MDRT – John Hickenlooper

And then, of course, there was the time the Governor of Colorado came on my podcast.

Huzzah!

John Hickenlooper, former-brewpub visionary, Denver mayor and now the Governor of Colorado – running for a second term, vote kiddos, vote! –  was gracious enough to be on my podcast and the result is this very episode you have stumbled upon in your travels.

Good for you! And your travels!

I remember the first time I ever heard John Hickenlooper’s name. I had just moved back to Colorado after having been away for a few years. I knew nothing about local politics. I knew Webb was the mayor but beyond that, nada. I was jogging through City Park with my good friend Gabe one glorious Colorado evening, when we noticed a hub-bub at the pavilion. Hark, we thought, what the dilly, yo? We promptly asked the first person who looked like they were there in some official capacity.

“John Hickenlooper just won the mayoral election!” she told us. “He’s giving away free beer.”

“To the entire city?” we inquired. “What’s a Hickenlooper?”

“He’s your new mayor,” we were informed. “And yes, to the entire city!”

Gabe and I promptly ran back to our parent’s houses – again, newly back in Denver, didn’t even have our own places yet, stop judging – showered, and returned back to the pavilion to join in the free beer celebration. That led to us tagging along with campaign staffers to the Wynkoop Brewery – the place where Hick first made a name for himself – which led to us randomly meeting up with other campaign staffers who we knew from high school in one of those small-town Denver synchronicities that never cease to comfort. And so we got hammered reveled in the new mayor’s celebration deep into the evening. Hooray for this Hick guy, we thought. He seems alright.

And then I got hired by a newspaper and started actually paying attention to the political landscape more than the free beer in the park and I really got to follow John Hickenlooper’s career. And I learned more about all the things we had in common – how he went to Wesleyan University, how he lived in Park Hill, the neighborhood I grew up in. The more I learned about Hickenlooper, the more I was intrigued. But what mostly impressed me was his sense of humor. He wasn’t your typical politician, he was quirkier, with a self-awareness about his perceived geekiness that most of Denver fell in love with. Myself included.

And the rest of the state as well, I suppose, because then Hick became governor! And he watched over four of the most tumultuous years in the history of the state – full of fires and shootings and tragedy, all of which he handled with typical grace. And style. And humor. And then his campaign reached out to me and the Nix Brothers to shoot a few little web-spots for them to use at their discretion. And so we did. And they were a blast to film! And Hickenlooper was as funny as I always thought he was. And a natural on screen. Which made me feel threatened.

BECAUSE I DESPERATELY NEED ALL THE ATTENTION.

Ahem.

Regardless, now I can say I’ve gotten to know John Hickenlooper a little bit better and I continue to be a huge fan. I voted for him for mayor, I voted for him for governor, and I’ll be voting for him for governor again this November. And I urge you to do the same. Colorado is one of those tricky purple states that’s always teetering on the edge of going back to red, like it was during my entire youth, when parts of the state passed homophobic hate amendments and dinosaurs roamed the earth. And I for one appreciate a more progressive Colorado. I think it’s one of the things that makes my home state great, a willingness to move and evolve and realize it’s full potential. And we need a governor who mirrors that sentiment. And I believe John Hickenlooper is the man for that job.

Okay, stump speech over, I hope you enjoy this episode! It was fun to grab a few minutes out of an insanely busy final stretch of the campaign and I am very appreciative of the time. So give it a listen! And share it with friends! And go out and vote for Hickenlooper! And watch the videos we made for the campaign. But most importantly, just keep on being you. Because you’re goddamn amazing. And don’t let anyone ever tell you otherwise.

Check out the episode on iTunes here.