Hickenlooper: Geologist, owner of brewpub, governor ... veep?

Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper already may be able to claim the most unusual procession of jobs in American politics, from geologist to brewpub entrepreneur to mayor and governor. And now vice president? Hickenlooper, 64, sports a quirky name, a nerdy mien, a successful career in business and a governmental résumé that includes handling fires, floods and gun violence in a quintessential swing state. His memoir, The Opposite of Woe: My Life in Beer and Pol

itics, published Tuesday by Penguin Press, details his mother’s perseverance, the impact of the death of his father when Hickenlooper was just eight, and his struggle to find his own path.

By serendipity or not, the book’s publicity tour, launched Monday, also presents an opportunity for the two- term governor to showcase his willingness to make the case for likely Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton and against likely Republican nominee Donald Trump, just the sort of task running mates typically are expected to perform. By the way, the first sentence of the book publicist’s pitch identifies him as “a solid contender to be the next vice president.”

“The president has to be someone that kids look up to,” Hickenlooper told Capital Download. “I mean, again, I don’t want to get political, but it’s that season. Do we want our kids looking up to someone like Donald Trump who really is kind of a bully and a blowhard; facts don’t really matter that much. ... That’s not who we want our kids to look up to. We want someone like Hillary. She’s a pragmatist. She’s a problem solver. ... She learns the

facts.” As the public campaigns for the presidential nominations begin to wind down — although Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders and many of his supporters aren’t ready to do that yet — the underground campaigns for the vice president are moving into a higher gear in both parties.

It is a peculiar contest, directed at an electorate of one, that requires demonstrating an ability to fulfill the job’s requirements while demurring open interest in it.

“I think the job would be challenging but certainly very interesting,” Hickenlooper told USA TODAY’s weekly video newsmaker series, quickly adding: “I love being the governor of Colorado,” extolling the state’s virtues and his own agenda, including in workforce development. “It would be very hard for me to leave Colorado, right?”

But he also said it would be “hard to say no” if asked to join the ticket, requiring first of all consultation with his wife, Robin, and 13- year- old son, Teddy. He said he hasn’t been contacted by the Clinton campaign but would be willing to go through the vetting process, if asked.

In July, the Colorado governor plans to be at the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia as a superdelegate who has endorsed Clinton. He’s fielding complaints from Sanders’ supporters who argue he should reflect the results of the Colorado Democratic caucuses in March, when the Vermont senator crushed Clinton by 19 percentage points.

“The superdelegates are specifically told ... you’re supposed to look at not the vote but the person who you think is best ready to be president,” he said. Clinton “is ready from Day One to walk into the Oval Office and know what to do.”

Eventually, Democrats will unite behind her, he predicts.

ROBERT DEUTSCH, USA TODAY Gov. John Hickenlooper said he has not been contacted by the Clinton campaign.