Raynor,
As I mess up in my first game, I have a better appreciation of your advice.
I did not crank out colony ships at first.
But... I found a war ship and protected three prize systems in one sector from intruding colony ships. So I am still in the game.
Keeping the Morale up is a real problem. I loaded some excess population into a colony ship and then got rid of them. The result??? Their former relatives are happier. Go figure..., I will likely keep on wining elections if I keep on doing this. But... It really cuts into the tax revenue.