Gov. John Hickenlooper was awake and up most of Thursday night, working his cellphone.
His chief of staff, Roxane White, texted him throughout the night and into Friday morning — several times an hour at some points — with updates on the Occupy Denver protest in Lincoln Park and what was happening with Colorado State Patrol troopers in riot gear and the Denver police backing them up.
“Crowd down to 150 or less,” “Ready to issue order,” “Still no arrests,” read a few of the texts Hickenlooper received leading up to the final sweep that resulted in no reported injuries and 23 arrests.
For the Democratic governor, the dispersal of protesters from the state- owned park was the culmination of a long and sometimes frustrating week of putting together a plan that required cooperation from initially reluctant city officials. Meanwhile, he and his staff personally met with protesters Wednesday and Thursday in an attempt to defuse the situation even as critics raged against him for inaction.
“I think half the world thinks we should have acted much sooner,” Hickenlooper said Friday. “I think half the world thinks we shouldn’t have acted at all.”
On Tuesday, Hickenlooper had talked about the Occupy Denver tent encampment on KOA Radio’s Mike Rosen Show, downplaying the situation as only a handful of tents. But the camp had been growing rapidly, with more than 40 tents in place that afternoon and 70 tents by Thursday.
Some people were asking why Hickenlooper had not ordered the State Patrol to move in a week earlier, when there were only a few tents.
His staff, though, had been working for days on the issue, which was complicated by legal concerns. The park is state-owned, but State Patrol officials and administration sources said that because the Denver district attorney’s office only takes cases presented by the Denver Police Department, the state needed city cooperation to involve Denver police.
And Mayor Michael Hancock’s staff was not eager to get the city involved in the matter, said sources close to the situation.
On Wednesday, White herself walked across Civic Center from the Capitol to city hall, her old workplace, to talk to city officials about the issue.
By that evening, Hickenlooper and Hancock issued a joint statement saying the protesters were violating state law and the state and city were trying to work on a solution. The statement was amended later that evening to say the protesters also were violating city ordinances.
It was clear Hancock had taken joint ownership of the problem and that protesters would be prosecuted if they moved to a city park.
Hancock spokesman Wil Alston said it’s wrong to say the city was hesitant to get involved.
“It’s not the right characterization that we were reluctant,” Alston said. “We were asked this week. We took a day or two really strategizing on what that support would look like.
“Then, we joined with the state to take action.”
An early ally of Hickenlooper’s was Republican Attorney General John Suthers.
“I think that the governor handled this beautifully,” Suthers said. “I think it’s very important to try to de-escalate a situation, and I thought him going over (to speak with protesters) was a reflection of his personality.”
Suthers’ comments contrasted with criticism from some conservative bloggers and talk-radio hosts, as well as state Sen. Greg Brophy, R-Wray, who blasted Hickenlooper for inaction before the Friday morning sweep.
Denver political strategist Eric Sondermann said Hickenlooper appeared to stumble early on the issue but later recovered well. Despite complaints from the left about free speech being trampled, or critics on the right saying Hickenlooper was indecisive, most Coloradans probably think the governor handled the situation well, Sondermann said.
“For most Coloradans, I think the attitude is sort of ‘All’s well that end’s well,’ ” he said. “I think they dodged a bullet.”
Tim Hoover: 303-954-1626 or thoover@denverpost.com
