John Hickenlooper
Age: 68
Family: Robin Hickenlooper (wiife), Teddy Hickenlooper (son)
Professional history: Geologist, brewer, small business owner
Political history: Former mayor of Denver and governor of Colorado
Campaign website: hickenlooper.com
Email: [email protected]
Issue questions
As the country continues to emerge from COVID-19 restrictions, what is the federal government's role in helping residents and businesses whose livelihoods and financial well-being has been impacted by the pandemic?
We need an economic growth plan that helps local businesses get back up and running and lowers the financial burden on ordinary families instead of giving more handouts to big corporations and billionaires. When it comes to COVID, I’ve been talking for weeks — for months! — about the need to support our small businesses, because they’re the real engines of growth and job creation. But Washington has been leaving our smallest small businesses behind in their recovery efforts.
And we can’t have a well-functioning economy if people don’t have confidence to go out safely. To get that, we need testing, contact tracing, and isolation. It will be a tough road back, but Colorado has faced tough times before. When I was inaugurated as governor Colorado was facing the Great Recession. But with a bottom up approach, engaging every community, we were able to take Colorado from the 40th ranked state in job creation to the number one economy in the country. It’ll take the same kind of bottom up approach to rebuild our country.
What steps do you believe federal lawmakers should take to address racial equity?
First, we must acknowledge the racial inequities that are happening on multiple levels. We need to address health, economic, legal, environmental, and democratic disparities in our society to get to a place where we have equity for all. Congress should fund programs addressing the social determinants of health, including nutritious food, public transportation, and safe spaces for physical activity. Important bills such as the Health Equity and Accountability Act — a collaborative effort to reduce inequalities in health care that has been reintroduced each Congress for 13 years — should finally have the chance to become law. Congress should also continue to fund crucial government programs such as CHIP, Medicare, and Medicaid. We also need to strengthen economic safety nets for workers and minority-owned businesses.
Our criminal justice systems need to undergo dramatic reform so that the Black community is not constantly under attack — every American has a right to feel safe and protected in their own communities. These are just starting points; you can read my Equity for All Platform to address racial inequities at hickenlooper.com.
What strategies do you believe should be employed to address the growing federal deficit?
The Republican tax scam from 2017 ballooned the deficit to over $1 trillion while giving tax breaks to corporations and billionaires. The wealthiest Americans got tax breaks at the expense of middle class Americans. We cannot balance our budget on the backs of seniors, students, and working families. The wealthy need to pay their fair share. As governor, I grew Colorado’s economy while increasing the minimum wage, expanding Medicaid, and passing bipartisan budgets every year. That’s the kind solutions-driven leadership Washington needs today.
What steps would you like to see the federal government take to address climate change?
Climate change poses an existential threat to our planet and to Colorado’s economy and way of life. We have the opportunity and the obligation to reorient our economy around clean energy. My bold plan calls for us to reach net-zero carbon emissions by 2050 at the latest. That’s an ambitious goal, but it’s achievable. First, we need to reinstate and strengthen the protections for our clean air that Trump and Cory Gardner have undermined. Second, we need to reorient our economy around clean energy to spur the innovation that will create good jobs in the renewable energy space. We should also use smart tax policy to reduce carbon emissions and return that revenue to taxpayers. Third, to meet these challenges, we must make historic investments in research and development in carbon capture and energy storage technology. Fourth, the United States must be a leader in combating climate change, but we can’t do it alone. We need to rejoin and strengthen the Paris Accord and other global agreements and make greenhouse gas emission standards a part of our trade policy.
These plans are aggressive, but I believe we can do it because here in Colorado we’ve been a leader on climate change and shown what’s possible. We replaced coal power plants with wind, solar, and batteries—all while bringing down the cost of energy. We led the nation in regulating methane emissions and holding up our commitment to the Paris Accord, even when Trump and Gardner have tried to roll back our progress. Washington could learn from what we’ve done here in Colorado, and that’s just what I’d like to make happen in the U.S. Senate.
