McCain's Frequent Colorado Visits

John McCain is making a whole lot of visits to Colorado these days. After a much publicized Denver town hall meeting three weeks ago, when a protester was removed from a walkway outside the event simply for carrying a sign that read "McCain=Bush," McCain returned to Colorado last Friday to address Latino veterans, blast Obama on foreign policy, and make a quick stop in Aspen to meet the Dalai Lama.

The Denver Post also reports that McCain will be back in the pivotal western state today, raising cash and rallying support.

So why is Colorado so popular for McCain? It could have something to do with Barack Obama's efforts to put traditionally red states in play. To be sure, Colorado is more of a purple state in recent years, and boasts a Democratic governor and a majority of Democrats at the state level. It could also be because Obama has one big campaign date here in the near future: August 25-28. The more time McCain can spend in Colorado without upsetting the city's status quo (little old librarian ladies aside), the more public support--especially among undecided voters--the Republican may be able to draw away from the convention.

Obama's popularity in Colorado--and especially in Denver--could actually take a hit depending on how much of a disruption the Democratic National Convention makes in people's daily lives. Furthermore, if business resulting from the convention is not as good as the projections, Denverites and Coloradans may be inclined to see that as a negative in the Obama hype column (though in fairness to the candidate, both the Dem National Committee and the city of Denver will have as much or more to do with that as the candidate and his campaign).

Never mind that it's apples to oranges. John McCain will be out on national TV reminding folks that he's been to Denver a dozen times this year and never tied up city streets or wreaked havoc for local businesses. Bottom line is, if people in Denver get frustrated during the convention, they might actually be inclined to buy into what they hear.