Reparations for Lawmakers

Colorado state Sen. Deanna Hanna, a Democrat, demanded $1,400 in "reparations" from a real estate organization that contributed that much to her Republican opponent in 2004. The Jefferson County Realtors Association had announced it would not endorse a candidate, but then the Realtors Small Donor Committee, of which the Jefferson group is a member, donated money to the Republican, and Hanna complained she had been "screwed." Hannah also asked for the names of those involved in the endorsement process. The group then gave Hanna $400, but last year, she demanded the rest. "My reparations request stands," Hanna, who chairs the Local Government Committee, wrote the group in a letter that was recently uncovered by Republicans. "It is my hope that you will make our relationship whole again. There are going to be some very important issues ahead of us." Hanna says she did nothing wrong.