7th Grader SILENCED Over Pro-Life Poem, Tina Peters Appeal & Polis Mocked | Mountain Minute: 5/29/26

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[00:00:00]Happy Friday, everyone. Today, a follow-up [music] story to a seventh grader who wrote a pro-life poem and got silenced. Colorado Democrats push controversial bills through in the dead of night, and Governor Jared Polis shows up to a party meeting with tape [music] over his mouth. It's been a wild, wild week in Colorado and beyond, so let's get into it. Here is your Mountain Minute for May [music] 29th.

[00:00:24]At Drake Middle School [music] in Jefferson County, a seventh-grade student wrote a slam poem this spring expressing her pro-life views on abortion. School officials told her she could turn it in for a grade, but she was not allowed to read it aloud to her classmates. Although the same class had previously shown students America Reloading, a poem containing graphic references to Sandy Hook and lines mocking Christianity for years, until parents spent over a year fighting to get it removed. Parents say the slam poetry unit had long been used to push one-sided political perspectives onto 12-year-olds. The student told Newsmax she believed her poem was treated differently because her teacher and administrators simply didn't agree with what she was saying. Videos posted by the family went viral, racking up over 2 million views, and Rocky Mountain Voice got the original And Rocky Mountain Voice got the original interview with them, so go ahead and check that out. They will also be speaking at Freedom Fest, and it's exactly the kind of story that doesn't get told anywhere in the mainstream media, so we are excited to tell it and see them at Freedom Festival in June.

[00:01:31]Speaking of what's happening in Colorado classrooms and state houses, the Christian Home Educators of Colorado is calling out the Democrat-controlled legislature for what they're describing as intentional obstruction. According to CHEC, controversial bills were deliberately held into the final days of legislative session when public scrutiny is the lowest. The School Finance Act was amended on the house floor, the last chamber left to vote, meaning the public couldn't testify and most representatives didn't even know it changed. Other bills pushed through in those final days include an abortion medication access bill for college campuses, a bill redefining domestic violence to include not affirming a child's chosen gender identity, and legislation targeting private and faith-based schools.

[00:02:21]Meanwhile, bills that would have required age verification for pornographic material online and a parental rights amendment were both killed in committee.

[00:02:30]Colorado families deserve to know what's being done in the dark and read the article if you want to know all the details. And then there's this. Just a week after his own party censured him by a stunning 89.8% vote for granting Tina Peters clemency, Governor Jared Polis showed up to an internal Democrat Zoom meeting with tape over his mouth. I'm just going to leave that there. Make of that what you will.

[00:02:54]And on the topic of Tina Peters, she is now asking the Colorado Supreme Court to overturn her convictions entirely.

[00:03:02]At the heart of the case is a juror whose business phone lines were cut on the very first Friday of the trial. That juror spent the next 10 days wondering if she was being targeted, spent $4,000 restoring her phone service, and said nothing to the court. All while deliberating toward a verdict that convicted Peters on four felonies and three misdemeanors. Peters' attorney argued a formal hearing was required under a 1954 US Supreme Court precedent.

[00:03:27]The trial judge denied it the same afternoon it was filed. The court of appeals backed him up and now it's Colorado's highest court's turn to decide. At the capital, a clash erupted over a late session bill allowing nonprofits to collect up to 25% of state grant money upfront before any work is done. When a Republican senator offered an amendment blocking sitting lawmakers or their family members from benefiting from the bill.

[00:03:53]13 Democrat senators, many of whom work for nonprofits, voted it down. One state senator has pledged to pursue a restriction next session that would prohibit lawmakers from profiting off taxpayer money, but the conflict of interest here is hard to ignore, you guys. Closer to home for Douglas County residents, the school district is staring down a $22 million deficit heading into the 2026-27 school year.

[00:04:19]Officials say declining enrollment is driving the shortfall, and they're covering part of it with one-time drawdown of reserves. Board members warned that without structural changes to how Colorado funds schools, next year's cuts could include employees. And Colorado voters who want to actually fix the roads may have a shot this November.

[00:04:39]Initiative 175, which would require all transportation revenue to actually be spent exclusively on roads, bridges, safety, and the state patrol, has submitted 180,000 signatures, well above the 124,000 needed to qualify. The legislature has already passed a bill to try and neutralize it, but $700 million in state funding is on the line. A new bill awaiting the governor's signature, HB 26-1111, would create a government enterprise charging fees on pesticide producers and applicators who fund a state-run disposal program. Supporters argue it could actually save farmers money in the long run, while critics are watching closely to see if it's a genuine solution or just another workaround to Colorado's TABOR taxpayer protections.

[00:05:27]And now on to national news, a federal judge has blocked Democrats' attempt to stop President Trump's executive order on election security. US District Judge Carl Nichols ruled that Democrats failed to demonstrate any actual harm or legal standing to challenge the order at this stage, clearing the way for citizenship verification of voter rolls to move forward. DHS is now going after immigration lawyers who file fraudulent asylum claims. The department has directed ICE to develop enforcement policies targeting attorneys who coach migrants into making false claims of persecution. DHS General Counsel James Percival said it is standard practice in immigration court for lawyers to assert that virtually every illegal alien faces persecution in their home country. A claim DHS says is routinely false. And a guest commentary from the Montrose mayor raises a point worth considering.

[00:06:23]Sanctuary states like Colorado may be gaming the census by shielding non-citizens from federal enforcement, inflating their population counts and claiming additional congressional seats as a result. According to the Center for Immigration Studies, current trends could redistribute 22 house seats by 2030 with California gaining nine.

[00:06:44]That's raw political power built on non-citizen population and Colorado conservatives are pushing back. And finally, on this Friday, a commentary worth your time from Rocky Mountain Voice reminds us that the fight for liberty and free expression is nothing new. John Milton made the case for a free press back in 1644 and the lesson for today is that liberty doesn't defend itself. So, get involved, pick an issue, show up and go read the commentary. That's all for this week. I hope you enjoyed this report from not just myself, but Poppy Rose around the back. Stay sharp, stay bold and stay in the fight. Consider checking out more info on Freedom Fest this weekend at rmvfreedomfest.com.

[00:07:26]It's got everything you need to know, schedules, speakers, bios, every ticket you can buy, why you should buy those tickets, all the information you guys.

[00:07:34]So, we [music] hope to see you there.

[00:07:35]June 26th, Douglas County Fairgrounds, Castle Rock, Colorado. I hope you have a [music] great weekend.