Sign up for 5280's weekly e-newsletters. Want the latest restaurant scoop? The latest happenings around town? Access to exclusive events and deals just for 5280 readers? Rumors are flying that Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper will announce today whether he is running for Governor. The DraftHick group is comparing today to the arrival of the Beatles in the United States on February 7, 1964.
The Internet-based group Drafthick.com, which has been campaigning for him to run, noted that Hickenlooper’s 54th birthday is Tuesday and asked his backers to send birthday greetings.
The group recalled that on Feb. 7, 1964, the Beatles arrived in New York City and inaugurated “Beatlemania,” and it predicted a similar groundswell for Hickenlooper. “This Tuesday, February 7, on the mayor’s 54th birthday, a new type of craze will sweep across Colorado: Loopermania,” said an e-mail widely distributed on the Internet.
The speculation that Monday is the day is being fueled by reports that the Mayor’s calendar is clear of scheduled appointments. Here’s more of the adoration being floated by Draft Hick:
The group went on to predict that Hickenlooper will run and that there will be “spontaneous outbreaks of confidence in Colorado’s electoral system. Rural, suburban, exurban and urban dwellers joining together with new shared optimism. Ice cream tastes more delicious, the sun shines extra bright and columbines sprout early across the state.”
Ice cream tastes more delicious? This is all far too Pollyanna-ish for my tastes. If the Mayor decides to run, fine. But he’s not a rock star. A prediction of public mania over the announcement is silly. He’s a businessman- turned-politician who has done well by Denver. This effort to canonize and sugar-coat him seems more than a tad over the top.
Posted 2/6/2006 at 7:19 am by Jeralyn Merritt
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