Things are sorted out and rarely does the majority gets things exactly their own way. Its where the stability can occur and most people dont think that. In the era in which everybody wants instant gratification if you are looking for instant gratification or perfection the senate would be a place for you. Host at the time that Many Americans are not optimistic what would you want those teachers tell their students about their future in this country . Guest i think because of our woeful ignorance of history, we always think the period that we are in is tougher than others. We have had nothing like the civil war. Have. We have and have a single instance where the congressman from South Carolina came over and almost beat to death the senator from massachusetts. They have money and tough challenges. World war, depression. This is a great country. We will deal with whatever our current problems are and move on to another level. I am just as optimistic as i ever was that this generation will leave behind better than our parents left for us. Host that is an optimistic message from the kid that had polio and overcame it and set his sights to be in the United States senate and became the majority leader after about 50 years of keeping his eye on the ball, national guitarist used to say you have to be careful where you aim because you are likely to get their and senator Mitch Mcconnell did. And we will defend american jobs and workers by saying no to bad trade deals like the sponsorship and unfair trade practices. Theyve lost one third of their manufacturing jobs since the clintons put china into the wto. This together will cause more jobs for our people, exports for the markets and more democracy for our allies. A discussion on how the Founding Fathers viewed freetrade. The United States wasnt a freetrade nation for most of american history. The u. S. Is in fact a trigge trr does the economy. This goes back to the very constitution. And an examination of the World Trade Organization that enforces global trade rules. Its evil smaller sister nafta and 800 more pages of specific rules and regulations. When the east were being negotiated, the u. S. Had official advisers, 500 corporate advisors. Watch the spotlight on cspan and cspan. Org. Colorado governor shares his experience in business and Public Office while talking about his book the office of the wo followe ten followed ba boxer on her memoir the art of tough. Good evening. Im the co lawyer of politics and prose along with my wife and everybody here at George Washington university, welcome. This evenings event is a joint effort by George Washington and weve been working together for sometime now putting together author events in several years ago we launched what we dubbed the newsmaker series featuring the author talks to spark the discussions about contemporary issues. I would like to thank the staff that helped make this event possible. I also want to thank all of you for supporting such talks. Like many others in the country today, we are facing a challenging marketplace. But we are actually doing quite well in large part due to the Supportive Community of avid book readers here in washington. We remain committed to bringing great book events and offers to the dc area. Its a treat this evening to have with us the colorado governor John Hickenlooper, whos lived quite an interesting life and has gone and has some Great Stories to tell about it and recount them with candor and humor in his new book, the opposite of woe my life in beer and politics. Its fair to say john didnt take the conventional path into politics and rather protracted career hes the only wesleyan student he jokes to ever have received tenure. He works for a short time in the industry and then was laid off. But his entrepreneurial spirit eventually extend and he opened colorados first brew pub in a Warehouse District in lower downtown denver. The business took off and became a leader in gentrifying of the downtown area and a popular figure in the mile high city. In 2003 without ever having run for Public Office before, he got elected the mayor of denver and went on to serve two terms and was at one point designated by Time Magazine as one of the top five. First inaugurated governor in 2011, hes now in his second term for having tackled such prominent issues such as gun control, capital punishment, samesex marriage and legalized marijuana while also managing floods and fires. Hes first professional geologist to become governor in the history of the United States and the first brewer to do so since sam adams back in 1792. His success from his appealing life story and natural charm had fueled speculation as a possible Vice President ial running mate. He is a strong hillary supporter and superdelegate. So in one way or another he will be at the Democratic Convention in philadelphia in july. Sean is going to be in the conversation here with jane harmon who after a very distinguished career representing the rest of californias 36th Congress Shall district in the house of representatives resigned from the Woodrow Wilson center so please join me in welcoming john hicken hickenlooper and jane harmon. [applause] good evening, everyone. Let me just do a praise of politics and prose. Ive lived here for many years and the neighborhood bookstore. In aspen colorad colorado therea bookstore called explore which has changed ownership a few times but it has the same flavor and i dont know what any of us would do without the opportunity to buy interesting books and an interesting environment. So, i was delighted to be asked to interrogate and torture my favorite governor. He may be a superdelegate. I actually think that he is a super governor. Thats all you get. I dont know how many of you have read this yet. I think that john could be a stunt double for huckleberry finn. But this is a comingofage novel and one for politics including all the screw ups. [laughter] but it really is not about ethics. Yes, he got there and he brings a lot to it from his real life but it wasnt written by the committee or sanitized, thats for sure. So there would be a security clearance they would disapprove than it hasnt been revoked, not yet. But it is a comingofage novel and it starts with a delirious scene of John Hickenlooper and his wife going to a kennedy honors event and first turning it down because i didnt get an invitation from the white house but then getting a second call. And then going and ending up in the east wing in the white house where youve never been. I think you said that. Never with a gigantic big gigang Christmas Trees in the whole field and because he will end up sitting in the bleachers and watching on some jumbotron and then getting swept away to be in the candid descender. And its in the box and its just the four of them. What i loved about this book i didnt tell the stories of the e tell the belt buckle story that goes with. I brought a gift with the large silver sterling belt buckle and then in the center was a donkey and on the back was etched so i got them to make another one. I tried to dodge it a few times. Its a holiday gift for the president. We will take care of that. Imagine the end of raiders of the lost ark. [laughter] but you explained why the donkey is a symbol of democrats and it relates to some of the other things, your use of humor throughout a long career. He was a populist and he turned that around. Of course i was quick to point out. Andrew jackson was not very i dont know how many tens of thousands died from his policies and that doesnt go down. Buthe symbol has endured. Think of the name hickenlooper. You didnt mention you are a relative in the amendment. Theres enough ithere is enought was. There were enough stories we just have to try to keep the narrative moving as i was instructed. He was the governor for 24 years i can pin over 2 24 years in ioa and he was the first chair of the energy agency. Back then he believed in the infrastructure and public education. How many of you know what the amendment was . If they have the company or assets owned by the American Company or individual, they havent worked out an agreement in terms of reparations of what it was worth then the u. S. Wouldnt give that country the nationalized privately owned assets they wouldnt give them any foreign aid to. We were the one country that wasnt able to help provide that relief. They legislate in blond waves. Going back to the book, part of it a major theme is the loss starting with your father when you were age eight going on in the conversation with your first marriage, your mother dies just at the beginning of your political career and i think its an important question to ask how has the loss affected you and has it made you stronger . All change involves loss and sometimes you have to mourn the loss. They had far more lost than i ever imagined she met my dad and he courted her a year and a half. The colorado democrats are having their party in philadelphia for the convention its just totally coincidental. In the bellevue hyatt, the Bellevue Stratford hotel, it is in the book, its the very place where my father proposed to my mother and she finally said yes. It is an impossible coincidence. My mom was a great believer you could control how you responded it. She had an 18yearold 8yearold she raised by herself and she said this and im not going to find how to ge out to u occupied and engaged to find whatever it is that its going to get you. So be it whatever, you have an obligation to make yourself happy but she didnt seem like by cool stuff. Its in case of bad times. What got through everything was as a parwiththe support of her d friends relationships. With your love of teddy and your son you make a big point that this book is to show him hopefully to show him what kind of father youve tried to be a. But then love now in your advanced life with the woman you just married thats at the end of the book she gets the dedication with all of my love them is the description which again is in the bible passage that you read them and another thing when you for when your father proposed to your mother there were boxes on the table i cant believe you remember all that. They went to different Jewelry Stores and he would give them 20 bucks and propose and she said yes you bring her back to the Jewelry Store and pick out the right ring so my dad went to all of these at the Stratford Hotel on the 19th floor he said pick one and he threw out the rings across the table. I assume your father must have been 6 feet tall. My mothers father was 5 feet eight. How tall was the mailman the tease her. [laughter] rumors spread fast in this town. Watch out. [laughter] when you introduced the story of the change youve ultimately fell in love with geology and you got hired and moved to denver. In the course of this there were trips to maine and then the whole brew pub business took off. But it is an improbable set of experiences to become a politician. I didnt really see, maybe i didnt read the book carefully enough, what was it. Was there an epiphany . I went as a kid to the convention in los angeles and i was literally in the air when john kennedy was nominated and i didnt come from a political family. Did you have a moment hell did he throw his hat in the ring in a crowded race for the mayor of denver . It wasnt really an epiphany. It was the old team that had gotten a compromise in several l different people that were all politically astute came up and said the mayor has term limited out. You love these nonprofit boards and committees. So i thought about it. There was a fellow named chris gates and he went so i could meet a whole bunch of mayors. But i like it. I couldnt even then you look at it and said why would anyone do that. I have never hung out with an elected official or class president or counsel them i was a kid. You said coke bottle glasses. Its in the book. Not to go after too much. And you couldnt get the girls. [laughter] i think the Tipping Point on the decision was there was a point where i was toying with the idea that there were all these different political types like a made for movie tv and the latino group in a city auditor and act heads with the mayor. He was a brilliant speaker but they all didnt seem to me to have any experience in th the smallbusiness and all my customers kept saying that every official was all in it for themselves and their own circle. It seemed to me that there ought to be more people from the business do with going to the government. Everybody told me, they said several people in the early meetings when i said not only are we not going to do negative ads we are not going to do the research. Several people got up and left the room so we didnt expect to win but there was an appetite out there for somebody that wasnt just like everybody else that made goofy ad and didnt do attack ads. There was no epiphany. When i became the general and got a double of anybody else with six candidates i got 48 and Michael Bennett was asking me questions like who are you going to pick and i said i dont dknow what does the chief of staff do come it doesnt have been in the Restaurant Business. [laughter] one of your great strategies in the campaign in the first race ever i always say my race for congress was the first elected office i ever saw after treasurer, which i lost. But anyway, a wonderful thing that got attention was the ad that wasnt in the book was the one with the shower they can read about the first two. Why dont you talk about that . There was one beginning with the suit. The shower ad is when i ran for governor. And basically a voiceover saying these attack ads make me feel theyve got to watch myself. I am blathering and without getting in and out of the shop e chevrolet continued to talk about how bad the negative attack ads are in different clothing and shirts and pajamas, you name it. The voiceover really makes the point. What did the voiceover say . One of the things i talk about all the time that i thinkk its in the book is even the fierce rivals really cant stand each other and yet you never see them do attack ads against each other because you know they wo work. Cooke was attacked pepsi, their sales would go down. Counter attack and you depressed the entire category of soft drinks. What we are giving them doing ay whether we like it or not, there is a product category of the american democracy. And wed driv we drive people a. They tune out and dont Pay Attention to the details of policy. Couldnt agree more. I just couldnt agree more. If youve been to denver lately and i was there recently, it is a very different from other midwestern cities it is an art mecca. Why dont you told the story of how that happened . There was the demographer that somehow got involved in looking at over 50 years where did they make investments and how, what was i once was in come most successful cities and what did they have in common as there were several things that were amazingly shocking but in essence it all came back to the new economy being driven by the guys and girls who were kind of on the fringe of socially they were the ones that didnt fit in with everyone else and they were creating software and structuring transactions. They were driving the new economy and wanted to the width of the others. They wanted to be in the communities where everyone was accepted in terms of ethnicity at higher percentages. They all map city after city. A much greater investor. They were using it 30 times a year and we start pushing that lifetime political appointment who ran it and said they would diminish the experience. We dont know that until we try it. So all of a sudden we did 60 and now read 130 the year and for the increase in the commercial taxes a lot of people have music venues. So we ended up having more than there are in nashville and austin. One is based in denver. Nonprofits and help with community schools. Thats how its the number one or number two state for start ups. We used to be an oil and gas economy. Now the commodities are on their back and the unemployment is 3 and still going down. We have all of these very diverse economies but a lot of it is fueled by these young people who for the last seven years in terms of the destination for colonials millennialist. When you tell your aids but you are stopping in maryland to visit with cliffords widow and they are totally perplexed, why did you have the idea to do that, and what happened . I went to the other Board Members of these nonprofits and instead you are my only constituency and luckily they did. I knew him quite well and he do about his papers of inheritance. For those of you that dont know, he was one of the two or three greatest. They decided the art world was commercial and a copout. Its mostly on their own the last 25 years of his life so they left everything to an American City that wanted to build a museum. They showed me how important it was and ive never heard of them. No one has ever heard of this guy. You go to the museum of modern art, whats the big one, the whole of art has a contemporary one or two almost all jackson pollock. But to get to that you go through the clifford room that has a giant paintings and it. Low risk. Wire not going to spend any money. Im just going to talk to this woman, and if wen come vince her that denver is that place, which no one has been able to do, ill turn it over to one of our successful plants and raise some money. He goes, whatever. So i go meet with this woman and i go up grew up in large family with a lot of great aunts and great uncles. Im very good with people that are 25 or 30 years older than i am. I love being around them. I love listening to them and the stories they tell. And his wife and i hit it off in a second. Several people came with me from denver, and she left the whole collection to us, and the soninlaw, chris hunt, raised the money to build the museum and paintings worth 110 million.