Today’s announcement by former President Barack Obama of his first round of 2020 endorsements including top-tier Democratic U.S. Senate candidate John Hickenlooper is no surprise, but the moment of warm fuzzy this endorsement brings from the memory of American politics just a few short years ago adds some emotional weight:
Governor Hickenlooper and President Obama forged a bond that made a big difference for Colorado. During some very tough times for Colorado, their leadership helped our economy recover from the Great Recession and helped our state heal after the Aurora theatre shooting. Together, they expanded health coverage to half a million Coloradans and made sure that people with preexisting conditions were protected…
“I am honored to have President Obama’s endorsement,” said Hickenlooper. “He knows how broken and dysfunctional Washington is — and how the work delivering for Americans can’t stop in the face of partisan politics, especially during a crisis. In the Senate, I look forward to building on the work President Obama and I did together here in Colorado, from protecting and expanding health care, to tackling climate change, to making it easier to vote.”
Was the Obama/Hickenlooper decade a golden age of progressive political achievement? Of course not. Obama turned out to be a pretty moderate chief executive in the end, hamstrung by irrational GOP opposition that declared him the second coming of Joseph Stalin after passing the conservative Heritage Foundation’s health care plan. As for Hickenlooper, he’s a gaffe-prone gawky former petroleum geologist whose aversion to lefty buzzwords has gotten him into trouble on his left flank more than once.
But if you don’t miss those olden days in August of 2020, warts and all, there’s something wrong with you.
We suspect a majority of Colorado voters are going to agree.
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Happy Days are about to appear again. We'll have competent civil servants again. The dip shits who hate us will be crying again. It will soon be time to vote with a pen. See you then.
Well … maybe. I am slowly coming round to the idea that there's a slight chance of Trumplethinskin not getting reelected. That's a necessary first step, of course, but still light years from Happy Days are Here Again. A nation that would elect Trump in the first place — you know, this nation — is deeply and perhaps permanently fucked up.
Amen to that, Genghis. It will take many years to wash the stink out of Old Glory!
In their defense, he was Black.
and still is.
I agree with the assessment that most voters will miss those olden days.. I don’t. Not because what we have now is good, but because it is not that different for most of us on the bottom end of the scale. I still fear going to the doctor, same as before Obama, because my health insurance sticks me with loving surprises I cannot afford. I am still one health crisis away from total destitution. I still have terrible job choices and if I complain I’ll be told it is my fault for not being enough of a self starter by people who were luckier than me in their choice of parents, first jobs, and health.
I was fooled by Obama’s change message. I’m not going to be fooled by Hick’s message of nostalgia for a time that was pretty shit for me. Personally, I would not cross the street to piss on either Hick or Gardner if they were on fire.
So you’re sticking with Cory? Well, it’s a dirty job but nobody has to do it.
Don’t be so modest, your amazing arguments really won me over to voting third party this year. I hope you keep it up.
I'd cross the street to piss on Gardner and call it trickle down help.
Brilliant, GG!
Only idiots and liars say they'll vote third party in 2020.
Wow, name calling. That’s such an amazing argument in favor of voting Dem.
Also, your opinion of me is so important.
Third Party is just a gutless way of not opposing Trump. But we don’t need your vote, Ivanka. We have all Trump’s ex-wives in the Biden camp, and there are a lot of them!
Keep it up. If you really want me to, I’ll vote Trump out of pure spite.
You think you’re the first Doofus to visit this board and proclaim the sun rises and sets in your (ahem)?
Fools like you and Moddy are Trump’s lawful prey.
And Trump will ,lose Colorado anyway, so why should I pretend to respect you?
Go ahead, Ivanka. Come out of the closet.
Tee hee
You’re just like Trump. Anyone who does not agree with you 100%, who dares to have even the slightly disagreement, who won’t toe your line, is apparently the worst traitor for all time. Never any honey with you, just a big loud stick screaming about how you’re right and everyone else is, “Dum”.
You misspelled “dumb.”
Tee Hee!
Whatever happened to our local in-house Jilliots: Dust Puppy and James Dodds?
I suppose we can call 2020 Green Party presidential candidate voters "Hawkidiots," but it just doesn't have the same ring. Also, it's tough to imagine dumbasses voting for Howie in the same numbers they voted for Jill in 2016.
Dodds told me that he stopped posting on here because he was tired of V's gaslighting.
Deathpigeon has a similar story, but I still follow them on Twitter.
Dustpuppy? I don't know.
“I’ll vote Trump out of pure spite”
You probably would. And then you would be one of the loudest bellyaching after he is re-elected.
“Spite”? By that, I assume you mean, as my grandmother used to say, “Biting your nose to spite your face”.’
Go ahead. There are enough Never Trumpers in Colorado to put those nine electoral votes in Biden’s column, so sulk away.
FWIW, my Never-Trump Republican vote for Biden will cancel out the vote for Trump from DENependent.
Good for you, CHB. I hope I’m right and there are enough Never-Trumpers to cancel out all of the dumb and spiteful MAGAts.
aw, so bold and brave.
Ah yes, voting third party. Just like all those Jilliots in Michigan, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania did in '16.
More name calling, ouch! It really shows how great your candidate is that you’re afraid of even one person saying that they won’t vote for him. It reminds me of the panicked verbal abuse from the Amway sales person when I spoke up and said, “This does not seem like it could work for me.”
Just for you, the Founding Fathers created the Electoral College.
DenE, you speak your truth and vote your conscience. There are folks on here who get off on being mean to others on the internet. They use personal insults and logical fallacies because they lack substantive arguments.
It really has nothing to do with you – if not you, it would be someone else who challenges the "moderate" party line.
I agree with you on Hick's "message of nostalgia"ringing hollow for many of us. I expect Hick and Biden to do nothing except tweak around the edges of environmental and health care reform, whatever is the least that they can get away with and not offend their donors. They lack real connection with voters like you and I who struggled or struggle financially, or who live with industry pollution every day.
But I'm going to have to vote for those mofos, to start to clean up the corruption, and stop swinging the SCOTUS to the right, so I've had to scale back my sniping.
Oh, Denetrumper never votes for "truth." That would be so bourgeoisie. Denetrumper votes for " spite" because that what stable geniuses do.
Stupid is as stupid votes!
"Speak your truth"
When did truth become subjective?
Someone who has always worked minimum wage jobs and never had security of health coverage has a different "truth" than someone who has always had enough money for necessities (including health coverage) and luxuries.
Someone who has never been able to avoid suspicion of criminality because of their skin color will have a different truth than someone who figures, hey we elected a black president once, and I never say the n word, we we're all post-racial and those who don't agree are just "playing the race card" to make us feel bad.
Etc. You get the picture.
And you think the the answer to minimum wage jobs and no health care is to re-elect Trump? That’s your “truth”,from DeneTrumper?
You are mixing up an individual's "life experiences" with "truth."
For an English teacher, you play pretty fast and loose with language.