Denver mayor: "We will arrest" protesters who try to camp in city parks

The Post has highlights of Denver mayor John Hickenlooper's appearance on The Mike Rosen Show today:

"I was not the strong supporter of bringing the convention here," said Hickenlooper. "Although I did respect the benefits, the potential benefits it had, I certainly saw the risks. Whether it’s protesters, whether it’s inflaming certain issues. But there’s also benefit, assuming that we pull it off correctly.”

Hick's wiki:

Hickenlooper, like his Democratic predecessor Wellington Webb (1991-2003) led the successful campaign for Denver to host the landmark 2008 Democratic National Convention, which would coincidentally be the centennial of the city's first hosting of the landmark 1908 convention.

Yes, yes it would be. Back to the Post piece:

With thousands of members of the media due to be in town, the benefit, he said, is "an opportunity to show off all the good things you do in your state."

To Rosen's question about protest groups, led by Re-Create '68's Glenn Spagnuolo, vowing to create a "Free City" in Civic Center park during the four-day convention in August, Hickenlooper said, "Well, again, he says they're going to stay overnight and camp in the park and sleep in the park. We can’t let them do that, right? So we will arrest them."

Rosen pressed Hickenlooper on the prospect of protests in Denver rivaling those of the intense confrontations between protesters and police during the Democratic National Convention in Chicago in 1968.

Hickenlooper said Denver and Chicago are much different cities and that "people are generally a lot happier" in Denver.

“In Chicago, they actually put the dogs on some of the protesters, right? Our dogs are much happier. We don't do that kind of...We planted 67,000 trees last year. We have very many happy dogs.”

A mayor to match the times. And what's with the PoliticsWest "editor" (Chuck Plunkett, probably) making the stupid dogs the headline?

Update: Listened to the show. Hick: "Our police are gonna be trained about ten hours an officer" in how to deal with protesters. Rosen: "And's it great that they're being trained because the other guys, the bad guys, are being trained too." Hick laughs and laughs but gradually tapers off as Rosen reads a story about the protester legal training held at DU last week.

Update II: Rosen pronounces Spags' name, "Span-you-oh-lo." Can that be right? I've always pronounced it with a hard "g."

Update III: Hick professes not to get it:

Hick: I'm at a loss of what [Spags'] real agenda is . . .

Rosen: Oh, you're not at a loss Mr. Mayor, to make trouble, that's his agenda. . .

Hick: I can't figure it out, Mike . . .

Rosen: He's a professional troublemaker, he just likes to make trouble for the sake of making trouble . . .