Video Remarks Announcing Candidacy for President

No one can predict what happens after you become governor.

Historic drought, thousands of acres in flames, and then came the worst floods in a hundred years.

And a mass shooting at a movie theater once again tore the heart out of our community.

I promised Colorado families that we would rebuild our communities better than before, and that just offering thoughts and prayers would never again be sufficient.

I'm John Hickenlooper. I'm running for president because we're facing a crisis that threatens everything we stand for.

As a skinny kid with Coke bottle glasses and a funny last name, I've stood up to my fair share of bullies.

Standing tall when it matters is one of the things that really drives me.

In my thirties I worked as a geologist and got laid off in a tough economy.

Being out of work for months changes you. You look in the mirror and you start to see a different person.

One day, I got a library book on how to write a business plan.

An abandoned warehouse in a forgotten corner of Denver...became a successful brew pub.

[Unidentified voice.] Hey Gov.

[Responding.] Hey hey, how you doing? Good to see you.

In the end, we didn't just build a restaurant, we created a whole neighborhood and never looked back

At the age of fifty, I was elected mayor.

We transformed Denver into a national model for what a city could be.

Then during my eight years as Governor, we did the hard things families needed.

With a divided legislature, we got health care coverage for nearly ninety-five percent of all Coloradans.

We lifted our rural economy as Colorado went from fortieth in job growth to the number one economy in America.

We brought environmentalists and oil and gas companies to the table to create the toughest methane emissions laws in the country.

Then we beat the NRA by enacting universal background checks and banning high capacity magazines.

I'm running for President because we need dreamers in Washington, but we also need to get things done.

I've proven again and again, I can bring people together to produce the progressive change Washington has failed to deliver.

Join me, and we'll repair the damage done to our country and be stronger than ever.