A week BEFORE Colorado’s primary elections, which take place on June 25th, Richard Holtorf was busy feeding cattle and preparing his ground for planting wheat. But the 59-year-old had politics on his mind as he stepped down from a massive tractor at his ranch on the state’s eastern plains. After a brief oration on the deficiencies of battery-powered farming equipment, Mr Holtorf explained why he was running in the Republican primary and hoping subsequently to win a seat in the US House of Representatives.