Colorado lessons for American politics
Published in the Boulder Daily Camera, 10/26/14
Colorado is certainly enjoying its ongoing heyday as the most interesting state in American politics. Ever since Barack Obama stood up in Denver to accept the presidential nomination, we have been the epicenter of an evolving American political landscape.
This year, it's not just that Coloradans are likely to decide which party controls the Senate or that we have a governor's race that defies understanding but somehow still makes sense. It's also how the candidates campaign and how we respond that keep the nation's eyes on us.
Take the race for the U.S. Senate seat. Colorado has some hot-button issues that our next senator should address. The national fracking-led oil and gas revolution is centered here in Colorado where it's creating great jobs albeit with angst over the short and long-term effects on the environment. On another front, Colorado has been the site of two senseless mass shootings in the past decade while we are also home to many committed gun advocates who believe the Second Amendment is sacrosanct to American freedom. Perhaps looming largest of all, after six years of watching the Federal government exude incompetence at every opportunity, Coloradans are disgusted with Washington and want to hear some fresh ideas about how our government can better serve us and spend our dollars wisely.
Boy, you'd think there'd be some real fodder for great political debate there, wouldn't you? Good, meaty stuff. But, instead of talking about what Coloradans care about, the campaigns of Cory Gardner and Mark Udall have gone "national" building their campaign strategy from inane scripts written by their national political parties.
For Mark Udall, this translates into merciless pounding of the War on Women drum in what has become an increasingly fruitless attempt to characterize Republicans as women haters and oppressors. Women have largely wised up to this pandering as polls now show Gardner approaching parity with women voters while trouncing Udall among men. The lesson? Rewrite this part of the Democratic party playbook, and soon.
With an electorate hating Washington's incompetence and an opponent sounding like a broken record, Cory Gardner has a great opening to tell us how a more limited federal government can better serve Colorado. But Gardner has spent much of his time telling us that he, unlike his opponent, is not an appendage of Barack Obama. Great, but I think most of us already knew that.
So, welcome to the 2014 substance-free national election, and you're seeing it all here at home in Colorado's Senate race.
Our Governor's race explores the political axiom that, with a divided electorate, you can never please people, only make them mad. John Hickenlooper, besides being one of the cutest and most lovable politicians in the nation (remember "Cheetos and Goldfish"?), has presided over a state that has prospered under his leadership.
Plus, Hickenlooper has governed from the middle of the political spectrum making him a bipartisan moderate - something we all say we want.
John Hickenlooper should be cruising to reelection, but is instead locked in a tight battle.
Why? Gov. Hickenlooper has supported the oil and gas boom in Colorado and, in so doing, lost support from many liberal environmentalists. Natural gas has done more to help America's environment than anything, yet the Governor's support of responsible gas extraction has separated him from his base.
In a reasonable world, we might expect that his loss of liberal votes would be offset by gains among conservative voters, but his support for Colorado's recently-passed minimal restrictions on guns have given conservatives a reason to ignore his success in supporting Colorado's fastest growing economic sector.
What's the lesson for America? If John Hickenlooper loses, Colorado will show America that partisan purity trumps bipartisanship in American politics today. If Hickenlooper wins, so does bipartisanship.
Our local county politics continue to offer America an ongoing demonstration of why one-party politics are a bad idea, though often entertaining. Honestly... where else but Boulder County could you find county commissioners telling voters with a straight face and great passion that our government isn't responsible for maintaining the roads? Pretty amusing, except for the potholes.
American politics is always churning and, today, Coloradans are stirring the pot.
Colorado is certainly enjoying its ongoing heyday as the most interesting state in American politics. Ever since Barack Obama stood up in Denver to accept the presidential nomination, we have been the epicenter of an evolving American political landscape.
This year, it's not just that Coloradans are likely to decide which party controls the Senate or that we have a governor's race that defies understanding but somehow still makes sense. It's also how the candidates campaign and how we respond that keep the nation's eyes on us.
Take the race for the U.S. Senate seat. Colorado has some hot-button issues that our next senator should address. The national fracking-led oil and gas revolution is centered here in Colorado where it's creating great jobs albeit with angst over the short and long-term effects on the environment. On another front, Colorado has been the site of two senseless mass shootings in the past decade while we are also home to many committed gun advocates who believe the Second Amendment is sacrosanct to American freedom. Perhaps looming largest of all, after six years of watching the Federal government exude incompetence at every opportunity, Coloradans are disgusted with Washington and want to hear some fresh ideas about how our government can better serve us and spend our dollars wisely.
Boy, you'd think there'd be some real fodder for great political debate there, wouldn't you? Good, meaty stuff. But, instead of talking about what Coloradans care about, the campaigns of Cory Gardner and Mark Udall have gone "national" building their campaign strategy from inane scripts written by their national political parties.
For Mark Udall, this translates into merciless pounding of the War on Women drum in what has become an increasingly fruitless attempt to characterize Republicans as women haters and oppressors. Women have largely wised up to this pandering as polls now show Gardner approaching parity with women voters while trouncing Udall among men. The lesson? Rewrite this part of the Democratic party playbook, and soon.
With an electorate hating Washington's incompetence and an opponent sounding like a broken record, Cory Gardner has a great opening to tell us how a more limited federal government can better serve Colorado. But Gardner has spent much of his time telling us that he, unlike his opponent, is not an appendage of Barack Obama. Great, but I think most of us already knew that.
So, welcome to the 2014 substance-free national election, and you're seeing it all here at home in Colorado's Senate race.
Our Governor's race explores the political axiom that, with a divided electorate, you can never please people, only make them mad. John Hickenlooper, besides being one of the cutest and most lovable politicians in the nation (remember "Cheetos and Goldfish"?), has presided over a state that has prospered under his leadership.
Plus, Hickenlooper has governed from the middle of the political spectrum making him a bipartisan moderate - something we all say we want.
John Hickenlooper should be cruising to reelection, but is instead locked in a tight battle.
Why? Gov. Hickenlooper has supported the oil and gas boom in Colorado and, in so doing, lost support from many liberal environmentalists. Natural gas has done more to help America's environment than anything, yet the Governor's support of responsible gas extraction has separated him from his base.
In a reasonable world, we might expect that his loss of liberal votes would be offset by gains among conservative voters, but his support for Colorado's recently-passed minimal restrictions on guns have given conservatives a reason to ignore his success in supporting Colorado's fastest growing economic sector.
What's the lesson for America? If John Hickenlooper loses, Colorado will show America that partisan purity trumps bipartisanship in American politics today. If Hickenlooper wins, so does bipartisanship.
Our local county politics continue to offer America an ongoing demonstration of why one-party politics are a bad idea, though often entertaining. Honestly... where else but Boulder County could you find county commissioners telling voters with a straight face and great passion that our government isn't responsible for maintaining the roads? Pretty amusing, except for the potholes.
American politics is always churning and, today, Coloradans are stirring the pot.
