Jared Polis has apparently become the one-man shredder at the end of the Democratic sausage factory.
That is the useful part of this story. Not just “governor vetoes bills.” Governors veto bills. That is part of the job. The story is that a term-limited Democratic governor just set a personal veto record by blocking bills that sound politically radioactive to oppose: limiting credit card swipe fees on sales taxes and expanding help for firefighters who get cancer. With three vetoes Wednesday, Polis has now rejected 12 bills this year, eclipsing his own record from 2025.
And yes, there may be good legal arguments buried in here somewhere. There usually are. That is the magic of the Capitol. They can take a basic kitchen-table question and turn it into a law school final exam wearing a lanyard.
The swipe-fee bill is the cleanest example. Senate Bill 134 would have prohibited credit card companies from charging swipe fees on sales taxes starting in 2028. The credit card industry hated it. The Electronic Payments Coalition reportedly spent $6 million on ads opposing it, and opponents warned credit card companies could stop operating in Colorado.
Polis said the bill carried “too much legal risk” for Colorado’s business environment and consumers, with limited upside for small businesses. He also questioned whether the national credit card system could even be adapted to Colorado’s law.
Fine. That is the stated logic.
But here is the normal-person logic: the state forces businesses to collect sales tax, the customer pays it, the merchant processes it, and then card companies skim from the tax portion too. That feels like charging a cover fee to get mugged.
Colorado merchants reportedly paid $2.1 billion in swipe fees in 2024, including $218 million just on sales tax. Swipe fees typically cost merchants between 1% and 4% of a customer’s total bill.
Small businesses said this was unfair because they are being charged a fee to collect and deliver tax revenue on behalf of government. One Denver restaurant manager accused Polis of choosing big business over true constituents. His restaurant paid $62,000 in swipe fees last year.
That is the part that sticks. Denver has built a government machine that can regulate your stove, your driveway, your gas can, your rent, your grocery bag, and probably your damn shower thoughts. But limiting swipe fees on taxes?
Whoa there, cowboy. Let’s not get reckless.
Apparently Colorado’s governor decided the skimmers needed a bodyguard.
Then comes the firefighter bill. Polis also vetoed Senate Bill 184, which would have expanded the types of cancer considered an occupational disease for firefighters. Firefighters with an occupational disease, or their families, can claim medical and wage-loss benefits under Colorado’s workers’ compensation system.
That deserves a hard stare.
To be fair, Polis did not say, “Too bad, firefighters.” His explanation was that Colorado already has a cancer trust fund for firefighters, and he worried the bill could discourage fire departments from participating in that trust. He also cited higher costs for fire departments and districts, and objected to the bill exempting state firefighters, saying they should not be treated differently.
Again, that is the stated logic.
But normal Coloradans are allowed to notice the contrast. This state can always find compassion money, study money, climate money, consultant money, nonprofit money, and “please clap for our moral superiority” money. But when firefighters come asking, suddenly everyone turns into a spreadsheet monk guarding the sacred temple of actuarial caution.
That does not mean every firefighter bill is automatically perfect. It does mean the priorities deserve scrutiny.
And that is the bigger story. Polis likes being seen as the adult in the room. The business-brain Democrat. The tech-libertarian who squints at bad policy and says, “Actually, this is complicated.”
Sometimes it is complicated. Sometimes the legislature hands him a flaming bag of policy nonsense and dares him to stomp on it.
But this time, the bills he stomped on make voters ask a simple question: who gets protected when the veto pen comes out?
The broader Capitol clown show is not innocent either. Lawmakers pass bills with big emotional labels. The governor vetoes them. Everyone poses for their preferred constituency. Donors get their phone calls returned. Regular Coloradans get another lecture and a higher bill.
And yes, I cannot prove this has anything to do with Polis’ own party censuring him. But would I bet there is a little pettiness in the stew?
Absolutely.
Different clowns, same circus. This one just ends with a shredder.
Source: The Colorado Sun
Share your thoughts...