“Hickenlooper provides us with the best chance at better representation in Washington”
Today, John Hickenlooper earned the endorsement of the Greeley Tribune — the third paper that previously supported Senator Cory Gardner’s 2014 campaign to flip their support to Hickenlooper this year.
While praising Hickenlooper’s ability to bring both sides together as Governor, the paper criticizes Gardner’s inaccessibility to his constituents and votes to repeal the Affordable Care Act: “As such, failure to provide that accountability represents to us a failure at the most basic level of public service… what we don’t understand is how he could cast those votes without first hearing from Coloradans about what they do need in a healthcare system so a viable alternative to the ACA could be rolled out and thousands of residents here alone wouldn’t be at risk of losing their health insurance in the middle of a global pandemic.”
Hickenlooper has now received support from editorial boards in every corner of the state: The Denver Post, The Colorado Sentinel, The Grand Junction Daily Sentinel, The Durango Herald, The Pueblo Chieftain, El Semanario, The Vail Daily, Colorado Springs Indy, and Boulder Weekly. Four of these papers had previously backed Gardner.
Read the Greeley Tribune’s endorsement here or see excerpts below:
Greeley Tribune Endorsement: History of voter access gives Hickenlooper the edge for Senate seat
Hickenlooper, who served as mayor of Denver before he was governor, also has a lot of upside. While governor, he helped turn Colorado’s economy into one of the strongest in the nation, which played a role in reversing the economic outlook of Weld County. Like Gardner, he provided steady leadership as Colorado pioneered the establishment of a recreational pot industry, and he did so despite the misgivings he had about legalization. Perhaps most notably, he was able to establish a tone for state government that encouraged bipartisanship and allowed members of both parties to pursue their goals — a tone sorely lacking under the current administration.
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The red flag for Gardner isn’t an accusation of malfeasance, but rather a disturbing pattern of behavior. In his time as Senator, Gardner has not adequately made himself available for his constituents. He doesn’t keep hours at his Colorado offices, and while he appears at events that might offer voters a smile and a photo op from their Senator, he doesn’t participate in town-hall style events that grant those voters real access.
This might not seem like a big deal on the surface to some, but we consider accountability to constituents to be a bedrock of representative government — something that comes before party or policy. As such, failure to provide that accountability represents to us a failure at the most basic level of public service.
We feel so strongly about this issue because that disconnection can poison even altruistic efforts to help Coloradans.
For example, we understand why Sen. Gardner would want to vote to make changes to the Affordable Care Act, as he has several times in the past six years. What we don’t understand is how he could cast those votes without first hearing from Coloradans about what they do need in a healthcare system so a viable alternative to the ACA could be rolled out and thousands of residents here alone wouldn’t be at risk of losing their health insurance in the middle of a global pandemic.
Gov. Hickenlooper, for his part, has a history of providing that sort of availability to voters. In fact, it played a notable role in helping establish the positive dynamic that was present during his first term as governor.
With that in mind — and after very close consideration of all the factors we discussed here — we recommend Weld County voters cast their ballots for John Hickenlooper to be our next U.S. Senator.
We acknowledge that, while both candidates are strong, neither is perfect. And if he is elected, voters need to hold our former governor accountable for how he handles himself while in a new office.
However, we still think Hickenlooper provides us with the best chance at better representation in Washington.
