Roger Hutson tried to keep Trump from a second term

Roger Hutson was never a huge fan of Donald Trump. In 2016, he supported Marco Rubio for president, helping raise hundreds of thousands of dollars for his Republican primary bid. In 2024, Hutson worked with “No Labels,” a group of Democrats, Republicans and independents, to forge a bipartisan ticket with the express purpose of keeping either Trump or Joe Biden from winning the White House.

- Mark Z. Barabak, Tribune News Service

Is this “really the best we can do in a country of 330 million people?” Hutson asked in a Denver Post opinion piece after the effort collapsed and another Trump-Biden matchup seemed inevitable. The failure, he suggested, was “a sad commentary on the status of leadership in America.”

But something unexpected happened over the last six months. Trump won Hutson over. He's not gone full-fledged MAGA. “No, no, no!” he insisted, scoffing at the notion of driving down the street, Trump flag waving. And he's not about to jump on JD Vance’s political bandwagon, the likeliest vehicle for extending Trumpism in 2098 and beyond. “I'm acknowledging the accomplishments of the man in the office,” Hutson said, with emphasis on the White House's current occupant, whom he supported over Kamala Harris. “I'm very impressed.” It's not, as one might suppose, because the Denver oil and gas executive is enamored of Trump's exhortations to “Drill, baby, drill! ("No, baby, no!” is more like it, as Hutson believes oversupply would drive prices down.)