The Governor Has Left the Building State Country

The Governor Has Left the ~~Building~~ ~~State~~ Country

18 Comments

by: Colorado Pols

Odd story being reported by Fox 31's Eli Stokols this afternoon. Governor John Hickenlooper is apparently on his way to Israel, which would be swell if not for the fact that the Colorado Legislature still has a marathon four weeks left under the Golden Dome:

Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper has left the state to embark on a week-long trip to Israel, his office announced Tuesday afternoon.

“This is a personal trip initiated more than a year ago and planned for the past six months,” states a press release from his office. [Pols emphasis] “The trip includes stops at various historic sites and a variety of events, as well as meetings with President Shimon Peres and Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barkat.

“The governor is paying for all of his expenses; no public dollars are being used for the trip.”

Lt. Gov. Joe Garcia will serve as acting governor until Hickenlooper returns on April 17.

The trip is certain to raise new speculation that Hickenlooper, an oft-mentioned presidential possibility in 2016 or beyond, has aspirations to seek national office.

Governors and Senators around the country have a long tradition of taking trips to Israel, particularly those who may have ambitions for higher office at some point in the future. We have no problem with Hickenlooper taking such a trip himself, but we can't help but raise an eyebrow at the timing. The press release says that Hick has been planning the trip for six months, and if so, why would he schedule the visit to take place in the waning weeks of a widely anticipated legislative session? Why plan to disappear for a week in the first session in Hickenlooper's tenure as Governor in which his party, the Democrats, control both chambers?

It's no secret that Hickenlooper has been losing a bit of his mojo with Coloradans, particularly around the issue of fracking. The legislature is tackling a handful of fracking bills, among other pieces of legislation, and if we didn't know better, we'd wonder if Hickenlooper and friends thought this might be a good time to get outta Dodge for awhile.

Hickenlooper might consider that kind of speculation to be unfair, but what does he expect people to think when he up and leaves the country for a week in the middle of the legislative session? The Governor's office says this is a private trip financed by Hickenlooper himself, but does that make it better or worse? To some degree, it would have been better calling this a trip to talk about Colorado's economy, or something, as opposed to a "private vacation."

Whatever the reason, the timing and relative secrecy of this trip are strange at best.

18 thoughts on “The Governor Has Left the Building State Country”

The realist says:

April 9, 2013 at 6:17 pm

Wow. Didn't he just get back from Canada? Seems VERY odd that he would take a "private vacation" at this point in the legislative session [Pols, when scanning the end of the diary I first read your line above as saying "private evacuation"]. Who's traveling with him?

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Duke Cox says:

April 9, 2013 at 8:38 pm

we'd wonder if Hickenlooper and friends thought this might be a good time to get outta Dodge for awhile

Ya think?

He is already facing lots of pressure to act against his buds when the legislation passes…and maybe he knows something about Parachute Creek that we don't know. There is a lot we don't know. A man who will try to hornswaggle the people about poisoned water, most likely wouldn't bother fibbing about travel plans…now would he?

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1. GalapagoLarry says:
  
  April 10, 2013 at 8:20 pm
  
  A friend just shouted up from the TV room that it's just been reported that fracking fluid has reached the Colorado. If he's right, then it's all but certain that Hick did know something that the rest of us will find out about soon. It was inevitible. Hope his vacation was planned to be a long one.
  
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rexxcrowbar says:

April 9, 2013 at 9:39 pm

Really? This is news to criticize him about? I disagree.

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1. Duke Cox says:
  
  April 9, 2013 at 10:14 pm
  
  you certainly have that right.
  
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allyncooper says:

April 9, 2013 at 9:54 pm

Maybe he's really hiking the Appalacian Trail.

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yameniye says:

April 10, 2013 at 3:02 am

Maybe Joe has a pen.

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Gray in Mountains says:

April 10, 2013 at 10:57 am

The Govs office originally had thought he would be in Israel 6 months ago. I don't know why it was postponed or the reason for the trip but I do know he had intended to be there in October

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1. Duke Cox says:
  
  April 10, 2013 at 1:10 pm
  
  Right. Which is not during the session. Maybe he has just gone there to pray. Might be appropriate.
  
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2. BlueCat says:
  
  April 10, 2013 at 4:23 pm
  
  It does seem that, with a legislature that meets for less than half the year, he could have gone some other time?
  
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Meiner49er says:

April 10, 2013 at 12:44 pm

Hmm, think Garcia would veto a fracking ban if the legislature ran it through this week?

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1. RavenDawg says:
  
  April 10, 2013 at 12:51 pm
  
  Other way round
  
  Garcia signing a fracking ban could be the opening shot in a helluva primary challenge.
  
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ProgressiveCowgirl says:

April 10, 2013 at 3:35 pm

Hickenblooper [n]: An action taken by an elected official who was once widely heralded as the second coming of Bipartisan Jeebus, who after attaining statewide office pretty much did everything wrong and decided his next run should be for the border.

Yeah, I'm a little tired of this guy. Fortunate for him that nobody has suggested a better candidate on any side of the ticket.

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1. Duke Cox says:
  
  April 10, 2013 at 3:40 pm
  
  I am one of those who has been bugging Morgan Carroll to primary his royal arse. i haven't changed my mind.
  
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  1. gertie97 says:
    
    April 10, 2013 at 4:06 pm
    
    I don't think Morgan will change her mind, either, Duke. She can keep her formidable powder dry for the right race at the right time.
    
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  2. BlueCat says:
    
    April 10, 2013 at 4:25 pm
    
    Not feasible. He may not be much but he's the only Dem Gov. we're going to have for a while.
    
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    1. Duke Cox says:
      
      April 10, 2013 at 4:33 pm
      
      I told you I'm a feminist….
      
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Duke Cox says:

April 10, 2013 at 3:41 pm

Pols…Pleeeeze!

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