Only six short months ago, told federal troops to “stay the hell out of Colorado.” Despite the fact that BLM riots caused millions of dollars in damage to the city of Denver and dozens of injuries. Polis even went on to allege that troops might beat up innocent Americans.
By late June of last year, riots had cost Denver alone over $5.5 . Denver businesses reported losses in August that topped , and the cost of statue removal and ongoing vandalism has not been fully assessed yet. Several estimates put Denver BLM damage at over $10 million dollars to date.
On July 22nd, citing ongoing damage and safety concerns, State Rep Dave Williams and several other Republican lawmakers called on Polis to send in the National Guard to stop the riots in Denver. Polis refused to do so. When he was asked about riots and the ongoing Antifa urban camping situation in downtown Denver on July 23rd, he said he .”
Polis remained steadfast in his decision, tweeting July 23rd, “The brave members of our military defend our freedom abroad. They should not be deployed in Colorado to beat up our fellow Americans expressing their free speech.”
How ironically that tweet aged.
Monday, Polis sent 1000 Colorado troops to “protect the inauguration” in Washington, D.C. Tuesday evening, Polis he would activate the Colorado National Guard in case “protests turn violent.”
What is Polis’ definition of “violent?” That’s up for debate, as Denver saw more BLM protest violence during the George Floyd riots than any other . At least eighty-one police officers and seventy-four civilians were injured during the summer riots in Denver, but Polis called the situation “peaceful” and refused to send in troops to curb the violence, as did Denver Mayor Hancock.
One would think that over 115 injuries qualifies as “violent,” but not by Polis’ measures. That said, Polis somehow predicts that Trump protestors will be an issue tomorrow and has deployed the Guard to “beat up fellow Americans expressing their free speech.” Perhaps Governor Polis uses a different definition for “Americans,” and he only includes BLM and Antifa in that narrative.
Now, Polis is “honored” to beat up fellow Americans, and he’s doing his best to make nice with Colorado military.
