Opinion: by Mike Littwin with the Colorado Sun

It’s no secret that the Colorado GOP has major problems. But now one problem — let’s call it the Patrick Neville problem — has reached a critical stage. 

And how the party deals with it may tell us a lot about the state party’s future. And in a small way, it may even offer up hints about how the national GOP deals with life after Donald Trump, if it turns out there is such a thing.

The issue is doxxing, in which soon-to-be-former House Minority Leader Neville, using voter registration data, published on his Facebook account the address of a Denver Post reporter who had co-written an article questioning Neville’s handling of caucus funds as party leader. Doxxing is ugly in any case. But for an elected representative, a leader of a party, it is well beyond the pale. 

In this time when Trump calls journalists enemies of the people, Neville has intentionally put the lives of reporters and their families at some risk. Neville must be sanctioned. And in my view, the only question facing Republicans is what the sanctions should be.

“The release of a journalist’s private information in retaliation for an unflattering story is wrong,” said Hugh McKean, who will be the new House party leader, in a written statement. “While members of the legislature are responsible for their own statements and social media posts, this type of reprisal is not acceptable and does not represent the values we, as Republicans, hold.”

OK, it’s unacceptable, but then what? McKean’s statement didn’t scare off Neville or his pal, state Rep. Dave Williams. Neville then published the registration data of the other reporter on the story, and Williams, in a post, asked Neville to look up the voting registration data on 9News’ Kyle Clark. 

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