DEMOCRACY IN  ACTION: ‘We Dream. We Dare. We Do.’

Excerpts From Colorado Gov. Jared Polis’s State Of The State Speech 

Editor’s. note: On Jan. 15 Colorado Gov. Jared Polis delivered his final State of the State address at the Colorado Capitol. The speech, a victory lap of sorts that highlighted policy achievements of his seven-year tenure, clocked in at nearly 90 minutes. It was also filled with the usual pop-culture, sometimes nerdy references that Polis is known for. Among them: Colorado is not a true rectangle, but a polygon with 697 sides. His final line about the fish is a nod to The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy. The following are a few excerpts from the speech, which can be read in full at tinyurl.com/PolisSOTS.

At a time when Washington is peddling the illusion that America somehow isn’t for everyone, that somehow there’s only room for some – some people, some beliefs, some love, some prayer – I want to make it clear:

In our Colorado for All, there is room – and opportunity – for all of us.

In our Colorado for All, we welcome immigrants and refugees who seek to build a better life here, who strengthen our economy and enrich our communities under the shelter of our democracy.

In our Colorado for All, an attack on one of us is an attack on all of us.

In our Colorado for All, we safeguard our fundamental freedoms, protecting the right to be who you are, marry who you love, and choose when or if to start a family.

There is space in our great big hexahectaenneacontakaiheptagonal state for all of us. We are a state of adventure seekers chasing mountain peaks and fresh powder, of wide-eyed entrepreneurs, artists, devout Coloradans of faith, poets, vegans, soccer moms and ultimate frisbee dads, hunters and union workers, farmers and ranchers, and yes, immigrants and refugees.

We respect our differences, and we are stronger and better off because of our rich diversity.

In our Colorado for All, hope and kindness are part of our DNA.

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In the Lord of the Rings, Sam speaks to Frodo, saying “there’s some good in this world, Mr. Frodo, and it’s worth fighting for.”

Colorado, there’s so much good, and we keep fighting for more.

There’s good we’ve achieved – more homes for every budget, more ways to get around easier without sitting in traffic, and more opportunities for students at every stage – and the good that we know is still possible, what we continue to fight for.

When I ran to serve as your Governor I promised to be bold — heck, I made a lot of promises, that together, we’ve turned into a reality for Colorado.

Free preschool. Free full day kindergarten. More housing. Less pollution.

We dream. We dare. We do.

I’ve been called many things – Colorado’s education governor, marijuana governor, tech bro governor, gay governor, socialist, fascist, communist, capitalist, libertarian. I’ll keep putting in the work and let others decide the labels, but at the end of the day, it’s always been about delivering real results that leave our state better than we found it. And it’s also about showing loving kindness for everyone and everything. I leave you with the advice to be kind and love your fellow human.

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Seven years ago, I joined you all in delivering my first State of the State address, and shared what an honor it is to be your Governor.

In the time since, forces beyond us have shaped our reality — a once-in-a-century pandemic, widespread inflation, the biggest and most destructive fires in our state’s history, an unpredictable federal landscape, a massive wormhole connecting to the Abyss with an upside down version of Colorado and our only hope is a group of Dungeons & Dragons-playing teens…. Well, maybe not that.

But despite it all, we faced our challenges head on, never losing sight of our values and what makes us who we are. We stared down the abyss, destroyed our metaphorical Vecnas, and delivered big, bold progress for Colorado while rolling a natural 20 on landing Sundance, the All-Star Game, and the quantum accelerator.

In this time of great division, now more than ever we must come together as Coloradans, leading with kindness and respect to move our ONE team, our great state, forward.

The state of our state is strong. Resilient. Loving. Kind. Innovative. Free. And ever bright with the promise of a Colorado for All. So long, and thanks for all the fish.