Chuck And Julie Show with Chuck Bonniwell and Julie Hayden

Eric Grossman on the State of the Colorado GOP and Trumps White House Correspondents dinner

Brita Horn’s final act before she resigned in disgrace as CO GOP Chair was to secretly go to court and mislead a judge into ordering that her personal attorney was owed $231,000 dollars and starting Friday can simply seize it out of Party bank accounts.  Vice Chair Eric Grossman on how we are fighting back.  Plus while Secret Service was dealing with an attempted assassination, journalists were stealing wine off the tables at the White House Correspondents dinner.

This episode of The Chuck and Julie Show features an urgent discussion with Eric Grossman, Acting Chair of the Colorado Republican Party, regarding a dire financial "poison pill" left by the outgoing leadership. The conversation also covers the legal battle to close Colorado’s primary elections and a scathing critique of security failures and media bias following a recent assassination attempt at the White House Correspondents' Dinner.

The Colorado GOP Financial Crisis
The Colorado Republican Party is currently facing an existential threat described as a "corporate poison pill." Outgoing chair Brita Horne and her personal attorney, Steve Klenda, allegedly reached a secret $231,000 settlement—a confessed judgment—just hours before her resignation. This settlement, which includes a staggering 18% interest rate, allows Klenda the legal authority to seize the party's bank accounts. Acting Chair Eric Grossman and hosts Chuck and Julie characterize this as a "fricking disaster" and "ethically reprehensible," suggesting the move was a calculated attempt to bankrupt the party and render it ineffectual for the upcoming election cycle. Grossman noted that despite repeated requests, the executive committee was never provided with invoices for these legal fees, and the party currently holds minimal assets to cover such a debt.

The Legal Battle for Closed Primaries
Beyond financial woes, the party is embroiled in a legal fight to close the Republican primary (Prop 108). Grossman argues that the current open primary system allows unaffiliated voters and even committed Democrats to "dilute" the Republican choice, citing data from Arapahoe County where a significant percentage of primary ballot requests came from voters who also participate in Democratic contests. The show critiques "establishment" Republicans and the NRCC for opposing this move, framing the struggle as a fight for the party's right to define its own identity and select its own candidates without outside interference.

National Security Failures and Media Bias
The discussion shifts to the assassination attempt at the White House Correspondents' Dinner, highlighting a massive security lapse where the suspect was able to assemble a weapon in a hotel foyer due to a lack of bag checks and sweeps. The hosts express disbelief at the "journalistic malpractice" following the event, specifically criticizing reporters for "looting" wine from the venue while the Secret Service dealt with the threat. Furthermore, they condemn Norah O'Donnell’s 60 Minutes interview with Donald Trump, where she read the shooter's manifesto—which included labels like "pedophile" and "rapist"—back to Trump, a move he labeled "disgraceful."

The Colorado GOP finds itself at a crossroads, battling what leadership describes as internal sabotage and external legal pressures. While the financial situation is critical, Acting Chair Eric Grossman remains defiant, urging the "grassroots" to maintain belief as they fight to "save the party from extinction."