Senator Michael Bennet's Colorado senatorial campaign has been undermined by Representative Betsy Markey's arrogance as well as her apparent disdain for the constituents who made phone calls, knocked on doors, and contributed their hard-earned money to her campaign for Congress in 2008.
Not only has Colorado Representative Betsy Markey voted to undermine the Democratic platform and President Obama on numerous occasions, including voting "no" on the President's budget and on the House health care reform bill, she has refused to articulate any position on the Senate health care bill, has refused an interview with The Denver Post on this subject, and has also refused to be interviewed on radio AM 760 declaring that none of the constituents in her Congressional district listen to that progressive radio station.
Senator Michael Bennet has exhibited some good leadership qualties during the past several weeks, including his "public option" letter as well as support for financial re-regulation and filibuster reform. But this occurred only after former Colorado House Speaker Andrew Romanoff became a Democratic senatorial primary challenger. Prior to that, Senator Bennet's support for a progressive agenda appeared lukewarm at best.
Should Senator Bennet win the primary and then the Senatorial election in November, can Coloradoans really trust that he will consistently support a progressive agenda during his six-year term? We note with interest the reluctance of Senator Mark Udall to do so as he basks in the relative security of his six-year term in office.
The behavior and votes of Representative Betsy Markey have angered and alienated a good percentage of the progressive constituents in her district who elected her. She seems oblivious to this fact, and apparently assumes that she will be re-elected without their active support. I believe that she has badly misjudged her constituents, who will either stay home or actively work to defeat her next November, especially if she votes "no" on the Senate health care bill later this week. If she does so, once again citing "fiscal responsibility" as her (tired) rationale, she will have secured her status as a "Republicrat", and we will work diligently to end her political career. Her abandonment of the progressive base which put her in office makes us suspicious that we may see similar behavior from Senator Bennet should he prevail this fall.
Andrew Romanoff has been a dependable and consistent progressive voice and vote in Colorado for many years, and as a result I will support him in Tuesday's caucus despite the latent leadership exhibited by Senator Bennet. Frankly, Andrew Romanoff would have made a much better appointee than Michael Bennet over the long haul. Representative Betsy Markey's arrogance and voting record have made many of us in her district too angry and suspicious to be able to fully trust and support Michael Bennet on Tuesday. She has tainted his candidacy with her behavior, votes and Attitude. Should Andrew Romanoff eventually win the Democratic senatorial primary race in Colorado, he may well have Betsy Markey to thank.