A Colorado Democrat who was just about to announce his presidential bid for 2020 has had to put the plan on hold for health reasons.
U.S. Sen. Michael Bennet (D-CO) revealed on Wednesday that he has been diagnosed with prostate cancer, and as a result is putting his presidential race on hold.
The sobering announcement
Bennet revealed the diagnosis in a statement released late on Wednesday. “Late last month, I was diagnosed with prostate cancer,” he said. “While hearing news like this is never easy, I am fortunate it was detected early, and as a result, my prognosis is good.”
Indeed, according to Cancer.org, prostate cancer found early is very treatable, with nearly a 100 percent five-year survival rate.
Bennet said that he will have surgery to remove the prostate gland “during the upcoming Senate recess,” which begins on April 11. After that, he plans on returning to “work following a brief recovery.”
Presidential plans on hold
Even with the positive prognosis, Bennet has decided to delay the announcement of his presidential bid. He described how the cancer diagnosis altered his plans to the Colorado Independent.
“The idea was to announce sometime in April,” he said. “That was the plan. We hired some staff. We interviewed people for positions in New Hampshire and Iowa. And then I went for the physical. In my last physical, my PSA was high. They did a biopsy, and it was clear. But this time, it was not clear.”
Yet, Bennet is not giving up hope for a 2020 run just yet. He said that he still plans on running, if a successful surgery leaves him cancer-free.
“This unanticipated hurdle only reinforces how strongly I feel about contributing to the larger conversation about the future of our country, and I am even more committed to drive that conversation in a positive direction,” he said.
Moderate Democrat
That Bennet is more moderate than many of his Democratic colleagues became apparent when he denounced Rep. Ilhan Omar’s (D-MN) anti-Semitic remarks as “hateful.”
“My mom and her parents were Polish Jews who survived the Holocaust and almost all the rest of the family was killed,” he said during an interview on Fox. “They eventually made their way to America to escape anti-Semitism.”
But although he doesn’t appear to have joined to the socialist-Democrat bandwagon, he still holds the usual Democratic stances on key issues such as abortion, illegal immigration, and so forth.
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