Bob Beauprez
Bob Beauprez is a former dairy farmer, community banker and Member of Congress who has spent his entire life working to leave Colorado better than he found it.
The grandson of immigrants, he is a third-generation Coloradan on his father's side and a fifth-generation on his mother's. Bob grew up on a family dairy farm in rural Boulder County just west of Lafayette. The daily regime of chores, field work and milkings taught him a disciplined work ethic that would serve him well throughout his life.
After finishing college at the University of Colorado, Bob married his high school sweetheart Claudia and returned to the family dairy farm to continue helping his dad and brother. Over the next 20 years, he developed Beauprez Holsteins into an internationally recognized herd, selling them across five continents. During that time, he also served on the National Board of the Holstein Association of America.
By 1990, the family recognized an even greater opportunity and asked Bob to manage the transformation of Boulder Valley Holsteins into Indian Peaks, a 1,350 home development with 100 acres of commercial property and an 18-hole public golf course.
As Indian Peaks began to take shape, Bob and his wife Claudia watched with dismay as their hometown bank was sold to a super-regional megabank. Seeking to keep the tradition of personal, community banking alive in their hometown, the couple bought into a failing bank on the verge of collapse. Within a decade, they had built Heritage Bank into a strong $400 million total asset, 13 branch company. As Chairman and CEO of Heritage, Bob created more than 150 jobs and made hundreds of millions of dollars available to families and small businesses across the market region.
Bob took his growing role in the community seriously, becoming more involved in politics. In 1997, he was asked to serve as chairman of the Boulder County Republicans. In 1999, he was elected Chairman of the State Republican Party, taking over a fractured party in financial debt. He took to the road, visiting Lincoln Day dinners and county executive committees across the state. He also slashed costs and bolstered fundraising efforts. The result was a united, and financially solvent, state party.
In 2002, at the urging of state and national leaders, Bob ran for Colorado's newest Congressional District and won the general election by the slimmest margin in the entire country – 121 votes. He was re-elected to be the Representative from the 7th Congressional District in 2004 by 30,000. Even though the district became less Republican between 2002 and 2004, Bob's message of principled leadership, hard work, and an honest clear message earned him the respect of his constituents.
While serving in the U.S. House of Representatives, Bob held seats on the powerful Ways & Means committee as well as the committees on Transportation, Veterans Affairs, and Small Business. He served as Vice Chairman of the House Aviation Subcommittee as well. Hallmarks of his time in Congress include approval for a new veterans' hospital at Fitzsimons, increased funding for transportation projects in Colorado and, along with Senator Wayne Allard and Congressman Mark Udall, transforming Rocky Flats and the Rocky Mountain Arsenal into National Wildlife Refuge parks that will benefit Colorado forever.
In 2006, Bob announced he would run for Governor in order to leverage his lifetime of real world experience creating jobs and seizing opportunity. Bob's campaign focused on fulfilling the transportation infrastructure needs of the state, solving the immigration problem that continues to plague Colorado's economy, finding a solution to the high cost of health-care, and negotiating a water solution for the entire state. After a hard fought campaign that included 28 debates and campaign visits to all 64 counties, victory eluded Bob and Claudia this time.
Following the election, Bob and Claudia moved back home to Indian Peaks and the land his family had farmed for generations. Bob has launched a new website and e-magazine called A Line of Sight, which focuses on common-sense solutions to America's policy issues, and published his first book A Return to Values: A Conservative looks at his Party. In 2007 the Beauprezs purchased an operating ranch near Walden, Colorado, a high mountain area known as North Park. They have established a bison breeding herd of a hundred females, and look forward to spending time there working with land and livestock as well as enjoying Colorado's spectacular beauty.
Bob and Claudia have been married since 1970. They have four children and three grandchildren. They have no plans of slowing down, and are eager for the next opportunity to serve the state they love so much.
Latest Policy Articles
By Bob Beauprez, Editor-in-Chief
In 2008, young people voted for the candidate most like them; he liked to have a good time, didn't have much in the way of experience, but talked a really good game. He seemed more like a cool older brother than their grandfather.
By Bob Beauprez, Editor-in-Chief
The President wants us to believe that by raising taxes he can both grow the economy and slash the deficit. Whatever it was that Obama learned in Community Organizing 101, it apparently had nothing to do with basic economics.
By Bob Beauprez, Editor-in-Chief
We should celebrate that our economy is finally creating jobs, but also realize that due to this President's policies, we're still 10.4 million jobs short.
By Bob Beauprez, Editor-in-Chief
It isn't the first time on Capitol Hill that a paid hack starts singing a different tune once the money dries up, but this might be one for the record books given the magnitude of the case.
By Bob Beauprez, Editor-in-Chief
As a candidate for President, Obama pledged that good science would guide policy in his Administration, but his actions belie his words. He says he's for jobs and for economic recovery, yet he dithers on approval of the Keystone Pipeline.
By Bob Beauprez, Editor-in-Chief
The president, bending the laws of economics to his will, recently stated, "The math is the math. You can't lower (tax) rates and raise revenues." Is he right? Take a look at the success of Presidents Harding, Kennedy, Reagan and George W. Bush.
By Bob Beauprez, Editor-in-Chief
The collapse of the sub-prime mortgage loan market precipitated the current economic recession. Yet three years and $170 billion in taxpayer funded bailouts later, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, remain virtually unchanged except that the giant is even bigger and more costly to maintain.
By Bob Beauprez, Editor-in-Chief
Iran and its proxy Hezbollah have established narco-terrorist networks in Venezuela and throughout Latin America. Hezbollah operatives regularly enter the U.S. illegally, with active cells/supporters in at least 15 major cities within the United States. The radical Islamic Jihadist threat is no longer a Middle East problem. It is at our doorstep - and inside our borders.
By Bob Beauprez, Editor-in-Chief
In Part I of this series, Editor-in-Chief Bob Beauprez outlined the threat of a missile attack spawned by an alliance between Venezuela and Iran. In this month's installment, he looks more closely at the impact of such a missile attack, especially if the goal is to generate an electro-magnetic pulse that could wipe out our way of life as we know it.
By Bob Beauprez, Editor-in-Chief
Some say we shouldn't care if Iran has a nuclear weapon. Tehran's reach may be further than you think.
By Bob Beauprez, Editor-in-Chief
Obama got in the car business, the health care business, the energy business, and he's got the government holding most of the cards in banking, too. That's the change; the hope is that he gets fired by the voters in 2012.
By Bob Beauprez, Editor-in-Chief
Ronald Reagan reminded us that you get more of what gets incentivized, and less of what is penalized, and his economic policies proved it. So did the Kennedy and Bush tax cuts. But, Obama and the Democrats seem obsessed with defying history, as well as common-sense, by pillorying oil and gas with more taxes, regulations, and punishing rhetoric.
By Bob Beauprez, Editor-in-Chief
This is Paul Ryan's moment on behalf of those of us who believe in the American Dream. It defines the dramatically different visions for America held by today's GOP and the liberals, much like Ronald Reagan defined that difference in 1981.
By Bob Beauprez, Editor-in-Chief
If you are handed the keys to an economy already weak in the knees, why would you give it a big punch in the gut with an anti-job, anti-growth, anti-American energy policy? Look at the evidence.
By Bob Beauprez, Editor-in-Chief
The media has compared President Obama to President Reagan. Editor in Chief Bob Beauprez looks at this puzzling comparison and finds more contrast than comparison.
By Bob Beauprez, Editor-in-Chief
From his Hawaii vacation site, Barack Obama said his 2011 resolution was to "make sure our economy is growing, creating jobs and strengthening our middle class." If that's true, then he needs to make an immediate about-face with his domestic energy policy that is killing thousands of jobs and driving energy prices through the roof.
By Bob Beauprez, Editor-in-Chief
Historians will long point to the 2010 election as one of America's historic political watershed moments. The GOP captured about 65 House seats (some are yet to be called), reclaiming the majority control, and picked up six crucial Senate seats, as well. The Democrats' advantage of two governorships (26-24) evaporated on election night giving Republicans a dominating 29-19-1 majority of Governor Mansions leading into redistricting battles and the 2012 Presidential election. Nearly 700 state legislative seats previously held by Democrats flipped to Republican candidates, and 19 separate state legislative chambers shifted from Democrat majorities to GOP control.
By Bob Beauprez, Editor-in-Chief
Merle Haggard had a big country western hit with the song “Looking for to a Place to Fall Apart.” That might be the new theme song for Democrats during the home stretch of the 2010 elections.
By Bob Beauprez, Editor-in-Chief
In many ways, America is like a giant public company. It produces roughly a quarter of the world’s total economic output, and rewards its 300 million shareholders with a standard of living standard that is the envy of the planet. Large companies require skillful leaders, and the shareholders have high performance expectations of their executives. Leadership changes happen because of scheduled retirement, or when the shareholders become upset with the company’s performance. In 2008, America had a retiring President, but the shareholders of America had also grown weary of a prolonged war, an economy sliding backwards, and politicians who spent too much and listened too little. Of the applicants for the job of President, America decided on the relatively untested, fresh new face that promised “hope and change” – exactly what the shareholders in America thought they wanted.
By Bob Beauprez, Editor-in-Chief
Every generation of Americans has been able to positively affirm to the next that they had done what was required of them to protect and defend freedom. What a tragedy it would be if this was the first generation unable to make that affirmation.
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