Ritter says West a 'preview' of country under Obama

Colorado Gov. Bill Ritter talked about what he dubbed “the Colorado promise” in a speech before Democratic National Convention delegates Thursday afternoon at Invesco Field at Mile High in Denver.

“What we are doing in the American West is previewing what Barack Obama is talking about in believing in change,” Ritter said, citing progress in renewable energy, bioscience, and recent Democratic successes in Rocky Mountain states.

“The wide open West isn’t just about wide open spaces,” he said. “It’s about the possibilities of American opportunity... It’s about binding people together with common goals, shared visions and the pioneering spirit that defines all of America.”

But that promise “only becomes a reality when we have a true partner in the White House,” Ritter said. “For the last eight years, we have not had that partner, and we will not have that partner in John McCain.”