October 04, 2018 11:53 AM UTC

Throwback Thursday: "The Candidate Democrats Fear"

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• by: Colorado Pols

Most of the time, when you hear a candidate say they’re the “candidate Democrats fear,” they’re implying that they would be stronger in the general election than their primary opponents–usually by being moderate on one or more issues that turn off Republican primary voters.

We’ll give you a hint: one of these had a modicum of truth to it!

Bob Beauprez, it can be safely said, was never a candidate Democrats particularly feared. While Beauprez’s margin of defeat narrowed between his two runs for governor in 2006 and 2014, by the time of the latter race Beauprez had painted himself irrevocably as a fringe crackpot brainlessly regurgitating “Tea Party” sedition.

Cynthia Coffman, on the other hand, had a number of qualities that made her a potentially formidable general election candidate for governor. Before Coffman’s run for governor collapsed in one of the most spectacular heaps in recent political history, no small amount of Democratic strategizing was devoted to what was considered the undesirable scenario of her winning the primary.

In the end, of course, the moderate line items on Cynthia Coffman’s resume were totally unacceptable to Republican primary voters–and combined with her role in years of intraparty backstabbing, Coffman limped into the GOP state assembly a virtual pariah. Her campaign didn’t make it out alive, and her political career is over.

Unless she decides, and this is not on balance a far-fetched notion, to become a Democrat!

In which case we’ll all have a good laugh over this picture, won’t we?