By Alyssa Caverley

With almost 70 percent of Coloradans happy with the way he does his job, Gov. John Hickenlooper enters the final months of his second term with plenty of positive energy.

Could a White House run be next for the Colorado Democrat?

Hickenlooper was coy when he sat down Tuesday with Cheddar's CEO Jon Steinberg at the Milken conference in Los Angeles.

"We're doing stuff that most other states haven't come close to," said Hickenlooper. "The moment I start talking to you or any media ー 'here's what I'm going to do in 2020, I'm really leading in this direction, I need to do this, I need to do that' ー not only do I get distracted, but my cabinet gets distracted."

He said he wants to finish his last days in office strong, following the strategy that has served his administration to this point: "I think what we've done in Colorado again and again and again is taken some very controlled level of risk when there was outsized benefits."

Hickenlooper also discussed his recent budget approval.

"We are the number one economy in America right now, so we've had a dramatic increase in revenue over the last two years and that allows us a certain amount of freedom," he said.

The state's pension, he said, has seen an investment of $250 million a year even though retirees had to give up a bit of their cost of living adjustment.

Colorado is one of several states in the country that has seen its teachers stage protests over their pay and other issues. Hickenlooper said he was confident that his state could address the issue by dealing with education, transportation, and pensions separately in the state's new budget.

For full interview, click here.