Allowed a Foreign Energy Company to Spew 17,000 Pounds a Year of Cyanide Gas Over Colorado Neighborhoods

Hydrogen cyanide is so dangerous that it is classified as chemical weapon, but John Hickenlooper let a foreign energy company release 17,000 pounds of the chemical over North Denver neighborhoods. Hickenlooper raised over $1 million from the polluter then let them avoid disclosure and set their own pollution limits.

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Violated Ethics Laws Against Using Governor’s Office for Personal Benefit

Former Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper was penalized by the Colorado Independent Ethics Commission for violating Constitutional Amendment 41’s “gift ban”. He accepted corporate funds to cover the cost of a private jet trip to Connecticut as well as a chauffeured Maserati limousine ride at an exclusive conference in Italy. In addition to these violations, Hickenlooper has faced nearly 100 other allegations of illegal gifts.

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Caught by IRS in a Complex Scheme to Dodge Taxes & Forced to Pay Over $50k in Back Taxes

After Receiving Over $1 Million In Tax Write-Offs, Hickenlooper Paid The IRS $52,486 When An Audit Found His Land Had Been Overvalued. Hicklooper later appointed the land appraiser, who overvalued the land, to lead the CO Division of Conservation.

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Accepted Millions Of Dollars In “Under-the-Radar Donations” While Governor

An investigation found millions of dollars in private donations to the Office of then-Governor John Hickenlooper. Some foundations told CBS4 they paid for policy positions in the Governor’s Office that aligned with their agenda. The Colorado Sun reported “Oil and gas and private donors paid for initiatives in Hickenlooper’s Administration”.

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Defied Subpoenas & Held in Contempt for Failure to Appear

After John Hickenlooper refused to testify on the ethics complaint that was filed against him, the Colorado Attorney General’s office got a court-ordered subpoena. When he defied the court-ordered subpoena, the Attorney General’s office ran into court to enforce it a second time. The Independent Ethics Commission voted unanimously to hold Hickenlooper in contempt after he failed to comply with a court-ordered subpoena to testify via a video-conferencing hearing about his acceptance of improper gifts. After being held in contempt and a second court order, Hickenlooper finally testified, but claimed he did not recall many of the details involving the trips at the center of the complaint.

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Illegally Accepted Private Jet Flights as Governor

Instead of flying on commercial airlines like all other state officials, John Hickenlooper violated ethics regulations by flying private with help from large corporations and key supporters. Hickenlooper traveled to Connecticut in a private plane owned by friend and CEO of development company MDC Holdings. In addition to these legal violations, Hickenlooper has faced numerous allegations surrounding his travel domestically and abroad.

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Illegally Accepted Free Gifts at the Bilderberg Conference

Hickenlooper was penalized for accepting unconstitutional gifts from his wealthy supporters. An investigation found that the conference costs were paid by the foreign-based corporation, Fiat Chrysler Automobiles, and included logistics, security, catering, airport transfers and gift bags. When asked about his ethics violations, Hickenlooper falsely claimed he “Paid [His] Own Way” and said he feels “journalists should be protecting him on stuff like this.”

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Used a Post-9/11 Recovery Fund to Pay for His Defense Attorney

John Hickenlooper used a $500 per hour taxpayer-funded attorney to defend him in his ethics investigation. But his lawyer was paid with taxpayer money from a Post-9/11 Economic Recovery Fund. In an attempt to defend himself, Hickenlooper claims he was “unaware of the source of the funding for his lawyer.”

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Nearly 100 Additional Incidents of Hickenlooper Accepting Gifts as Governor

John Hickenlooper has faced nearly 100 allegations of ethics violations from when he served as governor. Hickenlooper accepted privately-funded trips and gifts from special interests and campaign supporters throughout his time in office, including a private trip to Jackson Hole. However, they we not subject to a ruling by the Colorado Independent Ethics Commission because of the statute of limitations. But you can decide if they were wrong…

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