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Mark Udall, former Democratic US Senator and House member from Colorado, comes from the famed Udall family of the Mountain West - including his father, Congressman Mo Udall, and uncle, former Interior Secretary Stewart Udall under both JFK & LBJ. But Mark Udall largely stayed away from politics until his mid 40s - having an entire career within the outdoor leadership organization Outward Bound. However, once he flipped the switch to politics, his ascent was rapid: elected to the Colorado State House in 1996, the US House in 1998, and the US Senate in 2008. In this conversation, Senator Udall talks his famous political family, his own early relationship to politics, and memories of 20+ years in elected office that span both highs and lows - with great stories and insights from someone with one of the most unique arcs in American politics.

IN THIS EPISODE

Growing up between Tucson, AZ and Washington DC...

Lessons about public service learned from his mother...

Growing up in a political family of with a Congressman for a father and Cabinet Secretary for an uncle...

The political legacy of his father, Mo Udall....

The famous friendship between John McCain and Mo Udall...

Old Mountain West connections among the Udalls, Goldwaters, and Romneys...

The Udall brothers' opinions of both Presidents Johnson and Kennedy...

Mark works New Hampshire for his father's 1976 presidential campaign...

The 20-year career he had before entering politics...

Running for office for the first time in his late 40s...

Mark rolls out his Bill Clinton impression...

What surprised him most - both positives and negatives - about serving in Congress...

The behind-the-scenes machinations of why he didn't run for Senate in 2004 and did run in 2008...

Why he was caught flatfooted in his 2014 Senate re-election...

Memories of some of the most intense moments on the floor of the House and Senate...

The now-infamous role the issue of abortion played in his 2014 race against Cory Gardner...

Why he was one of the few members of Congress to list "no religious affiliation" in his bio...

The current projects he's most interested in...

The Mark Udall recommendations for traveling through Colorado...

AND 50 mile hikes, Michael Bennet, Sherry Boehlert, Hale Boggs, Jimmy Carter, Grover Cleveland, Rocky Colavito, Democratic bankers, Denver Nuggets, Don't Ask Don't Tell, William O. Douglas, Fort Wayne Pistons, James Garfield, Gabrielle Giffords, Gary Hart, Jay Inslee, Bobby Kennedy, David King, Lady Bird Johnson, Dick Lamm, John Larson, Monica Lewinsky, Bob McNamara, John McCormack, mercurial marriages, George Miller, Minneapolis Lakers, Minnie Minoso, the NBL, the NRA, Ben Nighthorse Campbell, Barack Obama, Tom Osborne, Outward Bound, Bill Owens, Nancy Pelosi, plural marriage, Harry Reid, Ranger Rogers, Roy Romer, George Romney, John Salazar, Ken Salazar, Pat Schroeder, Herb Score, Sonia Sotomayor, tough cookies, Mark Uterus, Tim Wirth, Willard Wirtz & more!