Recently, former Colorado governor and current presidential candidate, John Hickenlooper struggled to say he was a capitalist.
Victor Abundis
On MSNBC’s Morning Joe, Scarborough asked Hickenlooper if he was a capitalist since the former governor established a successful brew-pub in Denver, Wynkoop Brewing Company. Hickenlooper’s response was laughable.
Newsflash Democrats: if we want to see Donald Trump reelected in 2020, keep saying we’re not capitalist! The notion that a successful business owner cannot call himself a capitalist, as if that were a bad word, is mind boggling. His brewery is the embodiment of capitalism and how capitalism can transform a neighborhood. Just look at Wynkoop’s website to see how four guys propelled LoDo in downtown Denver into a thriving neighborhood.
Their website notes:
“In 1988 LoDo had no ballpark, no valet parking, no farm-to-table restaurants. Just four guys who wanted to make really good beer. Those four guys were John Hickenlooper, Jerry Williams, Mark Schiffler and Russell Schehrer. They opened the first craft brewery in Denver on skid row in the century-old J. S. Brown Mercantile Building.”
What a classic American story! Four guys who loved a tasty craft beer opened a small business. Yet, Hickenlooper refuses to acknowledge he’s a capitalist calling it “silly” to place labels on individuals.
The fact remains America is a capitalistic country, and thousands of small businesses throughout our cities and rural communities employ people who need those jobs to pay the mortgage, open a 529 for their children’s education and buy groceries.
The fact that Democrats can’t even utter the word “capitalist,” is itself, silly.
Wake up Democrats! There’s a big difference between small businesses and corporations. There’s a big difference between John Hickenlooper and Gordon Gekko who famously uttered, “greed is good” in the hit movie, Wall Street. Wynkoop made Lo-Do cool, hip! It developed the infrastructure necessary to build Coors Field and the Colorado Rockies to Denver.
Think of all the restaurants, bars, galleries, shops, and boutiques that line LoDo. Think about all the jobs created because four dudes had the entrepreneurial spirit to take a shot on a neighborhood that deserved a face lift.
Democrats, this I know: Donald J. Trump will get reelected if we can’t admit that capitalism, at its most basic level, works.
Capitalism as an economic theory that is neither morally good nor morally bad. The system of capitalism as practiced in the United States, however, can be argued to be morally corrupt and favors wealthier citizens. That’s a fair point. But the type of capitalism John Hickenlooper created should be celebrated.
It’s embarrassing that in this tribal warfare within the Democratic Party, a successful businessman cannot assert he believes in capitalism. If we continue down this path of bashing capitalism, I’m afraid we’ll get what we deserve: Donald J. Trump, two-term president of the United States.
Victor Abundis is the Democratic candidate for Missouri’s 6th Congressional District.