Jared Polis Made Colorado #1 in Education

Jared Polis took an unusual path into politics. When he was 25, and not yet a parent, he won a seat on Colorado's State Board of Education. He later had kids of his own and became the first openly gay parent to serve in Congress. In 2018, Colorado made him the first openly gay man ever elected governor in the United States.

Eight years later, education is still Governor Polis's signature issue, from passing universal preschool and full-day kindergarten to breaking with most of his party on school choice. He's zagged on plenty of other issues, too, vetoing dozens of bills from a legislature his party controls.

Now, with a few months left in his final term, Governor Polis is talking about what he's learned. Sarah McCammon spoke with him in Washington, DC, about how Colorado paid for universal preschool, why he cut Tina Peters's sentence, and why he wants Democrats to be pro-capitalism.

IN THIS EPISODE:

00:00 — Cold open

1:19 — Why education: preschool, apprenticeships, and school choice

17:26 — RFK Jr., vaccines, and chemicals in the food supply

19:11 — Housing, duplexes, and mortgage rates near 7%

22:20 — Mail voting and cutting Tina Peters's sentence

27:59 — The Boulder attack, Melat Kiros, and antisemitism

32:18 — Why Democrats should run on affordability and capitalism

33:57 — Legacy, life after office, and the Democratic primary