Good morning and happy Tuesday!
I just moved house for the third time in two years and just like every time I have to pack up all my worldly possessions, I have developed an allergy to anything taking up more space than it needs. The donation bins in my neighborhood have been getting a workout, let’s just say.
One thing — and maybe the only thing — that I enjoyed about the process is seeing the evolution of Colorado Sun merchandise, from stacks of the very first sticker I designed for us back in 2018 to the classic gray dad cap that has been our most enduring accessory.
But if there was a merchandise MVP for the last two weeks of packing, cleaning and unpacking, it’s the newest member of the merch family: Our brand new “Nautical Red” hat!

I’ll always choose a bright color if the option is available, and this one is the best of both worlds. Bright enough to be noticed, but not a neon that makes you feel like you’re on the way to a rave. Bonus: I can personally attest that it’s great at absorbing the kind of sweat that happens when you haul boxes after Memorial Day.
Note: I’ve been informed there are only a few of the new color left in stock before we order our next batch, so get ‘em while they’re hot!
Now that you have your fashion figured out for the summer, let’s open up this closet full of news and pick out a few nice things, shall we?
THE NEWS
HEALTH
RFK Jr. fires all members of a prominent vaccine advisory committee — including a Colorado doctor

A Colorado doctor was among the 17 members of an advisory committee on vaccines under the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention fired Monday by U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr. John Ingold has more on the controversial termination.
HOUSING
As A Special Place shutters, a new operator plans to reopen in outraged Grand Junction neighborhood

A nonprofit operating three homes in Grand Junction for a few dozen adults with criminal backgrounds and struggling with mental health issues closed its doors after less than six months. The organization had been experimenting with ways to provide housing for people coming out of the criminal justice system — but the experiment took a controversial turn in a neighborhood where residents reported men berating neighbors and liquor bottles littering streets. Nancy Lofholm writes about the problems and a solution promised by a for-profit mental health provider stepping in.
IMMIGRATION
Jared Polis agrees to hold off on complying with ICE subpoena until June 23 as whistleblower lawsuit plays out

Colorado law prohibits state agencies from releasing personal information to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement in most cases. But the director of the state’s Division of Labor Standards and Statistics says the governor ordered him and his team to send ICE information of people known as sponsors, those who care for immigrant children. Taylor Dolven has the details.
ENERGY
Colorado towns take new approach to force oil and gas company to plug old wells

Fast-growing communities in Weld County are using revised state rules to petition K.P. Kauffman to plug wells the towns see as threats to the safety of their homes. Mark Jaffe reports they have identified 45 wells as no longer being “used or useful” and say they pose a threat to public health and welfare.
ENVIRONMENT
Wild bison crossing into Colorado from Utah gain protection under new law

Bison that wander into Colorado from Utah are on much safer ground now, thanks to a bill signed by Gov. Jared Polis that classifies bison as big game animals and outlaws shooting them. Michael Booth reports on the new protections, which will require Colorado Parks and Wildlife to create a licensing and hunting protocol for bison.
MORE NEWS
THE COLORADO REPORT
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THE OPINION PAGE
COMMUNITY
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SunLit
REVIEW
“Captain Kidd” navigates shifting allegiances on the high seas
Alliances changed swiftly but word traveled slowly in the 17th century. Those shifting political winds drive the narrative in “Captain Kidd: A True Story of Treasure and Betrayal,” the biography by Samuel Marquis of the reputed pirate who happens to be his distant relative. The treachery in this excerpt launches a detailed look at Kidd’s reputation, which turns out to be something of a mixed bag — but still filled with adventure that followed a privateer who the author describes as closer to a U.S. Navy SEAL.
Thanks for hanging out with us this morning. Let’s do it again tomorrow, shall we?
— Eric & the whole staff of The Sun

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