The text from my friend read: Hey want to go see Jill Stein in FoCO tonite?" I was curious about the Green Presidential candidate, and so we drove down to hear Stein speak on the back patio of Avogadro's Number, a trendy restaurant/bar in college-town Fort Collins, Colorado.

(Below: Arn Menconi, Jill Stein, from the Arn Menconi for Senate FB page)

Stein fired up the standing-room only crowd of children, activists, college students, and aging baby boomers. I was more impressed than I wanted to be by Stein's energetic and well-informed oratory, and found myself in agreement with 90% of her policies.

You can view a video of Stein's speech in Fort Collins here. and of her rally in Denver here (through Menconi's Facebook page)
Here is a link to a Facebook video of Stein's speech in Denver, in which she "sort of" endorsed Coloradocare.

Stein was introduced by Arn Menconi, who is competing for one of Colorado's US Senate seats, against moderate Third Way Democrat Michael Bennet. Menconi is also a dynamic candidate, and I think that he would serve our state at least as well as Bennet. I'll vote for Menconi, who is a better option than corporate-congresscritter Bennet or religious zealot Darryl Glenn, the GOP nominee.

Coloradocare Controversy

While in Colorado, Stein had interviewed with a local paper, the Colorado Independent, and declined to endorse Colorado's pioneering single-payer health plan ballot initiative 69, also known as ColoradoCare.

Coloradocare will be on the fall election ballot; if it passes, Colorado will gradually transition to a true single payer health care system. It has a formidable list of adversaries, however; Koch -funded Advancing Colorado, insurance-industry funded "Coloradans for Coloradans", and now progressive organizations NARAL and ProgressNowColorado, as well as various unions and Democratic lawmakers. So Stein had some rather strange bedfellows in her waffling on Coloradocare.

Bernie Sanders, Noam Chomsky, and comedian Seth Myers are among the national figures who have endorsed Coloradocare. Coloradocare is the brainchild of Senator and Doctor Irene Aguilar, who wrote a vigorous defense and fact-check of the ballot initiative in Coloradopols.
Menconi enthusiastically endorsed Coloradocare, and after a tense 24 hours of Facebook frenzy, on August 28, 2016, at her rally in Denver, Stein gave a lukewarm endorsement of Coloradocare, saying that it shows why we need a public health option at the Federal level. This is certainly true; however, it is also true that this is unlikely to happen under a Hillary Clinton administration, whatever HRC's current talking points are. If Obama sidestepped the public option, I think it unlikely that Clinton will do better. However, our Bernie revolution may be able to mobilize and create the momentum we need.

I was impressed by, and at the same time, quite disappointed by Stein's political tap-dancing on the issue of Colorado's homegrown public health initiative. Dr. Stein is a polished and energetic orator, and I like her politics. She also has less elected-official experience than I do - hey, I've been PTA President twice! It's hard to endorse someone when I'm not sure that they're competent to handle the job.

At this point, I plan to vote for Arn Menconi for US Senate; That is a race with a safe Democratic margin in Colorado. However, I won't know who I will ink in for President until my ballot is sitting on my kitchen table in front of me.