When the seventieth session of the Colorado General Assembly convenes Jan. 7, 2015 there will be a change of control in order in the state Senate. The previous November election shepherded the Republicans into the majority, while the state House of Representatives remains in the hand of the Democrats.
The new session also means a change for Democratic state Senator Morgan Carroll of Aurora. She's going from senate president to minority leader.
In an interview that aired during Morning Edition, Carroll discussed the change of control, collaboration across the aisle and what her priorities were for the 2015 session.
Interview Highlights
On Republicans Gaining State Senate Control
"The things we believe in and who we're working for really hasn't changed. How we get it done and how hard we have to work to find common ground to get those things done is just going to take a little bit of an adjustment on what we do."
"I would be disappointed if what we saw was focusing on rehashing old fights or just out right repeals when what we're hearing from the people in this state is, not that they want us to see us having the same fights over and over again, but they would really like to see us move forward on things that effect their everyday lives."
On Working With The Republicans
"We have a history of working collaboratively with any legislator on any issue. So I think if we keep our eye on the ball, which is looking at where we can do meaningful public policy that intersect in the places of people's lives where they're really struggling and feeling the squeeze the most. I think that can promise for a very productive and collaborative session."
On Education Reform
"We've seen a real strong grassroots movement from parents and kids saying we actually think too much of our classroom time is going towards testing and preparing for standardized testing and not enough towards actual learning."
