Udall gives his donors a thumbs up to back Gardner

We all know that Rep. Cory Gardner’s entrance into the U.S. Senate race was a game changer, and as Fox 31 reporter Eli Stokols has pointed out, Sen. Mark Udall is taking the challenge seriously by going on the attack.

Up until now, Udall has largely ignored the field.  Since Gardner announced, however, Udall has sent out back-to-back emails criticizing his opponent’s record.   It’s not a surprising strategy, and a clear indication that Team Udall is, to use a technical term, freaking the f*$% out.

We don’t blame him.  Gardner is a formidable opponent who is well liked by the business community, knows his way around policy, and according to our sources, is kicking Udall’s butt in the Democrat’s early internal polling.  Rumor has it that recent statewide polls taken by Udall’s team and Gov. John Hickenlooper’s campaign show the sitting Senator is down in a head-to-head match up with the Republican rising star.

The Dem’s internal numbers are so stunning, in fact, that Dem donors were allegedly calling Gardner and encouraging him to run – a factor that surely influenced his decision to enter the race.  We all know those donors (the ones who like to back winners).  It will be interesting to see which ones Gardner starts to peel away.  ATTN: Steve Farber.