May 20, 2006 - Colorado Democratic Party Assembly
Remarks of Gov. Bill Ritter
Colorado Democratic Party State Assembly
May 20, 2006
Today is a starting point. We get to decide our future with this next election. We get to look ahead - not back. And the fundamental battle in this country is not between Republican and Democrat, the left and the right. Rather, it is between the cynics and those of us who hope.
The reason I am a Democrat is because we are the party of hope - and I mean hope for all. We are the party of opportunity - and I mean opportunity for all. We are the party of promise - and it's a promise that speaks to every single Coloradan with, to borrow a phrase, no one left behind.
This is a state with such great promise. For the past year I've been traveling this state, talking to people about what I call The Colorado Promise.
It's why I'm running for governor, because I believe in the Colorado Promise. I was born in Colorado. I¿m the sixth of 12 kids. We grew up on a small farm in Arapahoe County. I know about hard work. I started doing chores at the age of 5. I went to work doing construction at the age of 14. I worked my way through college and law school as a union pipe layer. And as my good friend John Salazar said a few months ago, "We weren't born with silver spoons in our mouths. We were born with shovels in our hands."
Ten of my brothers and sisters are still living and we all live here in Colorado. My mother, Ethel Ritter, has 32 grandchildren and nine great-grandchildren, and all but three of us live here in Colorado.
Much of my family is here in this convention hall today, including my mother. When it comes to heroes, my mother is at the top of my list. Mom, please stand up. I am proud to recognize my wife of 22 years, Jeannie, and our kids, August, Abe, Sam and Tally. Every day, they are my support and my strength. Thank you.
My values are rooted in Colorado. I'm proud of where I came from and where I've been -- college, law school, Africa, District Attorney, a remarkable extended family. And today I stand before you as a candidate for governor. I know about the Colorado Promise because I have lived it. What is the Colorado Promise?
What does it look like in the 21st Century?
It's simple really. It's the same in Conejos County and Costilla County, Washington County and Weld County. It's the promise of a job that pays well, the promise of a quality education, the promise of affordable health care and affordable health insurance.
It's about economic development on the Eastern Plains, the Western Slope, the Front Range, the San Luis Valley and the Rural Resort Communities. It's a promise that speaks to every region, and no region gets left behind.
The Colorado Promise is about developing a New Energy Economy for the 21st Century. It's about ending our dependence on foreign oil. It¿s about making Colorado a national leader in renewable energy.
It's about growing solar power in the San Luis Valley, wind power on the Eastern Plains, and ethanol right here in Weld County. The New Energy Economy will create good jobs, and it will help rural Colorado.
Fulfilling the Colorado Promise means breathing new life into rural Colorado, bringing high-speed broadband to all 64 counties, bringing long-distance learning and telemedicine to places like Crowley County where they don't even have a single doctor.
The Colorado Promise will protect our natural resources. We live in a state with unmatched beauty, and unmatched natural resources. We must hold those resources in a sacred trust. We must be strong and stubborn stewards.
We must have statewide leadership to ensure both water quality and sustainability. We must not let Washington sell off our public lands or turn our roadless areas into highways. We cannot allow oil-and-gas drilling to go unchecked anywhere in this state.
- If WASHINGTON won't provide leadership around the energy crisis¿
- If Washington thinks the best way to lower gas prices is to ease environmental regulations...
- If Washington wants to remain part of the problem...
Then we'll fix things ourselves. We'll fix them with common-sense Colorado solutions.
EDUCATION
The Colorado Promise must address our commitment to public education. We should boast the nation's best educated children, and the nation¿s best educated work force. I believe our future holds that prospect, but it will require a process bent on reform, and reform will not be easy. But it's time to stop tearing our schools down; we need to be lifting our schools up. We must demand a rigorous and a relevant education for our kids.
We must demand that our high school graduation rate goes up, and that the number of kids leaving high school and going on to college improves. We must get even more 3- and 4-year-olds into early childhood education. Kids who are ready to succeed in kindergarten will be ready to succeed in high school, in college and beyond. And college must be an affordable option for every young man and every young woman in Colorado. We must make teachers our allies in the efforts of reform. We must stop treating them like enemies of the state. We must demand better pay and better conditions for our teachers. It takes a high school teacher 200 years to earn what an NFL quarterback makes in a single season. That's just not right, and a Colorado solution will demonstrate that we value our teachers.
For the last 15 years, my running mate Barbara O'Brien worked as the president of the Colorado Children's Campaign. No one fought harder on behalf of Colorado's kids than Barbara. She left her job in February so she could run for lieutenant governor. And now there are no two people in this state more committed to the future of Colorado - to Colorado's children - than Barbara O'Brien and me.
HEALTH CARE
The Colorado Promise must also answer the challenges that surround the lack of health insurance for far too many Coloradans. We are a healthy state by many measures. Yet, in Colorado, 770,000 people have no health insurance. You could fill Mile High Stadium 10 times with that many people. These are real people, people with cancer who aren't seeking treatment until their condition is terminal because they don't have insurance.
Washington has failed to provide any leadership on this issue. So we're going to fix it ourselves, with a Colorado solution. Barbara and I are committed to a plan that gives every Colorado citizen access to some form of basic health insurance. We are going to put a stake in the ground and say, "Not on our watch." We will get to the Colorado Plan, come hell or high water.
We will also get to a place where there are fewer unintended pregnancies. We will restore the Planned Parenthood money that Governor Owens cut. Every woman in Colorado will have access to emergency contraception. And we will not turn women or their doctors into criminals.
ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION
Illegal immigration - another place where Washington has failed us. To everyone in Colorado I say this: Do not fall victim to reckless, symbolic, partisan rhetoric from the likes of Tom Tancredo or Marc Holtzman or Congressman Bob Beauprez. Illegal immigration is a complicated problem, a very serious problem that requires thoughtful, responsible solutions.
We need to enforce our borders. We need to punish smugglers. We need to go after employers who ignore the law. But it's irresponsible to think we can just ship 12 million people back to Mexico.
Absolutely - we need to hold undocumented immigrants accountable. Nobody gets any special treatment. But we need sensible solutions, not angry words. We need solutions that are achievable, not ideological. We need to do what's practical, not political. We need to do what's right ... not just what's convenient.
FISCAL RESPONSIBILITY
For this state to truly live up to the Colorado Promise, we need a governor who is willing to make common-sense investments in our children in our schools, in our senior citizens, in our health care system and in our transportation system.
Common sense investments. Let us be clear - "investment" does not mean higher taxes. Marc Holtzman thinks "investment" is just liberal code for "tax and spend," for bigger government. He's dead wrong. Just look at Washington. We don't need big government. We need better government. We need smarter government.
Referendum C was smarter government. I supported Referendum C and I walked with Ken Gordon. Those two Republicans running for governor opposed it. They lost that battle, and now they want to pick another fight.
I say, "Bring it on." Because I have lived the Colorado Promise. I see the opportunities and I have the 21st Century vision to bring them to life. Opportunities for economic development, for renewable energy, for technology, for leading the nation in education. I will work every day and every night to restore the public trust in government, to show that government can play a legitimate role in people's lives without wasting the taxpayers' money. We will win back those cynics.
And we'll start by asking the cynics and the hopeful alike, "What kind of Colorado do you want for the 21st Century? What kind of Colorado do you want for your children and your grandchildren?" I know what kind of Colorado I want. I want a Colorado we can all be proud of. I want a Colorado that lives up to the Promise.
CONCLUSION
My thanks to each and every one of you. You are true patriots, and I am honored to seek your nomination. I will not let you down. But I need your help, I need your shoe leather and I need your energy. We will win this, but only by walking together and working together.
We are going to win this election! We're going to win back the Governor's seat. We're going to win every statewide race. We're going to keep the House and the Senate with leaders like Andrew and Joan Fitz-Gerald. We're going to turn our Congressional delegation blue.
As District Attorney, it was my job to fight for the people. It was a solemn oath and I prosecuted every case in the same way. When I was in court, I would stand up and say, "I'm Bill Ritter, and I'm here For the People of Colorado." That was my responsibility then. It is my mission now.
Two important lessons you learn growing up in a big family are taking responsibility for yourself, and understanding that every person counts, that everyone deserves a chance, that we all do better when we help each other.
That's what family, that's what community, that's what the greater good are all about. Today, we belong to the Colorado Family. Whether you were born here or moved here, Colorado is more than just a place.
Colorado is about hope and it is about opportunity, about taking risks and overcoming challenges. It's about bold ideas and brave action. It's about looking up, not down. It's about looking ahead, not back. And so our challenge today as Democrats is to renew the principles of our Party, and fulfill the promise of Colorado.
And so again I solemnly declare today that I am Bill Ritter ... For the People of Colorado.