IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
Opinion: Mike Coffman Tries to Outrun the Stench of Trump
5280 Magazine
http://www.5280.com/digital/2016/08/opinion-mike-coffman-tries-outrun-stench-trump
There’s a classic Seinfeld episode in which Jerry has his car parked at a restaurant, only to find that his valet’s B.O. is so toxic that neither he nor anyone who rides in the car can escape it. In the end the odor is so insurmountable he ends up giving the car away to a random stranger who can’t bear to stay inside it.
In 2016 election terms, the valet is Donald Trump, the car is the Republican Party, and the passengers are all the down-ballot GOP candidates who can’t seem to shake the repulsive and withering reek their putative leader is emanating.
The latest self-made victim in Colorado is Rep. Mike Coffman (R-CD6), who’s defending his seat against former Colorado Senate president Morgan Carroll. What was once a reliably conservative district under Tom Tancredo has become competitive the past few election cycles after redistricting brought more minority voters within its boundaries.
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Much of the precariousness has to do with Coffman’s own unforced errors and his baldly transparent attempts to do or say almost anything to keep his seat. He’s joined Trump in the past by openly questioning President Obama’s heritage and Christian faith, putting him squarely in the widely discredited and ridiculed “birther” category. Trying to make amends (of a sort), Coffman began taking Spanish language classes a few years ago. Although it’s tough to fault someone for trying to better connect with his new Latino constituents, the move was seen by more than a few as disingenuous pandering, particularly in light of Coffman’s promise earlier this year to back the rabidly anti-immigration Trump in the presidential election.
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