Commentary: Bruce needs to remember whom he represents in Denver

Reflecting on the sorry saga that culminated in the Colorado House of Representatives' near-unanimous censure of Colorado Springs Rep. Douglas Bruce last week, we were struck by several things.

Mr. Bruce's censure was appropriate and richly deserved. His behavior, in kicking a photographer on the House floor, and then refusing to apologize, was so bizarre as to verge on the pathological.

We hope that Mr. Bruce will be sufficiently chastised by this public humiliation that he will no longer indulge himself with disruptive behavior or with public fits of pique. We also would hope that he would consider the office that he now occupies -- that of state representative.

In common with his 64 colleagues in the House, he is not there to speechify or to promote his own agenda. He's there to work cooperatively with representatives on both sides of the aisle, and thoughtfully consider how best to advance the interests of his district, the interests of the Pikes Peak region and the greater interests of the State of Colorado. He represents them -- not himself.

That's something that the entire local delegation needs to keep in mind.

Democrats control both houses of the legislature and the governor's office. Our delegation is overwhelmingly Republican, save only Sen. John Morse and Rep. Mike Merrifield. We can hardly expect Mr. Morse and Mr. Merrifield to carry the load for the entire region -- they need help.

That's why representatives such as Amy Stephens, Bob Gardner and Andy McElhany deserve our thanks. While remaining principled conservatives, they've been willing to set aside the differences they have with the majority party and focus on doing their jobs to the best of their ability.

The legislative session has just begun and months of work await legislators. Tempers are bound to flare, strong personalities will clash and unforeseen crises will erupt.

We hope that no members of our delegation will succumb to the temptation to throw in the towel and petulantly decide that, since they can't have their way, they might as well be obstructionists. Such behavior, like that of Mr. Bruce during his first day at the Capitol, will not serve the interests of this city or its residents.

As bills wend their way through committee hearings, our elected representatives need to be alert, prepared and able to call upon allies in both parties to make sure that the interests of Colorado Springs and El Paso County are taken into consideration. Attempts by legislators to advance either their own agendas, or to champion divisive social issues that have no chance of being enacted, would be futile and self-defeating.

We hope that Mr. Bruce will join his colleagues in this effort -- and, realizing that those who most oppose the principles for which he has fought would be delighted to see him continue his eccentric behavior, will calm down and play nice.

We hope -- but we're not holding our breath.

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