It’s past time for reporters to start asking more key Colorado candidates where they stand on Trump.

Don’t yowl that it’s an unfair question, somehow beyond-the-pale partisan because Trump is so unpopular in Colorado and not relevant to state races.

If that’s what you think, you’re wishing you lived in a different America.

Trump’s presidency permeates every single political race and decision in our country, affecting every aspect of government (Bill of Rights, courts, press, FBI, EPA, voting, and so much more). His rhetoric and style upend civil discourse.

Whether you agree with that or not, you have to admit that Trump is a revolutionary-type force in our country.

As such, the opinions of all candidates about Trump should available to voters.

I don’t mean to say journalists have ignored candidates’ views on Trump, but the reporting has been spotty and, in the legislative races, it’s been absent in many cases, even in the state senate races that are so critical in this election.

I’ve scoured the public record, and called candidates, to find out which Colorado Republicans voted for Trump. Will they do so again? What do they like and don’t like about what he’s done? (I’m assuming Democrats oppose Trump.)

Objectively, these are legitimate questions for any candidate in the year 2018. Yet, many Republicans in key Colorado races have yet to answer them. Here’s what we know so far.

GOVERNOR

Walker Stapleton (embraced Trump’s endorsement.  Wants Trump to campaign with him here in Colorado)

Lang Sias (backs Trump now and is already dedicated to voting for him in 2020)

U.S. CONGRESS

U.S. Rep. Ken Buck (backed Trump in 2016; 88 percent pro-Trump voting record)

U.S. Rep. Mike Coffman (voted for Pence in 2016; 96 percent pro-Trump voting record)

U.S. Rep. Doug Lamborn (backed Trump in 2016; 94 percent pro-Trump voting record)

U.S. Rep. Scott Tipton (backed Trump in 2016;  96 percent pro-Trump voting record)

COLORADO ATTORNEY GENERAL

George Brauchler (says we’re “in pretty damn good hands” with Trump; voted for him)

COLORADO SECRETARY OF STATE

Wayne Williams (expressed support for Trump’s candidacy)

COLORADO TREASURER

Brian Watson (supports Trump)

KEY STATE SENATE RACES

Beth Martinez Humenik of Thornton — (unknown, but she praised Trump’s Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke)

Christine Jensen of Wheat Ridge — (did not respond to a voice message asking for her views on the Trump presidency)

Olen Lund of Paonia — (did not respond to a voice message asking for his views on the Trump presidency)

Tim Neville of Littleton — (a loyal Trump backer, who celebrated Trump’s “Year of Greatness”)

Tony Sanchez of Lakewood — (did not respond to a voice message asking for his views on the Trump presidency)

KEY STATE HOUSE RACES

Kristina Alley of Lakewood — (voted for Trump)

Grady Nouis of Westminster — (stands with Trump 100%)

Toren Mushovic of Greenwood Village — (did not respond to a voice message asking for his views on the Trump presidency)

Kit Roupe of Colorado Springs — (wrote in 2016, “I ask you to vote and to vote for Trump.“)

“I want to point out something important. Everybody that stands before you moving forward, who says that they want your vote to be the Republican nominee for fill-in-the-blank, you must insist on finding out whom they voted for for president.”

That might sound like a progressive media critic urging reporters to find out where conservatives candidates stand on Trump, but it’s actually GOP gubernatorial candidate George Brauchler speaking at a celebration of Trump’s first 100 days in office.

@GeorgeBrauchler speaks to a capacity crowd in Castle Rock, CO. 5/15/17 #copolitics pic.twitter.com/pWDzKNuD1M

— George Brauchler (@GB4CO) May 16, 2017

“And I’m here to tell you I voted for Donald Trump,” continued Brauchler, saying how impressed he was with the turnout. “…If you listen to the news, you think we’re on the verge of some sort of Constitutional crisis. This tells me we’re all in pretty damn good hands right now in terms of the United States of America.”

Later Brauchler, who’s the Arapahoe County District Attorney, told a conservative radio host that Trump’s first 100 days have been “productive.” And he bashed the media as “biased” and, with Trump’s help, making “mountains out of molehills.”

Mountains out of molehills?

By grabbing onto Trump like he’s doing, Brauchler is embracing the conventional wisdom that bedding down with the right is essential to winning the GOP primary next year.

But remember that Dick Wadhams (or was it Jack Graham?) finished second behind Darryl Glenn in the 2016 GOP U.S. Senate primary last year. And who knows what impact the open primaries will have on the Republican primary, which is looking to be a crazy clash of dynasties and cash.

So, yeah, the GOP Trump base seems energized, but it’s still surprising that when Brauchler looks across the state, all he seems to see is Trump. During his KNUS 710-AM interview (below), he said Colorado Republicans see “steady progress forward on a lot of things that people care about.” And, Brauchler said on air, “within the party, when you go to the Lincoln Day dinners…you can’t find a Trump naysayer in the group.”

Not a Trump naysayer! And this was the day Trump leaked classified information to Russians in the White House.

So how far will the GOP primary candidates go in their courtship of Trump voters?

Reporters should take a cue from Brauchler and not wait until the September to tell this dramatic and high-stakes story.

Listen to Brauchler on KNUS 710-AM May

The Denver Post’s Mark Matthews obviously got it right on Sunday when he reported that the fallout from the presidential race will affect Democrats and Republicans who want to be Colorado’s next governor.

With respect to possible Republican gubernatorial candidates, like Colorado Treasurer Walker Stapleton, Matthews reported:

How [Republican] party members view the start to [Trump’s] presidency could have an impact on which candidates they support. Stapleton, for example, backed distant relative Jeb Bush in the GOP primary, although he later voted for Trump.

Some Republican candidates, like Stapleton, probably don’t want to be asked 1) about their presidential vote, or 2) what they think of Trump’s actions/behavior. (See Stapleton dodge the topic here last year.)

But that’s why reporters should continue asking both questions–and because they are of ongoing relevance and an inescapable part of the story line leading up to next year’s election.

As for other possible GOP gubernatorial candidates, in addition to Stapleton, Matthews mentioned state Sens. Tim Neville and Ray Scott, who are both on record as supporting Trump, as well as Attorney General Cynthia Coffman, who appeared to signal her backing of the president-elect by cheering “Go Trump!” on election night, and George Brauchler, whose presidential vote is apparently still unknown.

9News‘ anchor Kyle Clark missed a chance to ask Brauchler about Trump during a Next with Kyle Clark interview last week, but undoubtedly the topic of Trump will come up repeatedly as Republicans and Democrats dither about whether to officially launch gubernatorial campaigns.

I mean, if Trump isn’t among the most important topics in an interview with almost any candidate, what is?

In what appear to be his most extensive comments yet on his possible appointment as Trump’s Secretary of Interior, former congressman Bob Beauprez told KOA 850-AM listeners this morning why he’d be a good fit for the job.

“This is where most of the federal land is,” Beauprez observed a day after ColoradoPolitics.com first reported that he was being considered for the job. “And I think, to get someone in that role who understands water, natural resources, land, wildlife, mixed-use of those lands and resources, I think it’s very important.  So, I’ve long thought that it might be a job that I would very much enjoy.  And I think my life as a rancher/farmer would fit the job very well.”

Beauprez, who lost his second gubernatorial race in Colorado in 2014, told hosts Steffan Tubbs and April Zesbaugh that building pipelines like the Dakota Access project, is “something that has to happen,” but, as Interior Secretary, he’d like to find a compromise that “everybody can live with.”

“I know that the Indan tribes have had some concerns about their sacred lands,” said Beauprez. “And those, I think, are legitimate concerns.  The important thing, I think, in a job like that is to try to find a good compromise that everybody can live with.  But I’ve long thought that we needed to improve – and I’m not alone on this.  We need to improve the transportation infrastructure for our oil and gas reserves, as well.  So, building pipelines is something that has to happen.  And in the West, where we’ve got so much federal land, that land is going to be part the mix.  No doubt about it.”

Beauprez said there “has been some limited communication between myself and some of the folks that are part of the transition process.”

He said on air that he’s spoken with people “very close” to both Trump and David Longley Bernhardt, who’s apparently from Colorado and part of the Trump transition team.

Beauprez said his wife, who he referred to as his “biggest cheerleader” is supportive of his joining the Trump Administration.

In a Facebook post last month, Republican businessman Jerry Natividad, who toyed with a U.S. Senate run this year, downplayed GOP presidential candidate Donald Trump’s widely publicized comments about undocumented immigrants being “rapists.”

“I’m sure some of them in the drug business are rapists, either in Mexico or when they cross the border,” wrote Natividad in his Facebook post, which was obtained from a source.

The post refers to former Denver Mayor Federico Pena and former U.S. Senator Ken Salazar as over-reacting to Trump’s comment

“I guess either you have tough skin or not,” wrote Natividad.

When he announed his presidential bid, Trump’s said:

Trump: “When Mexico sends its people, they’re not sending their best. They’re not sending you. They’re sending people that have lots of problems, and they’re bringing those problems with us. They’re bringing drugs. They’re bringing crime. They’re rapists. And some, I assume, are good people.”

Natividad was apparently not bothered by this.

Natividad: It’s a shame when the Hillary campaign callled Latinos needy, not one Latino, Federico, Salazar, those Texas brother Latino clowns, did not raise an eyebrow, just fell in line, mesmerized. Yet Trump mentions all those illegal Mexicans moving drugs and weapons across the border feeding our drug demise and oh my god, he said that of Mexicans. I guess either you have tough skin or not…and I’m sure some of them in the drug business are rapists, either in Mexico or when the cross the border.

Natividad did not return a call for clarification and to get his thoughts on whether he stands behind his defense of Trump, and his attacks on Pena and Salazar, especially now that Hispanic voters are seen as one of Trump’s biggest obstacles to winning the election.

The story of Trump’s impact on down-ballot races Colorado is unfolding in front of us in the strangest ways, with Colorado Republicans going every which way when it comes to the mogul.

A unique approach to Trump has been taken by Arapahoe County Commissioner Nancy Doty, who’s running against Democrat Daniel Kagan in a Cherry Hills state-state race that Democrats must win to take control of the chamber.

Doty said in June that she’d support Trump, and later called Sarah Palin’s endorsement of Trump “spot on.”

But then she told the Aurora Sentinel last month that her vote is a “private decision.” The Denver Post reported most Oct. 23 that Doty’s not commenting on Trump.

But lo, Doty tweeted a photo Saturday from her apparent appearance at the Trump rally in Golden, without comment, as if to say, “Look! I’m still voting for Trump, but a secret is a secret.”

But in any case, on election night, reporters should reflect on what’s worked Trump-wise for Colorado Republicans in tight races. The Doty approach?

State Sen. Laura Woods’ I-Believe-Trump-Will-“Lead-our-Country-to-Greatness-Once-Again” strategy.

U.S. Rep. Mike Coffman’s strategery of dodge trump (December), then yes Trump (February), then maybe Trump (May and August), then no Trump (October). And possibly no one (October).

We’ll never know Trump’s exact impact in Colorado’s down-ballot races, but that shouldn’t stop reporters from having fun trying to figure it out anyway on Tuesday night, using our abundant local material.

Here are my favorite election stories by local journalists:

Denver 7’s Marshall Zelinger of course gets the top prize in both the journalism and entertainment categories. His series of stories showing forged signatures on the ballot-access petitions of former GOP state Rep. Jon Keyser had a game-changing impact on Colorado’s U.S. Senate race and reflected everything you want from journalism, especially at a time when it’s going to the dogs. (Don’t miss your chance to see Zelinger’s Keyser interview again here.)

Without the state-senate campaign coverage by Marianne Goodland at the Colorado Independent and Ernest Luning and John Tomasic at the Colorado Statesman, we would’ve had little reporting—until the final weeks—on the key state senate races that will determine control of Colorado government. Other outlets weighed late, which is great, but these races were so pivotal and important to the entire state this year, they deserved the early and sustained focus they got only from the Statesman and the Independent.

Luning also exposed a Democratic state legislative candidate who basically made up his entire resume and was later defeated in his primary race. In a similar vein, Goodland’s piece revealing the potential jail time faced by state house candidate Tim Leonard also deserves high praise. So does former Post reporter Joey Bunch’s treatment of Darryl Glenn’s legal troubles as a young man.

Denver Post reporter John Frank’s series of inside-view articles on the revolt by Colorado Republicans against Trump at the GOP National Convention informed the national debate on the growing #NeverTrump and plain-old anti-Trump movement among Republicans.  (Frank’s prodigious output generally also deserves mention.)

The Denver media’s political-ad fact-checkers have my eternal admiration because their job is tedious and difficult but really valuable. So, a shout out to Denver 7’s Alan Gathright, The Denver Post, 9News’ Brandon Rittiman, and  CBS 4’s Shaun Boyd. Reporters, like the Grand Junction Sentinel’s Charles Ashby, who dip into this territory, deserve credit too.

She got ribbed by fellow reporters for burying the lede, but former CO Springs Gazette reporter Megan Schrader gets credit for reporting U.S. Senator Cory Gardner’s off-the-cuff comment that he planned to vote for Trump after all. The story generated national buzz and shows what’s lost as we shed campaign-trail journalism.

The Colorado Independent’s Corey Hutchins’ story about anonymous campaign flyers may later play a role, in a small way, in a legislative fix that all sides would welcome.

I thought the debates moderated by 9News’ Kyle Clark and Brandon Rittiman were particularly informative.

It’s the little things that can make politics fun, so hats off to Molly Morrison at KRDO-TV in Colorado Springs for revealing that Trump was rescued by the Springs’ Fire Department after the head-strong mogul had insulted the Springs’ fire marshal. Nice.

Kudos to 9News‘ Rittiman and Denver’s 7‘s Zelinger for asking U.S. Rep. Mike Coffman, after he released an ad critical of Trump in August, who he’d vote for. The fallout from his response—that Coffman would still consider voting for Trump or for the Libertarian candidate–got national coverage. And it t turned out to be a harbinger of Coffman’s troubles later, as he’s tried to both support and oppose Trump at the same time, ultimately opposing Trump. We all love it when journalists follow up beyond the canned statements and ads.

Finally, can you beat the editorials in the Aurora Sentinel? No. Even if you like U.S. Rep. Mike Coffman (R-CO), you still have to love the writing in the Sentinel’s endorsement of his Democratic opponent Morgan Carroll, as well as the fire in its other editorials on any political topic.

Colorado State Sen. Laura Woods, who’s battling Democrat Rachel Zenzinger in a critical state senate race, introduced GOP presidential candidate Donald Trump at a rally in Golden Saturday.

Below is a partial transcript of Woods’ comments. Woods, who’s long supported Trump, got the most media attention for leading the chant of, “Lock her up,” referring of course to Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton. But reporters should have flagged other falsehoods in the speech. To fill the gap, I’ve done so below.

Laura Woods: Good morning everyone. Good morning patriots.

I was supposed to come up and say something I forget. Why don’t we just state with, Lock her up!

[Crowd chants “Lock her up.”

Thank you very much. You just got all the jitters out of my stomach. So I appreciate that.

Whether you are a Republican or a Democrat or an unaffiliated voter you attendance today at this rally proves you are a proud American who believes this country can be made great again.

As Don mentioned, I am State Sen. Laura Woods from Jefferson County. I have served Arvada and Westminster in the state senate for two sessions. I am now running for my last four-year term. I am a native of Colorado.

I am a proud American, and I am a patriot to the core. I love this country, and I love our state, but I too am very worried.

I am worried because for decades we Americans have watched the media and the political elite and the corrupt media drive an agenda across our nation and into our schools and down throats [FACT CHECK: “Corrupt media” is a tough accusation to support, but it’s her opinion.]

As conservatives, as patriots, we have been choking on that agenda for decades. Hillary Clinton has made millions while in government selling access to foreigners, to corporations, and to others, while hard-working people like you and I want to make an honest living. [FACT CHECK: There’s no evidence that Clinton “made millions” by selling access.]

Hillary broke the law so she could hide her emails, and lied to us again and again, and again yesterday. [FACT CHECK: Hillary has not been convicted of breaking any law.]

We are people who believe no one should be above the law. Hillary and her team have actually paid people to attack people at rallies just like this one.  We are peaceful Americans holding peaceful rallies. [FACT CHECK: Clinton has not been shown to have paid anyone to disrupt Trump.]

Hillary Clinton allowed four people to die in Benghazi. [FACT CHECK: This is not true.]

Hillary Clinton and her campaign have had private meetings with dozens of reporters, and she’s been given the questions in advance, while this same media attacks us at every turn. We just want the media to report the truth. [FACT CHECK: Reporters, overall, treat both sides the same way.]

And if that’s not enough, Hillary Clinton is on record saying she wants open borders. Who cares what the rest of Americans think.  We Americans want safe neighborhoods. We want safe cities. [FACT CHECK: Clinton does not advocate an open-border immigration policy.]

Hillary Clinton has called Americans a basket full of deplorables, but she hates people of faith and she demands that we change our beliefs while we as Americans go about loving our neighbors and loving our country. [FACT CHECK: It’s not supportable to say Hillary hates people of faith, or that she demands anyone to change his or her faith, but this is Woods’ opinion.]

Hillary Clinton and her team are scheming to steal this election, while we are citizens who believe in a fair political process, and we want our votes to count. [FACT CHECK: There’s no evidence that Clinton is trying to perpetrate election fraud.]

Hillary Clinton has been in the center of the swamp, as Donald Trump says, for decades. You guys are great.

So folks, we can change the course of our country. We can stop those elites who are wanting to control us. We can stand up to corruption. You and I can help drain the swamp.

In fact, we have to be the ones to do it. We are the ones to do it.

I am a Donald Trump supporter not just because he’s the Republican candidate but because I believe he will lead our country to greatness once again. I believe he will make America safe again.  I believe he will put you and your family, as citizens of this great country, first again. I believe he will support our military and our law enforcement and I believe he will put Americans back to work again by creating jobs. Donald Trump is a business man who’s created thousands of jobs. And he’ll bring a common-sense business approach to government. Now there is a fresh idea.

So folks if this list of horribles about Hillary Clinton doesn’t convince you of the importance of this election, I can’t imagine what will. ….

John Sampson, a former Republican state senate candidate who resigned this month from his position as Adams County GOP vice chair, agrees with Donald Trump that Democrats and others in the United States “rig elections and engage in systemic and widespread voter and election fraud.”

Sampson, who made the comments on Facebook Tues., is apparently joined by State Senator Laura Woods (R-Arvada), who liked a Facebook meme last weekend titled, “Breaking News: Fox News Is Reporting Widespread Voter Fraud, Obama Says It’s Dangerous to Report It.”

During her introduction of Trump during a campaign stop in Golden Saturday, Woods said Democrats are trying to rig the election.

Woods: “Hillary Clinton and her team are scheming to steal this election,” said Woods, without citing any evidence, “while we are citizens who believe in a fair political process, and we want our votes to count.”

Woods, who’s battling Democrat Rachel Zenzinger in a key Arvada/Westminster legislative race, said Trump will “lead our country to greatness once again” Woods has stood firmly behind Trump throughout the ups and downs of the mogul’s campaign, saying she’ll likely lose of Trump loses her district.

When he took the stage after Woods, Trump warned Colorado’s election officials, including its county clerks, who run the state’s elections and are mostly Republicans, that they’re being monitored.

““We have a lot of people watching you people that collect the ballots,” said Trump, as quoted in The Denver Post, adding he has “real problems” with Colorado’s mail-in ballot process.

In the wake of Trump’s repeated accusations about rigged elections, multiple media outlets have concluded, based on previous exhaustive studies, that voter fraud is a non-issue in the U.S., incluidng, of course, Colorado.

Asked if his concerns about election fraud extend to Adams County, Sampson told me Friday he doesn’t think Stan Martin, the Republican County Clerk and Recorder there, is perpetrating fraud.

Still, Sampson says there a “potential for fraud” due to problems with mail-in ballots, Diebold voting machines, and ineligible voters.

Another early Trump Supporter in Colorado, congressional candidate George Athanasopoulous, has been outspoken about his concern about voter fraud, echoing the allegations from Trump and Woods.

Sampson on Facebook: When Donald Trump refused to answer Chris Wallace’s question as to whether or not he would accept the results of the election, Clinton, the DNC, and the usual list of suspects (an appropriate description if there was ever one), went apoplectic.

They decried his response, stating that Trump needed to accept the voice of the people, bow to the will of the people, and accept their, repeat THEIR, decision.

Really? Are you sure? If so, then can someone please tell me why the Democrats, Clinton, and the usual list of suspects (again, appropriate), feel the need to rig elections and engage in systemic and widespread voter and election fraud?

I mean, if they truly accepted the will of the people, accepted THEIR votes, then there would be no need to rig elections now, would there? But that is the problem. The DNC, Democrats, Clinton, and the usual list of suspects are abject hypocrites.

They rig elections and engage in systemic and widespread voter and election fraud because they DON’T, repeat DON’T, trust the American voter and don’t think the American voter will vote for them simply based on their positions on the issues. In short, they do not, will not, and never will, accept the will of the American voter nor will they honor the “Everyday American’s” decision. For they believe the great unwashed are too stupid to be trusted.

It’s simply a matter of trust. We’re not trusted, nor respected by The Clintons, The Democrats, The DNC, and The Usual List of Suspects (which includes Wall Street, The Media, Hollywood, and the Pollsters).They arrogantly believe they are “Oh So Superior” to us and we are simply backward children that need to be taken care of.

The only way Socialism and Communism flourish is when elections are corrupted and the will of the people is thwarted. They have to rig elections in order to achieve and remain in power. Left to the will of the people, Socialism and Communism cannot flourish.

Donald Trump hit the nail right on the head when he said the system is rigged. It has been for decades. We’re just finally waking up to that fact. I just hope we didn’t wake up too late and didn’t hit the snooze button one too many times.

While some Republicans who once supported Trump are now backing off, Colorado state senate candidate Nancy Doty, who previously said she’d vote for the GOP presidential nominee, is now refusing to reveal whom she will vote for, saying she considers “everyone’s vote to be a private decision.”

Doty’s latest position was reported by Brandon Johansson at the Aurora Sentinel, which published Doty’s answer to the question, “Will you vote for Donald Trump, Hillary Clinton or someone else?”

Doty’s response: Yes. I consider my vote private and everyone’s vote to be a private decision.

In June, Doty was out-of-the-closet with her voting preferences, as reported by Marianne Goodland of the Colorado Independent:

On her presidential preference, Doty said she will support the Republican nominee, although Donald Trump was not her first choice. She initially backed Florida Sen. Marco Rubio.

Then, in July, she said Sarah Palin’s Denver speech, in which Palin raved about Trump, was “spot on,” confirming that Doty herself still planned to vote for Trump.

So why the sudden silence on her prez pick? Both the Aurora Sentinel and the Colorado Independent should call her and find out what’s up–and set the record straight for their readers. (Doty did not return my call seeking an explanation, and she’s ignored queries from others on other issues.)

What led Doty, who faces Democratic Rep. Daniel Kagan in hotly contested SD 26, to first be open about her voting preference and then settle on the belief that “everyone’s vote” should be a “private decision?”

Who knows? Maybe Trump’s antics have something to do with it, but the inconsistency deserves to be exposed and explained.