Election was not a rejection of Colorado’s progress

As we gather for the holidays, many people are asking what this election — and a Trump presidency — means for Colorado. We are all justifiably proud of our state and the progress we’ve made. We’re proud to be a beacon for innovation and an example of solving tough problems — together.

But just as the doors of economic opportunity are opening for more people in our state, this election feels like a victory for the cynical view that someone’s gain has to be someone else’s loss; that when we expand opportunities for people who are disadvantaged or who have been discriminated against, that we do so by taking away from somebody else.

Nothing is further from the truth and we need to speak out against this demeaning and hurtful rhetoric. It has no place in Colorado.

Early in my career I helped expand health insurance for thousands of children in Colorado whose parents couldn’t take them to see a doctor. Presidentelect Trump’s pledge to dismantle a health care system that hundreds of thousands of Coloradans depend on could be catastrophic. Almost 95 percent of people in Colorado now have health insurance, including over 500,000 who did not have it just a few years ago. Medicare is also a target, which covers seniors who will soon make up 20 percent of Colorado’s population. We’ve made real progress covering everyone and we risk losing this success without a partner in Washington.

Colorado is a leader in developing clean, renewable energy. In fact, our state has quadrupled the amount of energy it gets from the wind and sun in recent years. People from all over the country are looking to us as a model of how to make real progress. With or without Washington’s help, Colorado will continue to be a national leader in developing, producing and marketing new energy technologies to the world. The window to mitigate global climate change is closing and we need the talent and knowledge that is here in Colorado to help lead the transition to a pollution-free, low-cost energy future.

Colorado will also need strong leadership to protect our state’s natural environment during a Trump presidency. We have protected hundreds of thousands of acres of open lands and rivers. We have partnered with business, agriculture, foundations, local leaders and universities to protect watersheds, preserve natural habitats and create new opportunities for sustainable recreation and tourism. This is Colorado’s future and we won’t retreat on this progress.

With differing views on what our country and our state needs, I hold out hope that Presidentelect Trump will make good on his promise to work with states to modernize the nation’s infrastructure. Our roads, highways and schools are crowded and we must modernize our infrastructure to protect everything we love about our state.

We love Colorado and it is important that we stand together in opposition to anything that would take us backward. It’s up to us to do what we have always done, maintain and expand upon our progress and show Washington a path forward. We will lead with the same optimism and energy that has always defined Colorado. We must remember, this election was not a rejection of our progress; it was a reminder that our progress hasn’t reached everyone yet and there is much work

to do.