May 12, 2017 11:44 AM UTC

FBI Director John Suthers, Anyone?

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• by: Colorado Pols

Lots of speculation today that former Colorado Attorney General and current Mayor of Colorado Springs John Suthers is on the “short list” to replace ousted FBI Director James Comey–a promotion that would put Suthers smack dab in the middle of the biggest political crisis in many years. FOX 31:

Former Colorado Attorney General and current Colorado Springs Mayor John Suthers is on President Donald Trump’s shortlist to become the next FBI director, the White House said Friday.

Nearly a dozen candidates were made public by Fox News. Colorado Republican Sen. Cory Gardner said that he recommended Suthers be considered.

We’re looking for more corroboration for this report, as well as some sense of where Suthers would land among the 10 or more candidates. But Sen. Cory Gardner is indeed enthusiastic:

Colorado’s John Suthers would be an excellent choice to lead the FBI. I recommended him to the WH & am excited to see his name on this list. https://t.co/8RIoe9I4jQ

— Cory Gardner (@SenCoryGardner) May 12, 2017

Suthers is a conservative Republican, but as Attorney General of Colorado he showed an ability to do his job with relatively little political partisanship–when he chose to. Suthers angered the gun lobby in 2013 with his technical guidance settling various contrived issues with the magazine limit law passed that year. And as Mayor of Colorado Springs, Suthers bucked the conservative establishment by supporting a successful tax increase proposal for road repairs.

What does any of this say about how Suthers would conduct himself as FBI Director–especially FBI Director under President Donald Trump? We’re inclined to think Suthers can be trusted to carry out the relevant investigations fairly and impartially–as much as any Republican today possibly could.

And honestly, that could be enough for Trump to choose somebody else.