Gov. Jared Polis touts record on campaign tour, vows to make Colorado ‘more affordable’ – coloradopolitics.com
Gov. Jared Polis hit the campaign trail Wednesday with stops in seven Front Range cities on the second day of a four-day, statewide tour that formally kicked off the Democrat’s reelection bid.
Accompanied by his running mate, Lt. Gov. Dianne Primavera, Polis said he accomplished much of what he set out to do in his first term while managing adversities that included the coronavirus pandemic, a stunned economy and natural disasters.
“We in Colorado are resilient,” he told supporters at Jives Coffee Lounge in Colorado Springs. “While I didn’t sign up for managing the three largest fires in the history of our state or managing a once-in-a-century pandemic, we did. But just as importantly, we also didn’t let all of that hold us back from making progress on so many issues that are important to Coloradans.”
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Polis noted that since he took office, Colorado became the first state to cap the price of insulin and established a reinsurance program that cut health insurance costs by an average of 24% for residents who aren’t covered through an employer.
He also pointed to expanded, full-day kindergarten and a voter-approved program that goes into effect next year to provide free preschool statewide, adding that the initiatives will help parents save hundreds of dollars a month. In addition, he boasted that Colorado is on track to generate 80% of its power by renewable methods within eight years, bringing Colorado a step closer to another campaign promise to move the state toward 100% renewable power by 2040.
A wealthy tech entrepreneur and former five-term congressman from Boulder, Polis defeated Republican State Treasurer Walker Stapleton by a wide margin in 2018 to win his first term.
A dozen Republican candidates have filed paperwork to run against Polis, though only half that number have raised and spent any money. They include University of Colorado Regent Heidi Ganahl, former Parker Mayor and Small Business Administration state director Greg Lopez, and first-time candidate Danielle Neuschwanger, an Elbert County rancher and real estate agent.
Colorado GOP chair Kristi Burton Brown blasted Polis in a statement sent via a spokesman to Colorado Politics.
“Jared Polis wants to run on rhetoric, but he can’t hide from his actual record,” she said. “Violent crime is at a 25-year high, Colorado is No. 1 in auto theft, inflation is at a 40-year high, and Polis isn’t fighting for working families. His time is up.”
Recalling that he launched his first run for governor in June 2017 at a nearby solar-powered coffee house, Polis told supporters at a Pueblo brewery on Tuesday night that he’s setting new goals for a second term.
“Our work is far from over. We know that Coloradans are feeling a lot of pressure from inflation and high costs, mental health challenges that have only gotten worse, crime. It feels like the price of everything’s gone up. But my commitment to you is this: I’m working every day to save Coloradans money, to help people hold on to more of their hard-earned money and move us towards a brighter future for southern Colorado and for the whole state,” he said.
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“We’re going to tackle these challenges the same way we’ve tackled everything the last three years — taking an innovative approach, a pragmatic approach, doing what works for Colorado. We will make Colorado more affordable and make sure that people can hold on to their hard-earned money. That means affordable housing in every corner of the state. It means creating good jobs in every community from Sterling to Durango to Grand Junction, and, of course, supporting our small businesses. We’ll protect ourselves from the threats of climate change while growing our clean-energy economy and good green jobs and will safeguard Colorado’s amazing way of life, making sure that this state stays the best place to live and to work and to raise a family.”
At a stop at Raices Brewing Company in Denver on Wednesday afternoon, Polis said he’ll do what’s within his power to help Coloradans deal with the high cost of living, including inflation rates not seen for decades — an issue also seized upon by his GOP challengers and state Republicans.
“I do hope that President Biden and Congress are able to take action to reduce the overall inflation rate,” Polis said.
“What we need to do as a state is we need to reduce costs where we can,” he continued. “Rather than focus on what we can’t do, let’s focus on what we can do. And that includes things like making it free to start a business, cutting vehicle registration fees by $11.50. It includes reducing the cost of state park pass, avoiding a 2-cent fee increase on gas, which otherwise would happen — we’re gonna delay that. So, those are the kinds of things that we need to do, that we can do within the context of the state.”
Added Polis: “People understand that the state doesn’t set a national monetary policy, the (Federal Reserve) does. What Congress does affects that, but what we can do is, we can show real relief to people so you know that Colorado is stepping up.”
Election 2020-Colorado Governor
In a text message to Colorado Politics, Ganahl dismissed the governor’s tour as a stunt and called his remarks empty rhetoric.
“Jared Polis says he’s heading out across our state to campaign. In reality, he’s running away from his own far-left, failed policies that are taking Colorado in the wrong direction,” she said. “Election-year Polis can set goals for lowering crime, but we’ve already seen his pro-offender plan that law enforcement says is making things worse. He can pretend to want to save us money, but you are what your record says you are. He’s really just suspending his own taxes for a few months. We need transparency and honesty from our leaders.”
Neuschwanger said in an email that she isn’t impressed.
“I applaud Governor Polis on his campaign relaunch and his clearly re-scripted narrative,” she said. “However I, like many Coloradans, will not fall for the polished storytelling of partial truths and majority lies. Under his administration we have seen increases in crime, taxes, inflation, constant attacks on agriculture and the Colorado way of life. No matter how he ties that package with a pretty ribbon, the end result is still Pandora’s box. I look forward to challenging him in the general election.”
Polis planned to conclude Wednesday’s leg of his campaign launch tour in Boulder and then head west on Thursday, with stops along Interstate 70, including in Silverthorne, Grand Junction, and Glenwood Springs. On Friday, the tour concludes with events scheduled in Sterling, Greeley, Fort Collins and Adams County.
