Colorado Democrats moved Monday to close wounds left by the presidential primary fight, holding a summit at the Governor’s Mansion for a high-profile show of unity.
The closed-door meeting was part listening session, part strategy confab, according to participants, but above all, it was a chance to show supporters of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton that they had a seat at the table — even one set by Sen. Barack Obama.
“I am 100 percent behind Sen. Obama in this (general election) race,” said Gail Schoettler, a former lieutenant governor and a Clinton supporter. “I believe that the Clinton supporters from Colorado, just like the young people, are going to fill in behind and make sure that we elect somebody who really represents the dreams of the future.”
At a press conference after the meeting, Schoettler was joined by former Denver Mayors Wellington Webb and Federico Peña, shepherded by the state’s highest ranking Democrats, Gov. Bill Ritter and U.S. Sen. Ken Salazar.
The symbolism of the participants was intentional: Webb was one of the Clinton campaign’s national co-chairs and Peña is a national co-chairman of the Obama campaign.
Both said that that there was far more that united the participants than divided them, including the prospect of a victory by Republican Sen. John McCain in Colorado, where the polls are tight.
Participants said there were more than a dozen people at the meeting — the state’s most powerful Democrats among them — and they talked about the need to ensure a high turnout in November, especially among young voters, as well as ways to turn issues such as energy and water to the party’s advantage.
Several noted a recent remark by McCain that Western states may need to renegotiate terms of a long-standing water compact, a remark that could hurt him in rural areas that generally support Republicans.
“If he would say that again on (Colorado’s) West Slope, I think it would be very helpful to Sen. Obama,” Ritter said.
Still, the show of unity didn’t impress everyone, including some long-time party activists who warn that divisions still linger.
“The wounds are not healed. I hear that all over my restaurant and all over the city,” said Paul Sandoval, a longtime Democratic operative and Clinton supporter who owns a north Denver restaurant.
“It’s not that they don’t want Obama. It’s that they want to know why they should vote for him, and the reasons on that aren’t there yet.”
Staff writer Christopher N. Osher contributed to this report. Michael Riley: 303-954-1614 or mriley@denverpost.com
