TPMDC
Salazar Will Not Run For CO Gov, Endorses Denver Mayor
Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar
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Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar will not run for Colorado governor, the Denver Post reports. Instead, he will endorse Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper.
"John Hickenlooper is a uniter. He transcends political and geographic divides to bring people together to develop solutions. If he decides to run, he will make an excellent Governor for the State of Colorado," Salazar said in a statement.
Sources had told TPMDC that Salazar was "seriously considering" such a run, and the White House had reportedly told him they wouldn't oppose a run.
Today, sources confirmed that national Democrats were talking to Salazar about a run. A Democratic source with knowledge of the process said they "didn't know" what was behind Salazar's choice not to run. Asked if Hickenlooper was the best "Plan B" for national Democrats hoping to hold the governor's mansion in Colorado, the source said Democrats "love" Hickenlooper and called him "Plan A2."
Colorado Gov. Bill Ritter announced earlier this week that he would retire rather than run for re-election.
Additional reporting by Evan McMorris-Santoro
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theone718
January 7, 2010 2:00 PM
That's a big blow to us keeping that seat. Denver Mayor is our best chance though, he is wildly popular and could win.
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mcc
January 7, 2010 2:20 PM
Hickenlooper's supposed to be pretty awesome, right?
Also he has an awesome name
Though not as awesome as "Bysiewicz"
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Colorado Thistle
January 7, 2010 3:22 PM
Hickenlooper is popular (at least in the Denver area) with both sides of the aisle. Colorado requires a perceived moderate to win as a Democrat, so there is hope.
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scavok
January 7, 2010 5:45 PM
Salazar was BFF with Lieberman and voted to confirm Alberto Gonzales while in the Senate. Two mistakes I will not forgive him for, even though he did a good job as AG here in Colorado.
Hickenlooper should have been given that Senate seat when Salazar became Secretary of the Interior. That was one of Ritter's bigger mistakes.
Of course, I always liked Hickenlooper because he started the first microbrewery in Denver (Wyncoop Brewing Company).
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