Gov. John Hickenlooper’s will-he-will-he-not run for president saga took an interesting turn on Monday after he revealed his new political action committee, Giddy Up, that will allow him to test the waters nationally and begin fundraising at a larger scale.
The PAC's director Brad Komar told Denverite that Giddy Up will allow Hickenlooper to support candidates throughout the country. It will allow him to pay for his travel and contribute money to other candidate’s races and to “support important policy that he’s cared about his entire life,” even after he’s no longer governor, Komar added.
Hickenlooper spoke to Colorado Public Radio on Monday to talk about the newly-formed PAC.
"I think there's still a lot of stuff we've done in Colorado that is good for a national model," Hickenlooper said during the interview.
Hick will support candidates who are focused on expanding health care, which Komar said is one of Hickenlooper’s accomplishments as governor.
First up: He plans on visiting Georgia to stump for Democratic gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams, Komar said. Hick is also planning on stumping for Tallahassee Mayor Andrew Gillum, the Democratic gubernatorial nominee in Florida.
“These are candidates who throughout their entire careers have brought folks together to deliver results on important issues like healthcare, job training and education,” Komar said.
He added, “The governor thinks that there is a big opportunity in 2018 to elect some fantastic people that can do some great things. He wants to be a part of that and support the efforts.
Hickenlooper filed the paperwork with the Federal Elections Committee to establish the PAC on Monday. Komar said this means they can start accepting money.
The PAC will have an annual $5,000 limit on donations from individuals. Komar said federal laws prohibit the PAC from taking money from corporations; however, some corporations have their own PACs, which can donate to other PACs.
In addition to Komar, the PAC will be staffed by treasurer Stephanie Donner and two board members, Rick Palacio and Mark Turnage.
And, about that name? Komar said it’s a reference to Hickenlooper’s book, "The Opposite of Woe: My Life in Beer and Politics.” It’s a phrase Komar said it's a forward-thinking phrase Hickenlooper has been using for years when he stumps and it’s the opposite of “woe” — as in, "whoa" means stop, "giddy up" means go.
