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Johnston, Romanoff, Gardner respond to Hickenlooper jumping into Senate race
Former Democratic Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper made it official late Wednesday, entering the state’s 2020 U.S. Senate race against incumbent Republican Cory Gardner.
In another Youtube video just a week after dropping out of the presidential race, Hickenlooper vowed he’s “not done fighting for the people of Colorado,” citing the runaway cost of prescription drugs, climate change and the Republican attacks on federally-owned public lands.
“I’ve always said Washington was a lousy place for a guy like me who knows how to get things done. But this is no time to walk away,” Hickenlooper wrote on Facebook. “I know changing Washington is hard, but I’m not done fighting for the people of Colorado. That’s why I’m running for U.S. Senate.”
Hickenlooper also said Gardner doesn’t seem to know just how much his games with President Donald Trump and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell are hurting Coloradans.
“To us, Gov. Hickenlooper is just another liberal in the clown car,” Gardner campaign manager Casey Contres said in an email. “Whoever their party nominates will be wildly out of step with Colorado, and we look forward to facing them in the general election.”
Hickenlooper joins a crowded field of Democrats seeking the nomination to take on Gardner, a Trump loyalist who’s viewed as one of the most vulnerable Republicans in a state won by Hillary Clinton by nearly 5 percentage points in 2016. Democrats need to flip three or four Senate seats to take control of the upper chamber, depending on who wins the White House.
U.S. Rep. Ed Perlmutter, a Front Range Democrat once considered a possible candidate to take on Gardner, endorsed Hickenlooper over the weekend.
Hickenlooper, a former two-term Denver mayor and two-term governor, is an immediate favorite among the many Democrats vying for the nomination.
Vail native and former Denver state Sen. Mike Johnston was second among Democrats in a recent poll, but a whopping 51 percentage points behind Hickenlooper, who had not even officially entered the race when the poll was taken.
Asked to comment, Johnston’s campaign manager didn’t directly address Hickenlooper officially getting into the race.
Johnston campaign manager Elissa Kim emailed this statement: “This time of crisis in our country demands proven leaders of courage and conviction. Mike is in this race because he has demonstrated as a teacher and principal, and in the state Senate, that he has what it takes to rise to that occasion, both to beat Cory Gardner and to be an effective Senator for Colorado who will take on Mitch McConnell, Donald Trump, the NRA and all the special interests that have motivated Cory’s time in the Senate. That is why it is no surprise he has built such a strong campaign — earning major endorsements, raising $3.4 million, and picking up support from all 64 Colorado counties as he crisscrosses the state.”
Former Colorado Speaker of the House Andrew Romanoff was third in that poll but first in and earlier poll that didn’t include Hickenlooper.
“The Senate race got a little bigger today, and the choice became even clearer,” Romanoff said in a lengthy press release statement. “We deserve — and I pledge to run — a campaign grounded in public policy. I know and respect both Cory Gardner and John Hickenlooper, but I disagree with them on some fundamental issues.”
Romanoff went on to try
to point out similarities between Hickenlooper, a moderate Democrat and former
geologist for the oil and gas industry, and Gardner.
“As Colorado’s next senator, I’ll lead the fight for a Green New Deal. They’re
leading the fight against it. I’ll champion Medicare for All. They’ve vowed to
defeat it,” Romanoff said. “Cory and John have attacked these progressive
priorities as socialist or Stalinist. That’s outrageous. Would they say the
same of Social Security or Medicare itself?”
Romanoff is clearly
angling to paint Hickenlooper as not nearly progressive enough for Colorado.
“Democrats must decide whether we want to combat the climate crisis and end our
reliance on fossil fuel — or allow polluters to bankroll Congress and block
reform,” Romanoff added. “Whether we’ll ensure health care for all — or
condemn half a million Americans to bankruptcy each year and thousands to an
early grave. Whether we’ll build an economy that works for everyone — or force
families to work even harder for less.”
And Romanoff made it
clear he won’t back down and has no intention of leaving the race.
“Those are the stakes in this election. They couldn’t be higher, and we can’t
afford to cower now. The best way to defeat Cory Gardner is to present a clear
alternative. Echoing his talking points will inspire no one,” Romanoff
concluded. “This is no time to surrender our dreams. Let’s go fight for the
world we imagine.”
David O. Williams
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