2 westword.com WESTWORD AUGUST 20-26, 2026 | MUSIC | CAFE | CULTURE | NIGHT+DAY | NEWS | LETTERS | CONTENTS | W ® 4 BUDGET BREAKS Denver’s money problems have created cracks in city services. BY SAGE KELLEY 10 STABLE GROUND Operation Equine helps veterans fi nd healing on horseback. BY ABIGAIL BLISS 13 GOLDEN TOUCH Is John Wilson the hardest- working chef in Denver? BY ANTONY BRUNO 15 SO FAMOUS That Kid is living out his Y2K pop star fantasy on his debut studio album. BY CLEO MIRZA 10 Culture 13 Cafe 15 Music CONCERTS/CLUBS ................................... 16 20 Marijuana CANNABIS CALENDAR ............................ 20 HIGH NOTES ............................................. XX VOLUME 49 NUMBER 51 AUGUST 20-26, 2026 E D I T O R I A L Senior Editor, News Thomas Mitchell Food and Drink Editor Antony Bruno Culture Editor Kristen Fiore Social Media Editor Katrina Leibee Staff Writers Sage Kelley, Hannah Metzger Senior Contributors Brendan Joel Kelley, Alan Prendergast, Michael Roberts Contributors Gil Asakawa, Teague Bohlen, Justin Criado, Audrey Ferrer, Nick Hutchinson, Karl Christian Krumpholz, Skyler McKin- ley, Abigail Bliss, Ryan Pachmayer, Kristin Pazulski, Adam Perry, Evan Semón, Toni Tresca Music Listings Matthew Jones Cover Designer Kristin Bjornsen Editor Emeritus Patricia Calhoun P R O D U C T I O N Production Manager Michael Wilson Assistant Production Manager Erin Kirk Graphic Designers Caleigh Gearheart, Tori O’Connor C R E A T I V E S E R V I C E S Senior Graphic Designer Allie Seidel A D V E R T I S I N G Senior Multimedia Account Executives Amy Camera, Aaron Lembke Multimedia Account Executives Brad Belanger, Remy Diamond, Rachel Gilmore, Keith Gordon, Trey Konsella, Kirby Quick, Allison Wissink Operations Manager Carver Hodgkiss Digital Sales Coordinator Anne-Grace Hartman Director of Digital Sales Alan Heath C I R C U L A T I O N Circulation Manager Ty Koepke B U S I N E S S Director of Business and Operations Russell Breiter Financial Accountant Robert Scribner AR Coordinator Stacy Phillips IT Systems Manager Kris Robinson Receptionist Cindy Perez Associate Publisher Tracy Kontrelos Publisher Scott Tobias V O I C E M E D I A G R O U P Executive Editor Chelsey Dequaine-Jerabek National Editor Sam Eifl ing Editorial Operations Director Bridget Thomason Director of Membership and Community Development Jennifer Robinson Digital Operations & Audience Strategist Allison Stephenson Audience Strategist Lauren Antonoff Hart Corporate Controller Beth Cook Legal Counsel Steve Suskin Chief Financial Offi cer Jeff Mars Chief Executive Offi cer Scott Tobias V M G N A T I O N A L National Advertising: 1-888-278-9866, www.voicemediagroup.com Senior Vice President of Sales Operations Joe Larkin D I S T R I B U T I O N Westword is available free of charge. 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PHOTO BY STEPHEN CARDINALE / STEPHENCARDINALE.COM E M A I L S T I E P E T E R S ’ P R I S O N S E N T E N C E T O S T A T E F U N D I N G C U T S A late-night email may be the glue con- necting millions in federal funding cuts in Colorado as a form of retaliation over Tina Peters’ prison sentence. A deputy assistant to President Donald Trump and senior policy strategist wrote an email titled “brainstorm call” to fi ve different federal agencies around 3 a.m. on Dec. 15, 2025, according to a collaboration between the Denver Post and New York Times. The email reportedly asked for a joint call later in the day to allegedly “prioritize Colorado for the purposes of ensuring grants and federal sup- port are in line with administration priorities.” Just a few hours later, Trump called Gov. Jared Polis “weak and pathetic” on live television in response to the imprisonment of Peters, the infamous Mesa County clerk and convicted election denier. Colorado offi cials don’t believe the timing was a coincidence, calling the email a “smoking gun” in an Aug. 11 hearing for a state lawsuit alleging federal retaliation over the Trump administration’s frustration with Peters’ incar- ceration and the state’s mail-in balloting system. Just a few days after the alleged call, Colorado saw millions in federal funding cuts, including the Offi ce of Management and Budget closing the National Center for Atmospheric Research in Boulder, the De- partment of Energy ending $615 million in funding intended for Colorado, and federal emergency offi cials rejecting disaster relief in the Western Slope after wildfi res. “The shocking White House email dis- cussed in court earlier this week proves what we have long suspected: the White House orchestrated an unconstitutional scheme to weaponize the federal government to attack and punish Colorado for its lawful decisions over elections and our criminal justice system,” Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser said in a statement to Westword. Weiser said the public will soon learn more about the “revenge plans” as the “lawless” administration produces more evidence. Peters was sentenced to nine years in prison in October 2024 after a Mesa County jury convicted her on four felony charges and three misdemeanors in connection with a 2021 security breach involving her own elections offi ce. Trump initially asked that she be moved to a federal prison, but Polis denied it. Then he demanded that Polis pardon her, but Polis denied it. Then Trump gave her an immaterial presidential “full pardon” on social media right before the “brainstorm call.” Polis announced clemency for 44 people in May, Peters included. — Sage Kelley B I L L M O S H E R M O V I N G O N F R O M C I T Y ’ S C H I E F P R O J E C T S O F F I C E R After staying months longer than he’d origi- nally intended at a job he didn’t ask for, Bill Mosher is preparing to leave his consulting role as the city’s Chief Projects Offi cer “It’s been an honor, being entrusted with this job by a mayor I didn’t know that well, in a system I didn’t understand,” Mosher says. “Hopefully, I have made a difference with what I’ve done. It’s been a great experience.” His resume includes leading the Down- town Denver Partnership for almost 20 years, then spending nearly another 20 with Tram- mell Crow Company, overseeing develop- ment and investment activities in Colorado, before moving on to his own consulting company. Then Mayor Mike Johnston ap- proached Mosher and asked if he’d consider taking on a new role, overseeing projects like the proposed relocation of the Denver Broncos football stadium and the revived and extended Downtown Denver Develop- ment Authority (DDA), which voters had approved in November 2024. Mosher agreed to work as a consultant through 2025, but as the projects built up, he promised to stay through the fi rst quarter of 2026 ... then again through the second quar- ter of this year. Chief of Staff Jenn Ridder and Deputy Chief Projects Offi cer Jen Welborn are expected to take his place. Mosher plans to travel and spend more time with family after having “the most stressful job I’ve ever had,” he says, adding that he’d never understood how challenging it is to work in the public sector. His former boss was a fan of his work, however. — Patricia Calhoun
