The Empty Chair Speaks the Loudest!

If you are anything like me, it’s hard to keep quiet when injustice is being done. That is why I went to Washington D.C. on January 6th, 2021. Yes, I stood outside the capital and protested along with hundreds of thousands of upset Americans. That is our right as citizens of the great experiment called “The United States of America.” We don’t have to agree, but it is only fair that we are able to keep the ability to engage in civil discourse.

Civil discourse is part of our God given right to have an opinion. When we engage with those that we do not agree with, it strengthens our freedom as Americans. When we avoid discourse, whether its because we are afraid or because we don’t know what to say, or for whatever reason we avoid it, it only creates a caste system. A system where a ruling class sits on their throne and rules with an iron fist, or worse yet, the puppet moves with the direction of the strings that are controlling them. All that while the peasants grovel for their share of the left overs.

I do my best to avoid attacking character and encouraging division in whatever sphere I choose to engage. After all, we all have our character flaws and all of us have made decisions at one point or another in our lives that we regret.

This past week, I had the opportunity to visit a Colorado Gubernatorial candidate forum held in Parker by the Colorado Citizenry, The Lincoln Club of Colorado, the Douglas County Young Republicans and the Douglas County Republican women. Three candidates took the stage. Republican front runner Scott bottoms, his counterpart Barb Kirkmeyer, and independent candidate Greg Lopez. Missing from the stage, controversial candidate, Victor Marx.

At the top of the list for me this year when it comes to important issues is by far election integrity, the release of Tina Peters and fixing the broken system in Colorado.

My goal while attending the forum, was to get a clear picture of where each candidate stood on the issues. Instead, my disdain for Marx grew as the metaphorical empty chair remained un occupied. Why won’t he put himself in front of people? Face to face, without a script, without a handler, without a camera in his face.

Colorado is full of everyday people that don’t really care for the cameras and the celebrity persona. Regular people want to know that when they cast their ballot, they are placing their vote for someone that will govern with them in mind. On the contrary, Marx continues to be a no show to debates, forums and town halls with those he is running against, and we haven’t even reached the primary yet.

Fox News, OAN, Newsmax and The Benny show are great platforms for a conservative tackling national issues, but are those platforms in the best interest of Coloradans? I question whether or not the voters of Colorado are the reason Marx is running.

A big talking point for the Marx campaign has been convincing the Colorado voters that we need to get rid of the career politicians and the “Rino’s” that occupy elected positions in the state. He has repeated over and over how he is not a politician and the we need someone like him. He has dug his heels in when it comes to letting people know that they will not run a campaign in a way that repeats the losing tactics of the last 20 years. In some ways however, it is starting to sound like a democrat playbook.

To quote democrat kingpin, Chuck Schumer, during the 2016 Presidential race, “Trump is so new, that for every blue collar democrat that we will lose in Pennsylvania, we will gain 2 or 3 moderate republicans in the suburbs of Philadelphia.”

Only this time, we are talking about the republicans.

Call it what you want, but this is political strategy at its core.

Many seem to be enamored by the presence of Marx and his story telling. Others seem to be hypnotized by the glamour of his highly publicized campaign. For me, I want to know why he will not take the stage with the other candidates.

It’s not about who he is or what he has done, its about what will he do for me. Because I am a potential constituent who has real concerns about my state.

Many good people support Victor Marx. Many good people are campaigning for Victor Marx. Many good people are donating to the cause.

It’s not too often that two humans can agree on every issue, and the 2026 race for the Governorship is no different.

The Denver Hispanic Republicans told Greg Lopez that they are glad he is not running as a republican because now they can vote with a conscience. This is concerning.

Barb Kirkmeyer told the standing room only crowd of approximately 300 to 500, in the gym of North Star Academy that she would compare the case of Tina Peters to similar cases with lesser sentences. This does not pass the smell test for me on election integrity and the case for Peters.

When asked what is the one message he could send to the people of Colorado after the forum, Scott Bottoms said this, “”that “We the People” did what was intended from the beginning of our founding. They came into the public square and listened to the candidates and asked questions and had those questions answered. So that they can make educated decisions."

Greg Lopez caused me to question his intent.

Barb Kirkmeyer gave the wrong answer on my top priority for a candidate.

Victor Marx did not show up again.

Scott Bottoms Owned the evening.

When the empty chair speaks the loudest, civil discourse has become extinct.