A recent poll commissioned by the Colorado Criminal Justice Reform Coalition gives new insights into how Democrats are attempting to spin the epidemic of fentanyl overdose deaths.
The poll from Public Policy Polling – a national Democratic polling firm – appears to be part of a broader campaign to cancel and smear Denver Police Chief Paul Pazen for speaking out against Democrats and their 2019 legislation to decriminalize fentanyl.
The poll follows a recent ruling regarding his agency’s response to the 2020 riots in downtown Denver, as Axios reported last week:
The intrigue: A week after the jury’s decision, the Colorado Criminal Justice Reform Coalition hired Public Policy Polling, a Democratic firm, to conduct a survey in Denver.
One question asked whether Pazen should be replaced as police chief because of the agency’s troubled response to the protests, Axios Denver has learned.
Another inquired about whether residents have favorable views of the police department and how the city should pay out the $14 million verdict.
Christie Donner, the coalition’s executive director, would not share the poll results and declined through a spokesperson to comment on the survey questions.
However, Campfire Colorado has learned one of the poll’s questions on fentanyl exhibited signs of push polling, political trickery intended to manipulate respondents’ perceptions of issues under the guise of an objective poll.
There is no evidence to conclusively argue refelonizing dangerous drug possession would require opening another prison.
This question appears to be a thinly veiled attempt to evaluate a potential political argument against changing the 2019 law that decriminalized possession of a host of drugs, including fentanyl.
The only reason to condition the question on that false premise is to examine how effective a talking point it could be to manipulate the public against increasing penalties for fentanyl possession.
It’s not hard to understand why the left is resorting to dishonesty.
Everywhere you look the left is trying to minimize the epidemic of overdose deaths.
While the poll was commissioned by the Colorado Criminal Justice Reform Coalition, we have reason to wonder who is really behind it.
Both Leslie Herod and State House Speaker Alec Garnett are rumored to be interested in running for Mayor, which would explain the garbage attacks against Pazen.
With efforts to reform the 2019 law on a knife’s edge because of Democrat infighting, Garnett is setting up law enforcement to take the fall if the left ends up killing the bill.
It’s totally disgraceful, and it won’t work.