Finally Colorado has a political scandal of its very own! Does it involve secret tapes? Blue dresses? Call girls who charge $4000 an hour? Sadly, no. Just money. And only about $200K, at that. Still, if you’re a scandal junky, it’s the best we have on tap at the moment in this state where efficient, squeaky-clean government is the norm.

It seems Greg Kolomitz, Governor Ritter’s (former) campaign manager, misused about $217,000. The lion’s share of that was earmarked for Ritter’s inauguration, but Kolomitz used it to fund the general campaign, instead. A violation of campaign finance law, sure, but pretty lame as far as political malfeasance goes. However, Kolomitz pocketed the remaining $83,000 for himself. Still not an astronomical sum, but something that could result in serious jail time if the DA chooses to go that route.

Kolomitz says it was just an “error in judgment,” and he’s even offered to repay the campaign personally. Whether this scandal has legs, we don’t know yet. It may well peter out before too long. Still, back on the East Coast, a campaign worker siphoning money away is pretty much par for the course and would barely make the last page of the Metro section. Here, however, it’s big news – and that’s testament to just how honest and fair our political bodies are.