Transcript of Gov. Bill Ritter's remarks at the Democratic National Convention

Gov. Bill Ritter: Getty Images Photo

Thank you. My name is Bill Ritter, and I’m the Governor of the great state of Colorado.

I am so proud of Colorado. We have hosted a great Convention, don’t you think? It has been an honor to host this 2008 Democratic National Convention.

This evening, as we mark the Convention’s end, we re-affirm our Western spirit as the American spirit. And this year, the road to the White House cuts straight through the heart of the American West.

Merle Haggard said it best: “If God doesn’t live in Colorado, I’ll bet that’s where he spends most of his time.”

Here in Colorado – like in all of America – we face incredible challenges. And we know why: the Washington of George Bush and John McCain is failing us, on energy, the economy, education, health care and Iraq.

Have you had enough?

Are you ready to end the Bush-McCain economic policy that’s weakening the middle class?

Are you ready to turn the page on a failed Bush-McCain energy policy that opposes investments in renewable energy?

Are you read to close the book on a Bush-McCain health-care policy that does nothing for the uninsured, nothing to reduce health-care costs, and nothing to help seniors with the costs of long-term care?

Are you ready for the change we need?

Are you ready for Barack Obama?

Maybe it’s the Mile High altitude and all this thin air. Maybe it’s the pioneering spirit of the American West. Whatever it is, we Westerners look at the many challenges facing America and we see hope and opportunity and possibility.

I call it the Colorado Promise: the chance for everyone to reach their full God-given potential.

We see the opportunity to build a New Energy Economy based on natural gas, wind and solar power … to create thousands of new jobs.

We see the opportunity to build an economy around industries of the future, like aerospace the biosciences and technology.

We see the opportunity to reform our schools so that every child gets the skills they need to fill 21st Century jobs.

What’s happening here in the West is just a preview of the powerful change Barack Obama will bring to all of America.

The Western experience can be the American experience.

In Montana, Wyoming, Colorado, New Mexico, Arizona, Kansas and Oklahoma, a new generation of Democratic governors has replaced Republican governors and we’re showing America how to solve big problems, how to work together with Republicans and Democrats alike.

The wide open West isn’t just about wide open spaces. It’s about possibilities, and hope for the future. There’s a little bit of that Western spirit, of the Colorado Promise, in all of us. Really, it’s the American Promise, the vision of a country where “what can be” becomes “what is.”

But that vision only becomes a reality when we have a true partner in the White House – a partner like Barack Obama, who will work with our states, not against them.

For the last eight years, we have not had that partner. And we will not have that partner in

John McCain.

Only if we elect a bold new president named Barack Obama can we get America back on track and bring the change we need.

Thank you, and God bless you.