority of Republicans oppose a majority of Democrats. (Rep. Ed Perlmutter, CQ Voting Studies, CQ website, Accessed March 29, 2017; Explanation of Vote Studies, CQ website, Accessed 3/29/17)

In 2009, Rep. Ed Perlmutter voted for H.R. 2454, the American Clean Energy and Security Act of 2009, the House’s cap-and-trade legislation. On June 26, 2009, Rep. Ed Perlmutter (D-Colo.) voted for passage of the bill that would create a cap-and-trade system for limiting greenhouse gas emissions and set new requirements for electric utilities. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) would be allowed to auction emission allowances to permit the buyer to emit a certain amount of greenhouse gases. Under the bill, three-quarters of emission allowances would be provided to polluters free of charge, based on formulas, when the cap-and- trade program would begin in 2012. Remaining allowances would be sold at auction. By 2030, 75 percent of the allowances would be sold to polluters by EPA. The bill would limit emissions at 17 percent below current levels in 2020, 42 percent in 2030 and 83 percent in 2050. Companies such as electric utilities, refineries and factories could buy and sell pollution allowances and get credit for funding special projects to reduce emissions on farms and in forests. It would require utilities to produce 15 percent of the nation’s electricity from renewable sources by 2020, with another 5 percent energy savings from efficiency. States could petition to bring the renewable mandate down to 12 percent, with 8 percent from efficiency. It would set new emissions standards for coal-fired power plants, and new energy efficiency and water use standards for buildings and products. It would establish programs to assist energy consumers with higher utility bills as a result of the system. It also would create programs for electrical transmission lines, smart grid technologies, modernizing electricity infrastructure to respond to changing conditions, reduction of emissions, increased energy efficiency, and carbon capture and sequestration. (H.R. 2454, Roll Call #477, 6/9/09)