Barack Obama’s Michael Bennet shout-out

With ex-speaker of the Colorado House Andrew Romanoff’s entry into the U.S. Senate race merely a formality at this point, Michael Bennet, appointed by Governor Bill Ritter to fill the slot opened up by the departure (to the Department of the Interior) of Ken Salazar, needs to start playing offense. In that regard, he’s gotten an assist from a certain President Barack Obama, who sent an attaboy e-mail about Colorado’s really junior senator following his healthcare address to a joint session of Congress. It reads:

Since arriving in Congress, Senator Bennet has shown his commitment to real, sensible reform, working with me toward the same goals I outlined this evening — and I want to thank him for his leadership on this issue. He’s traveled all across the state of Colorado, holding town hall meetings in small towns and big cities, and he hasn’t stopped standing up for real health reform that will get our economy moving again and help to bring the deficit under control.

Given Obama’s politically weakened position, his blessing doesn’t mean as much as it might have six months ago. Nonetheless, the note suggests that the Democratic establishment will rally around Bennet, leaving Romanoff to make new friends of his own.