As your State Treasurer, I’m entrusted with making sure that your money is safe, and invested wisely, transparently, and in a way that benefits all Coloradans.
Like so many of you, I’ve had to adjust to a new reality of working remotely and practicing social distancing to keep our fellow Coloradans safe. And like so many of you, I’m troubled by the poor economic direction our country is going under Donald Trump in the White House.
This once-in-a-generation pandemic is hitting Colorado communities hard, and as the steward of our state’s finances, I believe the decision we make on the ballot this November will determine where Colorado’s economic future goes.
Under the leadership of Colorado Democrats in the governor’s office — from Bill Ritter to John Hickenlooper to Jared Polis — and in the state legislature, we’ve bounced back from recessions and high unemployment rates before. I’m urging Coloradans to choose to build our economy back better and ensure working families have an equal chance to get ahead by voting for Joe Biden and Kamala Harris.
When I look at Donald Trump’s record, I see an administration that is not a friend to working people. In fact, Trump’s prized achievement is passing a massive tax giveaway that’s benefited the wealthiest people and biggest corporations, all while actually raising taxes on middle- and lower-income families.
Meanwhile, Joe Biden and Kamala Harris have proposed an ambitious economic recovery plan that ensures the wealthy pay their fair share, invests in our infrastructure which will create millions of good-paying jobs, and prioritizes families over corporations and work over wealth.
Trump’s tax giveaway to his wealthy donors was only the start of his gross mishandling of our economy. The reality is that thanks to Trump’s botched federal response to COVID-19, we’ve gone from a humming economy with low unemployment to record unemployment, small businesses being hung out to dry and frontline workers risking exposure to the virus on the job.
Unfortunately, when you hear President Trump stand up at the podium, you don’t hear much of a plan to get us out of this mess.
With Joe Biden and Kamala Harris, there’s not just a number of plans and strategies to get us out of this mess Trump made — there’s a vision to give Colorado communities the tools, choices, and freedom they need to build back better from this historic recession. Joe Biden and Kamala Harris offer leadership that would prioritize working people’s safety, income, and ability to grow wealth.
Given the number of young people in Greeley who work while studying to give themselves a better future, I know that Joe and Kamala’s plans to raise the minimum wage to $15 an hour and increase access to higher education options like vocational training and apprenticeship programs could make a world of difference.
Here in our community, we have not only seen the consequences of the White House’s failure to combat COVID-19, but their failure to keep working families safe. Leaders at the JBS meat packing plant — a source of many good paying, union jobs — have taken their cues from this administration’s lack of care for workers.
JBS reported record profits last year, but continued to promote a “work while sick” culture on the plant floor — even as their company was the spot of a COVID-19 outbreak. The result? Eight workers died, and more than 300 were infected with the virus.
What was the Trump Labor Department’s response? They fined JBS $15,615 for their negligence that cost eight people their lives.
Think about that — a company made record profits, all while failing to ensure workers got access to COVID testing and promoting a culture that employees should show up to work ill during this global pandemic. And Donald Trump isn’t bothered by that?
I know Joe Biden and Kamala Harris care. They’ve laid out detailed plans to restore the worker protections that Trump’s Labor Department have rolled back, so greedy companies will no longer be able to cut corners at their employees’ expense.
When I listen to Joe and Kamala — both of them raised in working class households — I hear leaders who will put Colorado families first, get immediate relief to our communities, and help level the playing field for everyone.
We have a decision to make about the direction our economy goes this November. We can pick four more years of a president who is no friend to workers and failed to contain COVID-19, or we can choose to build our economy back better under a new direction.
I know Joe and Kamala will stand up for working families, fight for the workplace protections they deserve, and help Colorado bounce back like we have before. That’s why I ask my fellow Coloradans to vote for Joe Biden and Kamala Harris.
– Dave Young is the Colorado State Treasurer, the former representative from House District 50 – which includes Greeley, Evans and Garden City – and a former longtime teacher at Heath Junior High in Greeley.
This content was originally published here.
