October 27, 2017 10:34 AM UTC

"Handmaids" Upstage Pence, But Mike Coffman Doesn't Care

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• by: Colorado Pols

SATURDAY UPDATE: After Rep. Mike Coffman waved off a Telemundo reporter outside the security line at Vice President Mike Pence’s fundraiser (below), they spoke briefly inside the wire–but still in earshot of the protests, which Coffman gamely acknowledged:

COFFMAN (In Spanish): The protestors have the right to demonstrate and I do understand that.

Coffman reportedly gave a longer in-studio Spanish language interview to Telemundo yesterday, and we’ll update when we see it–particularly if were any more substantive answers to questions about his presence at the fundraiser or the underlying issues that made a subject of protest. After all:

He’s got to have some mixed feelings, right?

—–

CBS4 reports on yesterday’s main political event in the Denver Tech Center–a fundraiser for the Colorado Republican Party featuring Vice President Mike Pence that may have had more protesters outside the venue than attendees inside, even after the ticket price was cut almost in half:

Vice President Mike Pence visited Colorado on Thursday where he talked about tax reform. But it was his position on reproductive rights that spurred protests…

Protesters dressed as handmaids lined the streets on the way to the Denver Marriott Tech Center. The costume is in reference to the novel, movie and television show about a dystopian future society in which women are treated as property.

They condemn Pence’s anti-abortion stance and attempts to defund Planned Parenthood in his repeal and replace Obamacare actions.

The Denver Post’s Brian Eason:

Outside, where snow was lightly falling by late afternoon, more than 100 demonstrators lined South Syracuse Street to protest Pence and the president. Dozens were dressed as characters from the “The Handmaid’s Tale,” the dystopian novel and popular TV series in which women are treated as property.

Chants of “Shame! Shame!” broke out as Republicans began arriving for Pence’s speech.

Reporting from inside, FOX31’s Joe St. George says there were plenty of available seats:

Republican Party officials shut down any criticism over enthusiasm for the event. Previously, the party slashed prices to $150 to encourage more people to attend.

While some seats in the ballroom were empty, GOP officials declared the event a success because of Pence’s presence… [Pols emphasis]

“I think it’s a little funny this is their marquee event and they can’t even sell tickets, which is why they had to drop the ticket price,” said Eric Walker, with the Colorado Democratic Party.

Rep. Mike Coffman arrived at yesterday’s fundraiser to jeers and a brief-but-telling interaction with a Telemundo reporter–waving off an attempt to ask a question.

“Standing up to Trump” apparently can allow attending Mike Pence’s fundraisers! We expect this could have some utility against Coffman in the future.

For many thousands of ordinary commuters in the south Denver metro area, the biggest memory they’ll have of Pence’s visit will be massive traffic problems created by the Pence motorcade’s “rolling closures” along C-470 and I-25. The high-visibility “Handmaid’s Tale” protest by the local Indivisible groups earned at least parity with the event itself in terms of media coverage, and that’s another big win for them. On the other hand, either in raising funds or exciting the Republican base ahead of the 2018 midterms, this event was unquestionably a bust. The terrible press the state party received over slashing the price to see the vice president could not be undone. FOX 31 estimated the crowd inside at about 300, well below the party’s revised goal of 400 attendees and distantly below the 800 tickets they originally set out to sell.

It’s hard to see how any of this was worth it to Republicans in hindsight, but of course they had to go through with it. To have cancelled the vice president’s appearance due to lack of interest, especially after slashing the ticket price, would have been much worse.

And with that, onward to victory!