Forty years ago, Jim Schrant taught the American government courses at Denver’s North High School. Each spring he would invite me to join his class and explain my role as state representative for northwest Denver and answer student questions.

One inquiry I received from a young woman has stuck with me over the past four decades: “With all the nastiness in politics and the attacks made against your character that occur, why should anyone get involved in politics or run for office?” Implicit in the question was her perception that most of what comprised these political attacks was vicious and baseless.

I still recall my reply to her query. “If you don’t like criticism, if you’re easily embarrassed, if you can’t take a punch and then throw a punch in return, don’t run for office. Politics probably isn’t the right choice for you. Politics is a struggle over power — will your guys or my guys win voters’ permission to run government and control public policy?

“Since the stakes are so high, this competition becomes a contact sport. If that isn’t to your taste, there are other opportunities to serve your neighborhood or strengthen your community — volunteer with a nonprofit, get active in your church, join a social service organization. Contribute your talents there. But none of that exempts you from the duty to vote. The health of a democracy requires that each of us cast a ballot, however distasteful we feel our choices are.”

Looking back, I’m not sure I would answer this question much differently today.

Recently I watched an interview with the actor Liam Neeson. When asked about his surprising, late-career success as an action hero, he observed, “As grateful as I am, I feel I’m approaching my shelf life in Hollywood.” After spending several hours with a very bright young man who explained to me why and how $8 billion will be spent on social media political ads before election day, I felt I may need to refresh my own “sell by” date. One thing which has not changed, however, is the unceasing nastiness of this year’s campaigns.

Nowhere is this more evident than in Colorado’s U. S. Senate race. Most of the vitriol is being directed at John Hickenlooper, who is struggling to maintain his longstanding commitment to positive political messaging while enduring a near-constant pummeling.

The charge that our former governor is “…too corrupt for Washington” offers a clever phrase that plays to all our worst instincts. But, is it really believable? Unlike our president, Mayor Hick placed his brewpub empire in a trust and then sold that off in order to establish an ethical boundary between his personal interests and public responsibilities. Cory Gardner, by contrast, has remained mute regarding the diversion of American military flights for refueling stops at the Trump airport and golf resort in Scotland, or the millions of tax dollars raked in during the president’s frequent golf excursions at stateside Trump properties.

Facing a near economic collapse, which was well underway when he assumed office in 2011, Gov. Hickenlooper got recovery mostly right despite fires and floods. His execution wasn’t perfect, but it’s commendable that his efforts elevated Colorado’s economy to best in the nation. This is the record he is running on, and it appears to be cementing his support. Republican operatives trolled through eight years of travel expenses and all the donors to public-private partnerships launched while he served as governor, searching for molehills they could market as mountains. Nothing turned up by the weaponized Independent Ethics Commission approached criminality. More than 90 Republican charges were dismissed and just two cases of misreported expenses remained. As for the donations to the governor’s initiatives, those contributions went to childhood literacy programs, veterans’ assistance, fire recovery relief and a bike tour of the eastern plains — nothing nefarious there. Who is surprised that not every donor has proven a saint?

The tax cheat charges leveled at Hick trace back to a decision to place a conservation easement on property he owned and then receive the tax credit offered under Colorado law for that easement. When this system was overturned by the courts, the governor, along with hundreds of Colorado farmers and ranchers, were ambushed with a retroactive tax obligation.

Federal law permits dark money PACs to fund these dubious and distorted claims without accountability. Findings of “misleading content” by independent fact checkers can’t force them off the air. Gardner’s campaign claims he is helpless to discipline their free speech rights, but he knows better. So, I suspect, will voters.

Simply because smears are blasted at a DEFCON 10 level doesn’t make them ring true. If the Washington swamp is really a hot tub warmed by lobbyists, Hick has reason to — and seems better prepared for — draining it.