A 2,800-word article in The New York Times on Friday tries to answer a question posed in the headline: “Can Colorado save America?”

In Colorado, we have a different question: “Can Colorado save itself?”

Opinion columnist Roger Cohen does a good job describing Colorado’s urban and rural cultures, quoting and paraphrasing liberals and conservatives.

The article quotes former U.S. senator, state’s attorney general and U.S. Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar explaining how Coloradans are not politically doctrinaire. They want politicians who get results. So true. The article concludes with Salazar opining on Gov. John Hickenlooper’s anticipated run for the White House.

“I think Hickenlooper could get traction,” said Salazar, a Colorado native. “When you’re a governor in a place like this, you know that to get things done you need to bring people together.”

The Gazette’s editorial board discussed a presidential run with Hickenlooper recently, at the end of a 90-minute meeting about a variety of topics.

There is little doubt Hickenlooper will run, and he has a good record to stand on. U.S. News & World Report this year ranks Colorado’s economy the best in the country. Unemployment is below 3 percent, wages are rising, and good companies are moving here with high-wage jobs. Our stable tax structure, minimalist regulatory environment and fiscal restraint play a major role in this growth.

None of that will last if voters enact one or any combination of three ballot measures Nov. 6. Each, or all three, could devastate the economy.

? Proposition 112 would ban nearly all new oil and gas production with setbacks that forbid drilling throughout most of the state. It would kill hundreds of thousands of jobs and deprive public schools of billion in funding over time.

? Amendment 74 would stultify development by facilitating a trial lawyers’ free-for-all of litigation against anyone who tries to develop land.

? Amendment 73 would end Colorado’s flat tax, making the state unappealing to high-end employers, while tweaking the property tax in a way that will starve fire districts, police departments and other tax-funded services.

Hickenlooper openly opposes 112 and 74. He stops short of opposing 73, mostly because advocates promote the measure as pro-public school, and he cannot be perceived as opposing education.

Hickenlooper has governed as a center-left moderate for eight years. He intervened two years ago to stop a proposed ballot measure for setbacks that would harm oil and gas, kill jobs and deplete funding for schools. He has defended small businesses and protected our economy with countless decisions.

The governor’s best hope for a successful 2020 run rests in Colorado remaining the envy of the country. Today, he can point to Colorado and say he wants all of this success, and more, for every state in the union.

Unlike most Democrats, Hickenlooper can run with an inspiring economic message of hope.

Americans won’t believe him if Colorado seems like a drag when he runs. Our state will not have the top economy if 112, 74, 73 – or any combination – pass under Hickenlooper’s watch Nov. 6. If that happens, we could be in a downward spiral in time for the 2020 primaries and caucuses. We could rank among the bottom half of states. Colorado is Hickenlooper’s brand, and that brand would be tarnished.

For the sake of Colorado, and the governor’s political future, Hickenlooper should spend the next 11 days campaigning against 112, 74, and 73 like his future depends on it. Save yourself, governor, by saving Colorado from idiotic measures on the ballot.

Read this editorial at Gazette.com.