Hickenlooper Blurts Out Presidential Plans In NH, Then Backtracks

DENVER, CO – Colorado Governor John Hickenlooper was caught on video Wednesday joking at a country store in New Hampshire that he was running for president, and had to "walk it back" via his Giddyup PAC.

At Robie’s Country Store in Hooksett, NH, Hick was captured on video by a radio reporter, Adam Sexton, telling a clerk: “I’m John Hickenlooper and I’m running for President. You’re the first person in New Hampshire I’ve said that to.” Sexton posted the interaction on Twitter.

Hickenlooper then clarified by saying, “To be honest, to be honest, I haven’t made a final decision.”

The Governor's staffers at the Giddy Up! PAC quickly issued a statement:

“The governor makes clear in the video that he is joking and in his next sentence that he has not made a decision yet. If he had, his wife would have been the first to know. He is in New Hampshire to support 2018 candidates up and down the ballot.”

Hickenlooper then told a local New Hampshire TV reporter that he would probably wait until "February or March" to make a decision, after his term as Colorado's Governor is over.

"Most of the Democratic candidates are from the east coast or the west coast. There are not too many from the middle of the country, and there are not so many who have been a mayor, have been a governor and have started a business," he said.

Hickenlooper described his wife, Robin Pringle, as a "businesswoman who has her own career," he said. "but she loves this country, loves politics. She's ready to go, I think...I think my wife might be more excited about this than I am."

Image: Governor of Colorado Hon. John Hickenlooper speaks onstage during the 2018 Concordia Annual Summit - Day 1 at Grand Hyatt New York on September 24, 2018 in New York City. (Photo by Riccardo Savi/Getty Images for Concordia Summit)