A reliably liberal friend sent an instant message last week and wondered whether I knew U.S. Rep. Joe Neguse and flatly declared “falling in love” with the Democratic impeachment manager from Colorado.
I suspect that my friend is not alone, in this state or across the country.
Neguse already is one of the breakout stars of former President Donald Trump’s second impeachment trial. He is smart, confident and eloquent. He speaks from a lectern with an Obama-esque cadence.
His relentless, measured style helped pace the prosecution. While conviction was out of reach in a Senate where Republicans control half the seats, Neguse will likely be remembered for the lasting impression he left on anyone who saw him speak.
Of course, that is not surprising for anyone who followed him over the past decade.
I first met Neguse in 2006. He had the good sense to attend the University of Colorado not once, but twice. Too young to overlap my time as an undergrad, he entered law school just before I graduated. It takes someone special to waltz into a law school as 1L (first year student) and make jaded 3L’s take note.
The talents he displayed before the country were evident in mock trials more than a decade before. More than just a delivery system for rote speeches, he always knew how to listen and analyze on the fly, adapting his arguments to those raised by others.
