In Colorado's small towns of Otis and Limon, New York Times' Opinion national politics writer Michelle Cottle recently observed US Rep. Lauren Boebert's (R-CO) latest campaign events earlier this week, ahead of the state's Tuesday primary election.
Cottle points out in a Sunday, June 23 op-ed that the election will dictate the MAGA congresswoman's "political fate."
Following a tumultuous, public divorce, and news that Boebert was kicked out of a Denver theater performance of "Beetlejuice" for vaping last fall, the Colorado GOP leader made the decision to ditch the state's Third District, and aim to take US Rep. Ken Buck's (R-CO) seat in the Fourth District.
READ MORE: Voters are 'fed up' with 'performance artist' Boebert making Colorado a 'laughingstock'
Paying close attention to Boebert's interaction with her campaign event attendees, Cottle writes: "She appeared a far cry from the outrage artist who so aggressively heckled Mr. Biden during his first State of the Union address that she embarrassed her own party’s leadership. But this election has forced Ms. Boebert out of her comfort zone, as she works to woo a set of voters on the opposite side of the state from the area she has represented the last few years."
As Boebert answered voter questions at Oscar’s Bar & Grille in Limon, Cottle notes that the far-right congresswoman "repeatedly tripped over her tongue, at one point joking that it would be great if anyone had some coffee, 'praise the Lord.'"
The Times writer emphasizes, "That phrase is like a verbal tic for her, used frequently, less as an exclamation than as a filler or a bridge, especially at awkward moments. And one of the surprises during my time with Ms. Boebert was how many awkward or uncertain moments she seemed to have — at voter events, in debates or simply standing unnoticed in a crowd."
Cottle notes:
After the Q. and A., as Ms. Boebert posed for pics, I asked a tableful of people for their impressions. 'I’m still trying to get my mind around the idea of her winning,' a middle-aged man named Chris told me.
Chris and his friends didn’t have a problem with her politics. And they pooh-poohed her personal drama, expressing a who-among-us-could-live-under-a-microscope view. But they were plenty miffed that she had moved across Colorado to run in their district when the going got tough in hers. If she abandoned those constituents, how do we know she won’t dump us at the first opportunity? reasoned Chris, who pronounced her that slipperiest of all creatures, 'a politician.'
READ MORE: Boebert constituents grateful she’s 'running scared' in 2024: 'They’re just embarrassed'
The Times columnist emphasizes if Boebert "loses on Tuesday, she will be the flashiest Trump minion to fall. If she wins, it will in part be thanks to her ability to modulate for different audiences, much like a regular ol’ politician. Either way, her electoral fate will tell us something about the limits of over-the-top Trumpism by candidates not named Donald Trump, and how much wiggle room such candidates have within its strictures."
Cottle's full op-ed is available at this link (subscription required).