City Cast Denver

After President Trump ordered a freeze on tens of millions of dollars in federal funding for child care and low income family support programs in Colorado, Attorney General Phil Weiser filed a lawsuit against the administration to block it. Then, a judge issued a temporary restraining order, meaning the funding freeze has been halted temporarily. As this issue winds its way through the court system, thousands of families are at risk of losing support and some child care providers say they are worried about shutting down altogether. Host Bree Davies sits down with Mathangi Subramanian, Director of Early Childhood Policy at the Colorado Children’s Campaign, to understand what the loss of federal dollars could mean for families and child care providers, and how the cuts could impact the state’s economy for years to come.

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What do you think? Are you a parent or child care provider navigating this system in Colorado?Text or leave us a voicemail with your name and neighborhood, and you might hear it on the show: 720-500-5418

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Earlier this week, a Denver City Council committee discussed a potential proposal to ban law enforcement, including ICE agents, from wearing face coverings during arrest or deportation operations. If such legislation did pass, how would it be enforced? Then, hundreds of people showed up to a town hall meeting in December to protest the city’s use of Flock cameras — the contract with the tech surveillance company ends in March, so where does Denver stand? Host Bree Davies sits down with council member at-large Sarah Parady to dig into these topics, plus discuss her thoughts on TABOR, childcare funding challenges, jail sentences, and why she voted against using $50 million of Denver’s money to buy the land for the future National Women’s Soccer League stadium.

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It’s official: Mayor Mike Johnston confirmed that Denver is throwing its hat in the ring for the 2028 Democratic National Convention. But twenty years ago when the Mile High City previously played host to the DNC, the city and the economy looked a lot different — and the protests were big. Then, German grocery store chain Aldi is coming to Colorado — could more competition mean better prices for consumers? Host Bree Davies is joined by Westword editor in-chief Patty Calhoun to dig into these big stories, plus discuss homicide and car theft rates going down, more thoughts on President Trump and the Tina Peters situation, and hear a comment from a listener on Denver’s department stores of yore.

Bree talked about the “new” Dozens Restaurant location at 14th Street and Court Place and our 2023 interview with the Colorado Auto Theft Prevention Authority. Patty mentioned Westword’s reporting on issues in the Golden Triangle and their paper’s member event tonight at the Westword offices, looking back at 2025 and eyeing this year’s celebration of the state’s 150th birthday.

Check out Mark Barnhouse’s books on the heyday of shopping in the Mile High: Lost Department Stores of Denver and The Denver Dry Goods: Where Colorado Shopped with Confidence.

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Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser filed his 50th lawsuit against the President Trump last week, this time pushing back on the administration’s freezing of millions in childcare funding and support for low-income families. It’s just the latest in the AG’s maneuvers to resist what he calls a “revenge campaign” by Trump against our Democrat-dominated state. Today we’re revisiting a conversation host Bree Davies had nearly a year ago with Weiser after he announced his run for governor, discussing everything from rental market price fixing and deportation laws to cell phone bans and youth mental health issues.

For more on the governor’s race, we also recently spoke with Weiser’s main opponent in the Democratic Party’s primary, Michael Bennet. That primary election is coming up this June. 

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What do you think about Phil Weiser’s run for governor? Would you vote for him? Text or leave us a voicemail with your name and neighborhood, and you might hear it on the show: 720-500-5418

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An ICE officer shot and killed a Colorado woman on the streets of Minneapolis on Wednesday, sparking protests and renewed debate here in Denver over President Trump’s crackdowns on immigration and fraud. Comedian Joshua Emerson joins host Bree Davies and producer Paul Karolyi to talk about ICE in Denver, Trump’s retaliatory cuts to childcare and other social services, and his other recent comments about Colorado. Plus, does the quarterback of the Denver Broncos hate dogs? And finally, our wins and fails of the week.

We’re hiring! Do you want to be City Cast Denver’s new audience development manager? Or do you know someone who’d be a perfect fit? Check out the full job listing and apply here. 

What do you think about Bo Nix’s relationship with dogs? Is he being weird? Does it not matter to you? We want to hear from you! Text or leave us a voicemail with your name and neighborhood, and you might hear it on the show: 720-500-5418

Joshua talked about Team Nonexistent, Gov. Polis’ latest controversial tweet, and the monthly clavé jam at Manos Sagrados. Bree mentioned the Corporation for Public Broadcasting dissolving and Kokoro’s 40th anniversary. Paul talked about a recent Colorado youth hockey scandal, Denver’s new micro-mobility operator, our episode about Lime scooters from last March, and Bo Nix’s new line of “Overdogs” merch in support of Denver Rescue Mission.

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Could Denver host the Democratic National Convention in 2028? Colorado’s Congressional Democrats already signed a letter of support for Denver’s bid, but is the Mile High City — and the local Democratic Party — a good candidate for the big event? Host Bree Davies and producer Paul Karolyi are joined by Denver Post City Government Reporter Elliott Wenzler to discuss the bid. Plus, City Council approved a new common consumption area in RiNo this week, but why aren’t there free-drinking zones all over the city by now? Finally, as a special bonus in the members-only version of this episode, Elliott joins us for the debut of a new game we’re trying out that’s all about our mental maps of the city. 

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What do you think would be the best spot for a common consumption area? We want to hear from you! Text or leave us a voicemail with your name and neighborhood, and you might hear it on the show: 720-500-5418

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After the wild ups and downs of 2025, we’re looking ahead to another crazy year. But what specific flavors of wild should Denverites expect this year? Producers Paul Karolyi and Olivia Jewell Love join host Bree Davies to swap their biggest and boldest predictions for the Mile High City in 2026. Plus, some bonus forecasts from a bunch of friends of the pod. 

What do you think of our predictions? What’s the most likely or unlikely to happen for real? Text or leave us a voicemail with your name and neighborhood, and you might hear it on the show: 720-500-5418

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President Donald Trump ordered an attack on Venezuela last Friday and U.S. armed forces have captured the country’s president, Nicolás Maduro. So, what does Denver have to do with it? Host Bree Davies and producer Paul Karolyi are dissecting all the local connections, from Trump citing Aurora in his justification of the attack and Governor Jared Polis’ controversial response to the possibility that local oil and gas companies might be involved in the next phase of the president’s plan. Plus, tons of great listener comments and questions. 

Paul quoted CPR’s fact-checking of Trump’s Saturday press conference and 9News’ coverage of Lauren Boebert’s recent tension with Trump. 

What do you think? We always want to hear from you! Text or leave us a voicemail with your question or hot take, as well as your name and neighborhood, and you might hear it on the show: 720-500-5418

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Nobody understands a city’s pulse quite like a City Cast host — and that makes them the best predictors for 2026’s biggest local stories. City Cast Denver host Bree Davies joins CEO David Plotz and the other 12 hosts from across the network to talk about the big changes coming to our cities, from political shifts to data centers.

For even more news from around the city, subscribe to our morning newsletter Hey Denver by texting “Denver” to 66866Follow us on Twitter: @citycastdenverOr Instagram: @citycastdenverChat with other listeners on reddit: r/CityCastDenverText or leave us a voicemail with your name and neighborhood, and you might hear it on the show: (720) 500-5418‬

Learn more about the sponsors of this January 5th episode:
Multipass
University of Denver

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Happy new year! We’re kicking off 2026 with our monthly guide to the best of Denver, with plenty of expert and hard-won tips and tricks for making the most of this Mile High life. City Cast producer Adrian González joins host Bree Davies and producer Paul Karolyi to talk about the coolest stuff going on this month. Plus, Paul’s got some personal tips for enjoying everything new at the Stock Show this year. 

If you're new here, welcome! We’ve put together a starter pack for you, with episodes and articles to welcome you to the City Cast Denver community. 

Paul would like to clarify that Red Robin’s corporate headquarters is not technically in Denver, but in fact in Greenwood Village. Adrian recommends these kintsugi workshops:

For even more tips on how to make the most of January in Denver, check out our newsletter Hey Denver’s take on what to do this month. 

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Got questions or comments about this episode? You can reach us at [email protected]