Unlike Other Colorado Officials, Hickenlooper Traveled To Connecticut On A Private Jet Owned By The CEO Of Fortune 500 Company MDC Holdings.
Hickenlooper Violated Ethics Laws By Traveling To Connecticut On A Private Jet Owned By His Friend And Donor, The CEO Of MDC Holdings Larry Mizel. “March 2018: Commissioning of the USS Colorado, violation; The commissioning ceremony for the attack submarine took place in March 2018. The commission voted 4-1 that a private jet trip and VIP meals were a violation… Hickenlooper, on the other hand, traveled to the event on a plane owned by MDC Holdings, owned by Larry Mizel, a campaign donor and longtime friend.” (Marianne Goodland, “Former Gov. John Hickenlooper violated Amendment 41, says Independent Ethics Commission,” Colorado Politics, 6/5/20)
Other Colorado Officials Paid Their Own Way To The Connecticut Event. “The commission voted 4-1 that a private jet trip and VIP meals were a violation. Commissioner Bill Leone said he was persuaded by the testimony of Sen. Bob Gardner, a Colorado Springs Republican who was also at that event. Gardner paid his own way to the Connecticut launch, including hotels, meals and travel. Hickenlooper, on the other hand, traveled to the event on a plane owned by MDC Holdings, owned by Larry Mizel, a campaign donor and longtime friend. Hickenlooper also attended several VIP dinner events that Gardner was not invited to, and Leone said that also was a violation. Gardner was able to ‘discharge and serve the state’s business without accepting a trip on a private plane and a VIP treatment’ accorded to the former governor, Leone said.” (Marianne Goodland, “Former Gov. John Hickenlooper violated Amendment 41, says Independent Ethics Commission,” Colorado Politics, 6/5/20)
Hickenlooper Has Been Accused Of “Crisscrossing The Globe On Private Jets” During His Time As Governor.
In November 2018, The Public Trust Institute Alleged Hickenlooper “Made A Habit Of Crisscrossing The Globe On Private Jets.” “The 189-page complaint by newly formed Public Trust Institute — a nonprofit run by former House Speaker Frank McNulty, a Republican — lays out nearly 100 questionable flights Hickenlooper has taken since September 2011, when he first took office, primarily focusing on those taken in the last year. The far-reaching ethics complaint filed against the governor alleges that he made a habit of crisscrossing the globe on private jets owned by wealthy benefactors, accepted luxury hotel stays and all-expense-paid events, and then did not disclose them as the law requires.” (David Migoya, “Attorney General Asked To Review Gov. Hickenlooper’s Alleged Trip On Tesla Jet Prior To Seeking New Emission Rules,” The Denver Post, 11/18/18)
