In the unusually high-profile treasurer’s race this year, the GOP challenger, real estate investor Walker Stapleton, has attempted to paint Democratic incumbent Cary Kennedy as a career politician cloistered from the world of business. In a new ad he argues that he “hasn’t spent a day of [his] career inside of government and my opponent hasn’t spent a day of her career outside of government.”
The Kennedy campaign says that statement just isn’t true on a lot of levels.
In a release sent out this morning, the Kennedy campaign fact checked the new Stapleton commercial line by line. In discussion with the Colorado Independent, the last fact check point has the campaigns going back and forth.
In its release, the Kennedy campaign says the “entire career in government” line is false.
Kennedy worked for many years in the private sector. In fact, The Rocky Mountain News article that Stapleton cites in the beginning of the ad references Kennedy’s time working as a school finance analyst for the Colorado Children’s Campaign – which is not a public sector job.
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Kennedy worked at the Colorado Children’s Campaign from 2002-2004. Colorado Children’s Campaign is a private, not-for-profit organization that advocated for Colorado’s youth.
Kennedy also worked from 2000-2002 at Educare Colorado a private not-for-profit organization that provided quality ratings for early education programs.
Kennedy also bussed tables at the Egg Shell in Denver in the 1980s and worked as a runner at several private law firms to help pay for her education.
Stapleton Campaign Manager Michael Fortney wrote in an email that none of this refutes the charge.
“Kennedy worked with Government in her role as a school finance analyst with the CCC — so yes she has no private sector experience and has spent her entire career in Government.”
“That’s interesting,” said Kennedy Campaign Manager Serena Woods. “I would like to know if Walker Stapleton has ever bussed tables.”
Stapleton is a member of the vastly wealthy and political Stapleton-Bush clan. He has worked in various executive capacities for the family businesses.
“CCC is one of the largest advocacy organizations for children in the state,” said Woods. “It’s not a government job… I don’t think [Kennedy] should be penalized for dedicating years of her life to work in the non-profit sector for others. It’s not a public-sector job, no matter what the [Stapleton campaign] says.”
Woods says that every day Kennedy works to earn money for Coloradans and that every quarter as treasurer she has succeeded.
“She has been entrusted not just to invest some people’s money… she has been entrusted to invest everyone in Colorado’s money.”
Kennedy has been widely praised for steering Colorado’s taxpayer money away from risky investments and earning solid returns through the last two years of financial collapse and recession.
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