Colorado university. I am a publisher of the daily sentinel and im pleased to serve as moderator tonight. This event is made possible in part by macy university, Colorado Public Radio and k rcc. Tonights event is produced by cmu faculty and students. I would like to welcome Democrat Michael bennet and republican joe odea to grand junction. Thank you both for joining us in person. Both campaigns have agreed to the rules of tonights forum and will respond to a series of questions from our panel. We are joined by a reporter from the daily sentinel, and the editor, and a student. Each question will be posted posed to both candidates and each will have 90 seconds to respond. Whoever gets the question first will have a 32nd rebuttal. As moderator i reserve the right to interrupt candidates who go over time. We have one hour together, so lets get started. I will recognize our first candidate for opening remarks, senator bennet. Sen. Bennet thank you, jay. Thank you to cmu for hosting this tremendous event with cpr and the great daily sentinel. It is great to be back in grand junction. When i have traveled colorado, the most beautiful state, and my opinion. It is easy for me to summarize my town halls the last 10 or 14 years. People saying michael, we are working hard. No matter what we do, we cannot afford some combination of housing, health care, Higher Education or Early Childhood education. A reflection of an economy that for 50 years worked well for the top 10 of americans, but has not worked well for a out of 10 coloradans or nine out of 10 americans. We have to change that. In Human History when people lose a sense of opportunity, someone inevitably shows up to say i alone can fix it, as donald trump did. He did not fix it, but that is what he said. You do not need the rule of law, you should expect the public and private sector to be hopelessly corrupt and bankrupt. That was what he ran on, the dark vision he won on. I am deeply worried our democracy will struggle not because of him, but because people have a loss of a sense of opportunity we have to restore. We need an economy that grows for everybody, people can afford a middleclass life and families with kids are living in poverty and have a chance to get their kids out of poverty. I think if we can restore an economy, one that grows for everybody, it will not just save this democracy, but it is a chance once again to lead in the world and that is why i am running for the senate. Jay thank you. Mr. Odea thank you for doing this, cmu. I, fourth generation coloradan. Was adopted by a cop early on. Had a loving mother. Got in trouble in junior high school. My parents put me in an all boys Catholic School where i got a little discipline, and a job washing dishes. After graduating i went through an Apprenticeship Program in colorado and chased the love of my life up to Colorado State university where i got my Construction Management degree. We started a company out of our basement and employee 300 families in colorado. We survived three recessions. I am proud of what we built. My children live in colorado and run their own Small Business. I am not a career politician, i am a contractor. We need people who have done a hard days work. We have been blessed to live our American Dream in colorado. I am worried about the direction our nation is headed. What will we leave our kids and grandkids . The division, the anger, we have had enough. We are all americans. We need to come together, put labels, partisanship, political titles aside, and solve problems. I am running to be a voice for working americans. If it is good for colorado, count me in. That is the problem with senator bennet. He votes with the joe biden 90 of the time. I love my wife dearly, but i do not even agree with her 98 of the time. Michael bennet as joe bidens rubber stamp has led to soaring inflation, growing crime, and a war on American Energy. It is not working. It is time for a change. I hope to earn your support. Jay we will shift to the question portion. Bennet mr. Bennet, whether it be the agriculture or hospitality industry, colorado depends on migrant labor. But getting visas and citizenship can be onerous. How would you fix the situation Given Congress appears to lack the ability for reform . Sen. Bennet we have to fix this through congress. It cannot be fixed by the administration without congress doing the work. I was part of the gang of eight in 2013 that wrote legislation to pass. It got 68 votes. Tragically it was stopped in the house of representatives by the Freedom Caucus and the tea party, but it had four elements that are important. A path to citizenship, the dream act for people the agriculture division, the visas we heard joe odea talk about that have affected his Small Business, those need to be addressed. 40 billion of Border Security, but not to build Donald Trumps wall that joe odea supports. Instead, 21st century Border Security that we developed in iraq and afghanistan to allow us to see every inch of the border. It is a shame it did not pass the house in 2013. We need to pass a similar bill again. I think ultimately we will after we overcome this. Immigration is so critical to economic growth. It constitutes 1 3 of our growth every year and that is why we have to fix this problem. Mr. Odea it does start with securing our border, i agree. We need to provide citizenship to the dreamers, that is key. We have to streamline our immigration because it is not working. I have had guys who worked for me 15 years. They have had different visas, they are earning a living, growing a family, legally, and they cannot get through the process. The process is broken. Senator bennet has been in the senate 13 years. I would have hoped he ran in 2010. I applaud the fact he was with the gang of eight, but that issue needs to come back and run again. I will personally put my name on a bill that does that. First bill i introduce when i am senator here next year. What we have going on now is partisanship. We have people to vote with their party 98 of the time. That is not working. We have to do more. I will reach across the aisle and make sure we can put it back in the process to get that done. Sen. Bennet first of all, that is insufficient because it does not do anything for the 11 Million People living in a cash economy underground in the u. S. We need to address that, we cannot skip over it. I have dealt with this issue the entire time i have been in the senate. The problem now is, republicans like Donald Trumps immigration policies, will not come across the aisle. Joe odea voted for donald trump twice and knowing how horrendous his immigration policies were. He cannot be believed on this issue. Jay our second question. As someone born and raised in afghanistan [indiscernible] many are waiting in line for asylum to come to the u. S. In places like afghanistan and ukraine, people wait years to receive asylum. What can you do as a member of the u. S. Senate to improve this process for asylumseekers to come to the u. S. . Mr. Odea it started with a policy in afghanistan that was broken. The way we left afghanistan, americans, 80 million worth of equipment abandoned. What we have seen in ukraine, russia, on Foreign Policy we need to do more. We need to do more for these asylumseekers that just want justice. They are coming here, they need to be allowed to be here in the u. S. I will work as a member of the senate to make sure we have a clear path to get people here. We need a better Foreign Policy. Part of the problem is, it is not based on economics. It needs to be based on energy. Energy is key to making sound Foreign Policy. Nobody wants to attack somebody that is supplying them with natural gas. If we can bring that here too the war on energy and provide energy to europe, we can make sure we end this war in russia. We have a war on Foreign Policy right now that does not involve our energy and that is a problem. The war on energy started the moment joe biden got into the office. Sen. Bennet thank you. That is another way in which our immigration system is broken. Our asylum system is not set up for the numbers of people coming and we have to address that not just with respect to afghanistan, but anybody seeking asylum in the u. S. With respect to american Foreign Policy, it is an incredible relief to have a president who, instead of indicting our allies every day as donald trump did with nato and europe, we have an administration forging a coalition of people to push back against putin, who has invaded a country for no reason other than his own territorial ambitions. It has been inspiring to me to see people all over the world demand their elected leaders do more. That is why this coalition is so important. It is why American Leadership is so vital and important. It is why i am so glad we no longer have a president who does not understand that. Our coalition is a reflection of our strength, not a reflection of our weakness, as it joe odea seems to think. Jay mr. Odea, 30 seconds. Mr. Odea none of that happened under the watch of the last president. It has happened under the weak president biden. We are not solving them, we are making them worse. This goes back to energy dominance. Once we start dominating the market, supplying europe with energy, this war will end. Jay our next question . The 1922 Colorado River compact comes up for renegotiation in 2026. In an environment of increased water need by all seven Member States and a decreased flows in the river, what happens if the Member States cannot reach accord . What solutions from the federal level do you anticipate delivering from your senate seat . Sen. Bennet my view is the states must reach accord, consensus. Failure is not an option. This is not something for the federal government to determine. That would be a disaster and counterproductive. One of the reasons i want to go back to the senate is helped lead negotiations between the upper basin and lower basin states, so we can rescue the Colorado River. The fates of the American West depends on our ability to do that. Our entire way of life from agriculture to ski resorts to our economy depend on getting this right. The right role for the government to play is to back up census reached with federal resources. We started that with the Inflation Reduction Act with 4 billion for water savings initiatives in the upper and lower basins. I am working with mitt romney and his team to develop legislation to provide the federal backstop i described, similar to what has been done in the great lakes region. That is appropriate. There are 40 million americans who rely on the Colorado River basin for their water. This is an appropriate place for the federal government to play a role. The fate of the American West pens on it. That depends on it. That means the fate of america depends on it. Mr. Odea we have conserved, we have done our job, but the lower states have not. We need to push back on california, hold california accountable. The water you are claiming is a right does not exist. We are not getting that amount of water through the system. We are in a drought. It needs to be equally shared by all the states. We need leadership to stand up to california. They need to be talking about desalinization. All the water they have at their beck and call in the ocean they could help relieve. The federal government has a role, making sure we can relieve the problem at the lower end. At the same time, any decision that needs to be made here should be made by coloradans. We need to work with locals. It has to be balanced. We need to move water storage projects forward. I have been on a project that took 25 years to get approved. We need to reform our permitting and move those projects in these Drought Conditions forward to solve the issue here in colorado. I believe i will do a good job negotiating with california. Sen. Bennet in the last two months i lead the negotiations to get 4 billion into the Inflation Reduction Act to address the issues on the Colorado River. I took on arizona to do that and california. I had a conversation with new mexico, nevada, colorado and utah. Joe may have missed that. I know he has not missed that bill because he said there is nothing to like in that bill, including the 4 billion i negotiated to try to deal with the Colorado River. Jay our next question. Education is a critical element to longterm development. So many women and girls are denied access to education [indiscernible] especially after the withdrawal of u. S. Security forces. What is the obligation of the u. S. To help women in developing countries . Mr. Odea we have a role in world affairs. When our nation is strong, has a strong economy, we can provide security and resources for all of those countries to help them. When our economy is under attack, when we are in an inflationary capacity, when we have leadership that approve 5 trillion over the course of the last two years causing record inflation in colorado, and jacking the price of fuel up with a war on energy, jacking the price of groceries up, our economy is weakened and the u. S. Takes a step back. It does not allow us to help other countries. We need leadership that will not just vote party line. We need leadership that will look at policies in place and lead this great country back to prosperity so we can help with education across the world. Under my leadership we will work hard to get this inflation under control, reduce it, stop the war on energy that is causing all of these economic woes. The price of diesel is over 5. 50. You are going to hear joe odea say over and over again, there is a war on energy, we were producing five billion gallons of oil a day. Today, we are producing 12 Million Barrels a day. I am not saying fossil fuels dont have an Important Role to play, i think that they are critical for us to keep europe in the fight with the exported lngs. His answer for everything is fossil fuels, fossil fuels, fossil fuels. The question that was asked by halima what is the impact on women around the world . I dont think fossil fuels is the answer to that. I think we do have an obligation around the world, especially with china the way it is showing up. In africa and other countries around the world, we have an obligation to show up. We have an obligation in the United States of america to improve our own Education System, too. The Education System we have today, rather than liberating people from their circumstances, is actually ratifying the income inequality that we have. There is more work for us to do as well, it is not just about the fossil fuel industry. Mr. Odea you pointed out that we have not done enough for education here in the United States, and it is difficult for us to reach across the world and help people. Right now, 60 of them are reading at one third of the grade level. Eighthgraders cant add and subtract at the grade level. That is because we neglected our School System here. Thanks to the leadership, our education has slipped back. According to the congressional budget office, the federal budget was one point trillion in the fiscal year 2022. 21 trillion after decades of spending by democrats and republicans. Such as Social Security and medicaid make up two thirds of federal spending. Keeping all that in mind, how do you propose to reduce national debt. Please be as specific as possible and do that that making cuts. Sen. Bennet one of several areas that i have taken the administration on is on the issue of Charter Schools where he and i have a fundamental disagreement. I have let that slide and i will continue to. With respect to the budget deficit, today, as we sit here, we are collecting revenue that 19. 7 of our gdp, we are spending about 23 , that is the deficit we have to deal with. We do have to address it as Interest Rates rise. It will be more important for us to deal with this, and we have to come together in a bipartisan way. I think the 5 trillion for tax cuts for the wealthiest americans that joe odea has said that he would have supported, is the biggest waste of money that i have ever seen. It has blown a massive hole in the deficit. The two wars that we fought in the middle east, massive. The Healthcare System that caused twice as much as any other industrialized country in the world. I am proud to receive the fiscal hero award from the coalition, three times that i have been in washington dc. I dont believe there is any other senator that has received that. I have taken tough votes to approve spending even went republicans and democrats are doing it together. Mr. Odea in the 13 years you have been in the senate, you are responsible for 20 trillion worth of debt growth. I dont know if i want to know about that. We need to stop the reckless spending. Under the joe biden regime, we just approved 5 trillion over the last two years after covid had already subsided and we were beginning to come out and go to work, it jumped to one point 9 trillion into the marketplace. That supercharged inflation. Michael bennet was the 50th vote that push that across the finish line. We have to end the war on energy. This inflation is not going to come under control until the price of diesel goes down. It is fundamentally needing to be figured out. Even a carpenter like myself, can figured out, once we move the energy cost down, inflation will subside. We have to do more. As far as cutting the debt, we need to be focused on these bureaucracies, growing bureaucracies like 80,000 irs agents or however many, 80 billion dollars to grow a bureaucracy . That is not going to help us. We need to reduce the size of government. Every of these bureaucracies has grown exponentially over the course of the last 40 years. We need to cut it back. Sen. Bennet for the reason that you said, this will do virtually nothing to deal with the problem, most of it is in the two thirds that you described. Most of that has to do with creating more transparency in our Health Care System. I truly cannot think of a greater waste of money than the trump tax cuts. Joe odea says that he wants to go to washington, but the bill he keeps talking the ad kept coloradans from becoming evicted in the covered crisis, cap Police Officers on the beat all over the state of colorado, and kept a lot of Small Businesses alive, including lets talk infrastructure. People hear about the billions and trillions being spent on infrastructure projects, but it seems to take years of studying, planning, and analyzing before a shovel of dirt is ever turned on a project. Do you believe the current federal permitting and Regulatory Regime for Building Infrastructure projects is warranted . Or, do you have specific ideas on how this process may be improved . Sen. Bennet i have probably stood at the line longer than most people. Permits are broken. Our system right now is not working. I will give you a great example of a project which is completed down in Chatfield Reservoir in the metroarea. We added 12 feet of water storage to an existing dam. There was a guy on the project that started that permit 27 years ago before they broke ground. That is a project that colorado needs, we need that water storage. Under bennet help get some funding, but i am working up there now rerouting the Colorado River and environmentalists love this project. It will help the fish. The permitting started in 1997 and broke ground in june. It is a broken process. We need to shorten that up. We still need regulation, we want clean air and clean water and we need regulation. We need to put time frames on this that are responsible. We cannot continue to build projects for our kids and grandkids, we need them now, today. I would propose that we what are permitting, joe manchin try doing that, that would be one of the very first things i would like to attack when i hit the u. S. Senate. Sen. Bennet we have identified the form of government standard spending that jello day really likes. 90 has been coming from the federal, local, or state government. I want to make sure people have the benefit of this, not just wealthy businesspeople like jello day. On the permitting question, i think we probably agree more than we disagree. I think it is too hard to believe infrastructure. I think joe manchin was trying to do the right thing, he was trying to push us along there. Whether what you care about is the oil and gas stuff, that joe is so passionate about, or the transition to an Energy Economy where we are reducing prices, creating Energy Independence for this country, and enhancing our National Security and driving emissions down, which i believe is so important. We wont be able to do that with the permitting schemes we have today. It is too expensive and we have to preserve the values of our environment while we do it, for sure. We certainly can do it more quickly than we are doing it now. This is a place where i think the two of us degree. Agree. Mr. Odea we have been moving on a lot of work here in colorado, over to a billion dollars. Well you have been creating dependency, i have been creating opportunity, moving my company forward. I have guys there right now. They are making one hell of a [indiscernible]. They are doing a great job. When you think about the financial pressures, the discussion usually goes to the topics like Student Loans and tuition costs. As an International Student living in colorado, i have been struggling with the impact on my monthly budget. Groceries, and other services are so expensive. How would you address this challenge for students like me . Sen. Bennet we are facing a Global Challenge on inflation, it is brutal here in colorado right now, three dollars and . 69 for gas. Three dollars for a carton of eggs. Students already have enough challenges because College Costs , i think that makes it very hard. What we have to do is we have to fix the supply chains that are broken all across the globe and in our country. That is what we are trying to do today with the semiconductor bills. We are bringing the Semiconductor Industry back to america. We need to do that with other industries, as well. It is also something that we did this will not directly help you, but help our seniors by capping drug prices for seniors, requiring medicare to negotiate drug prices on behalf of the american people, and capping insulin at 35. That is the type of thing that we can do if we are serious about trying to address inflation. That is what i will continue to try to do. Mr. Odea what we got going on right now . The cost of an education here in the United States is skyrocketing. Have big problems with our Education Systems. They need to do more to cut that back and make that more affordable for anybody who wants an education. We also need to start thinking about embracing a technique that we are using in my business, which is an apprenticeship. We bring kids in, we put them to work in an a british ship, we are paying them, so they have a viable income string while they are working, getting education. Mechanic school, some of them are and project management schools. We put them in that situation, we partner with business to make sure that we have a viable way to pay the students. All they have to do is agree to work 40 hours for us when they come out. I have about 10 kids that work for me over 15 years now. They never left, because we invested in them. I think that is the solution we need to take to start making this work in america, is partnering up with business. I am a little annoyed at the inflation answer that you gave, because youre blaming that on global. You are solely responsible for the 1. 9 trillion dollar package that got passed in march 21. You are the counting vote. That has put inflation on a spiral. I dont see how you guys keep blaming everybody else. Sen. Bennet first of all, you didnt address inflation in your own answer. If you just pick up the newspaper, what you are seeing is that canada has the same inflation we have. The u. K. Has the same. India has the same. It is because we are all dealing with the same broken supply chain, we are all dealing with the same escalation of Energy Prices as this economy has recovered. Two years ago, oil was 20 a barrel. Today, it is 93. That is the cause of what we are all dealing with across the globe, including here. You cant fix it unless you understand the nature of the problem. People living in western colorado understand the acute nature of the world rural and urban divide. Both of you make your homes in the denver metroarea. You have both campaigned across rural colorado. What is one issue you have been hearing from rural voters that may say people on the front range dont understand . And how would you try to address it . Mr. Odea what i hear is consistent across rural colorado, the cost of diesel. I cant fill out my pickup truck, i cant buy groceries, i cant pay my rent. I ran in to a lady and she pleaded with me, she said, you have got to win. You have got to help us. I just paid 72,000 to [indiscernible] 300 acres. Her fertilizer bill was double what it was. They need relief. They need relief from this more on energy that the biden Bennet Administration has done. If you look at the permits that are being drawn on now, they are far less than they were under any other president. What i am hearing from earl colorado is, we are detached. We dont know how hard it is for them to make a living out here because of this record inflation. That is one consistent thing i have heard from everybody across the state. I do live in colorado, i have properties that are agriculture Type Properties that i help with. I am out in the community, i am able to talk to those people and just hear how hard they are having to work right now to make ends meet. I think that is something that i will continue to do as a leader. I will be out here every year. Sen. Bennet here is another answer. The answer from joe odea is fossil fuels. Diesel. When i think about what i see in rural colorado in the last two years, during covid, i went to every single county, and i am a the agriculture committee. I spent a huge amount of time in rural parts of colorado where many counties i show up over and over again. What i am hearing, the issues around the hugely expensive housing, the epidemic of mental health, or lack of access to health care, and a real concern that Rural America is being left behind. That is why we have worked so hard to bring tens of millions of dollars from washington to the western slope of colorado to help counties that are transitioning in northwest colorado. For example, the coal plants closed there. That is what i will continue to do. I believe very strongly that if you are a senator representing colorado, you have an obligation to represent everybody in the state. Whether people voted for you or not. My record is clear. Over the last 14 years, on the anger culture committee. I will continue to do that. I take that as my solemn obligation. Mr. Odea i was out in sterling and they are wondering why the office of senator bennet is in fort collins and not out in sterling. When i ran out there, it was very eyeopening for me when i began my campaign. They didnt know who senator bennet was. I had to explain who i was running against. I will stand there every day. Mr. Bennet, western colorado has a long history in the energy space, but coal, oil, shale, natural gas, etc. Now the industry is under pressure as the u. S. Against a shift towards other energy sources. What do you see as the energy feature for this part of the state . Sen. Bennet i think it is very bright. I think colorado can lead america. We have bright, bright days ahead. I think we had no energy policy, now we have one. We hope it will reduce costs and will be really good for our economic independence and Social Security. It will allow us to keep europe in the fight against putin, because our export. This country will lead the transition to renewable energy. Have to get to net zero by 2050. In 2050, even when we get there, we will still be using fossil fuels. I think what is important for us to do is make sure we capture every single molecule of methane that it can be transported as cleanly as possible, so it can be used as cleanly as possible. Then we will be in a position to be able to position to the rest of the world the Clean Energy Technology that we will develop right here in colorado. A lot of what i am talking about is a result of work im doing the last 10 years that shows that in the Inflation Reduction Act, tax credits for wind and solar that i have been working on for the last 10 years, and create an export economy that will drive wages up, not just here on the western slope, but all across the United States of america. Mr. Odea what we have going on right now is not working. The Energy Policies that we have in place that have been championed by biden and supported by Michael Bennet have federal programs at an alltime low. We dont have good export facilities on either one of the coasts right now. We have permitting involved that we cant get through. We do need to export good, clean, american gas in to europe if we want to end the war in russia. Good, clean, american gas. If we want to lower Global Missions in asia, lets use good, clean, natural gas from america. When scientists are telling us that we can lower world emissions by as much as 41 in five short years by exporting good, clean, the cleanest molecule in the world, produced here in colorado, we should be paying attention. We do need to get the permitting out of the way so we can raise wind, solar, we can get all of those energies online so we can replace fossil fuels. It is not going to happen tomorrow. We need to make sure that we restore good, clean, American Energy so that we can get through this inflationary. We get out of the way so we can start to bring our new renewable i will support both of those. Sen. Bennet we just passed the most important renewable act in the history of the United States in america directly on planet earth. Joe odea has said over and over again that if he had been in washington, he would have voted against that bill. I was proud to support that bill. There are so many provisions of that bill that i wrote on the western slope of colorado. It will be really important for our economy. If joe had been there, he would have opposed it because of his complete and total embrace of the fossil fuel industry. Health care prices in western colorado are some of the highest in the nation. Colorado hospitals have the widest Profit Margins compared to those in any other state. What are your solutions from the federal level to Lower Health Care costs for everyone . Mr. Odea it starts with more competition. We have to get Big Government out of the way so we can promote competition. I happened to buy Health Care Insurance for our 300 families and i have seen record label level insurance prices, going up 22 this year. My company is trying to hold as much of that in house and pay for that, but we are having to pass that on to employees, it is completely out of control. The system is broken right now. It works for people who are on medicare and medicaid, it works for people on the higher end that can pay into a system with their cash, but it is not working for working americans right now. This inflation has actually affected everything that we do. One of the other things we need to do is there are a lot of hospitals that are understaffed. We need to promote Education Systems that are partnership with businesses, partnership with colleges, to get good people into these systems. Let them get educated while they are doing their apprenticeship and being paid by businesses. That way, we can start to grow our labor force and reduce the cost of health care here across the United States. Sen. Bennet we just passed a bill that i helped lead and write that caps Prescription Drugs for seniors at 2000. It requires medicare for the first time, to negotiate drug prices on behalf of people, it caps the price of insulin at 35 a month. We overcame the pharmaceutical industry to do this. Finally. Joe odea said that he if he had been in washington, he would have voted against. There was nothing to like about that bill. We just did the most important thing to cap costs, joe said he would have voted against it. Second, we need to pass my public option so that everyone in america, especially Rural America, has the chance to buy a public option administered by medicare if they dont want their private insurance. I think that would be a very important step forward to creating universal coverage which would also reduce costs, because people would be getting primary care, not just going to the hospital, when they got sick. The final thing, we have to seek huge transparency in our Health Care System. No one knows what anything costs. If you are a Small Business owner or someone at the Prescription Drug counter, trying to get through, you have apsley no idea why youre being charged anything. I think we can create that kind of transparency, that will dramatically drive down costs. Mr. Odea you have been there 13 years, 20 trillion. This has caused record inflation. The problem with the cap on medicare and medicaid, that will be transferred to people with real Life Insurance like myself. They will have to pick up the delta for that. It wont save us any money. It will be on the backs of working americans again. There is a war in europe after russia invaded ukraine where the u. S. [indiscernible] because ukraine is not a member of nato. If we see china make a move against taiwan, would you support the u. S. Sending american troops to aid taiwan . Which the president has already indicated he would order. Sen. Bennet thank you for that question. I think the world is very dangerous right now. I am on the intelligence committee, it has really been interesting to see the terrible mistakes that putin has made in his invasion of ukraine, because of the Totalitarian Society that he sits on top of. The ukrainian people have done an amazing job fighting back, nobody would have ever expected it. The coalition that came together is what is making that possible. We are leading that coalition in a really profound way. We will have to do the same thing with respect to china. I think the most important thing for us to do with respect to taiwan is to make china think twice and three times and five times that they are not going to do it because taiwan is armed in ways that they will be able to repel. We need to get to that point. I think we can. It is just a reminder of how important American Leadership is in the world and that america actually does not turn away from the rest of the world. I think we are seeing that in ukraine, and will see that if we have issues like this. Mr. Odea taiwan is a risk. The reason is because it started in afghanistan. When we abandoned afghanistan in the political stunt to make sure we made a date, senator bennet is on the intelligence committee, i would love to have a report to find out why we chose that day and how that affected a lot of our [indiscernible]. We lost 13 of our military. 80 billion worth of equipment. We lost an airport that many of the military said we should have kept a hold of to keep peace in that volatile region. That has led to the russian invasion of ukraine. It scares me that we have a president right now backed by democrats that vote that way all the time that are incapable of showing american strength. We need to do more for ukraine. I believe that making sure that we provide those resources and battle for their own freedoms is very, very important. I believe strength through peace. I also believe that we need an economy that overshadows the rest of the world. If we are energy dominant here in the United States and provide good, clean, natural gas that is the key to peace in ukraine. China wont want to attack anybody with that kind of military money, and making sure that we have good, strong, economic policies. Sen. Bennet the world is more complicated than fuels and natural gas. The president set the first date , donald trump, joe odea wanted for him twice. I think that was reckless. That is who it was, donald trump. We initiated the civic forum to spur civility and discourse. The degree at the National Level seems at its highest ever. It is an as versus them world. Are we broken beyond repair . Or is there a path back to civility . How will you deliver on it if elected . Mr. Odea i run my business downtown denver. Surrounded by the other party, a lot of democrats working there. I have been able to reach across the aisle and talk to people about projects, talk to people about what we need to get done in our city. I have exercised that. I believe that the party system that we have in the United States is [indiscernible]. I think senator bennet and i agree on that. I have bucked the party several times on several things, whether it was abortion, the daca kids, obamacare. Preexisting positions conditions should be reserved. That is what will be important to me when i hit the u. S. Senate. I believe it is time for us to sit down with the other. I will do this with senator hickenlooper and sit down and say lets figure out what are all of those things you and i could agree on for colorado . I lets begin to move this country for the. We spend way too much time arguing. We need to figure out what it is we agree on an move those kinds of policies forward. Sen. Bennet thank you, there certainly is a lack of civility. I think the two party system is broken, i agree with joe on that. I have not contributed to the toxic atmosphere that is there in the time i have been in the senate. I never have, because i do not think it will move the country forward. It will not provide the future of the students at this great diversity need and i will continue to do what i have done before. I have passed 111 bills i have written, 82 avenue republican cosigners. I worked with met romney to talk about forestry and water. I have worked with richard byrd, the republican from North Carolina to write legislation to talk about clearing out roadblocks at red tape. Only one or two drugs a year were supposed to be approved. Within 230 drugs have been approved as a result of the work to clear roadblocks at the fda. Half of those are cancer drugs. I would put my record up of bipartisanship and civility against any other member of the senate, and if you send me back i will continue to do it. Mr. Oday, 30 seconds. We will not recognize mr. Bennet for closing remarks. Sen. Bennet thanks very much for the Great Questions and thank you to the students who are here for being here tonight, and joe, thank you for the debate. It went by in the blink of an eye. My mom and her parents were polish jews who survived the holocaust, they were immigrants who came here to rebuild their shattered lives and the only country in the world where they felt they could do that. Ive met many in colorado, i have never met people with a stronger accent than my grandparents had, but i never met greater patriots than they were. They love this country not because it was perfect that it had ways to address we have ways of addressing our flaws, and they could to be part of that. This is another moment when we need to come together as americans to do the kind of work that my grandparents did. And i believe we can do it, and we can create an economy that works for everybody. We can create an Education System liberating kids from the economic circumstances, after system that does not cost twice as much as any Health Care System in the industrialized world. We can bring in the factory jobs back to the states of america, you can lead this Energy Transition across the globe and provide an example that is contrary to the authoritarian regime in china that democracy is strong, and the United States can provide both democracy and opportunity. We have always been strong as when we stood for democracy and opportunity. And i would you say in my closing words tonight, abby 25th wedding anniversary to my wife, susan. Tell her i love her and my daughters caroline, helena, and ann with all my heart. Mr. Odea. Mr. Odea thank you for having me here tonight, colorado is the heartbeat of our great state. If i am your senator i will not just show up for real colorado during an election season. I will fight for them every single day. I do not have to tell you, our country is moving in the wrong direction. And i am sure senator bennett will go back to d. C. With very good intentions, but d. C. Changed him. He votes with joe biden 90 of the time. Bennett passed one bill in 13 years that he wrote. That leadership takes more than just the party line. When President Joe Biden shut off oil and gas production, bennett said nothing. Michael bennet when joe biden withdrew american troops from afghanistan, Michael Bennet said joe biden to the right thing. When Michael Bennet authorized student loan bailout, amended 80 billion for irs agents, bureaucrats and the tax bill and insisted democrats spent 5 trillion in the last two years, causing a historic inflation crisis, bennett said yes. And on issue after issue, time after time, Michael Bennet is joe bidens yesman. We need a senator from colorado, and that is why i got in this race. I will listen, lead, and show up and not just during election season, and i will not vote the party line. I will fight for colorado. Michael bennets allies have spent over 30 million telling lies about me. A politician would do anything to keep his job. I am running because i am heartbroken for our United States, america deserves better. Thank you for the chance to be here with you tonight. Colorado, give me a shot. Thank you. Thank you to both of our candidates, Michael Bennet and joe odea. I think you do our question a panel and to each of you at owe him evening. Well tonights forum was informative, helpful as you exercise our most pressure purchase power as americans, our power to jews or officials at the ballot box. I would like to thank Colorado University for making this foru m possible, and in behalf of us all we wish you a great evening. Good night