False ads suggesting the Republican Party is defying tradition and endorsing candidates within their own primary has real party officials fuming and threatening legal action against the culprits.
But first they have to prove who’s actually funding the fake fliers, which are missing disclaimers that inform voters who paid for the message.
Memo to voters: That’s always the first clue as to whether campaign literature is bogus or legit.
From Kristi Burton Brown, chairwoman of the Colorado Republican Party:
“Let me be clear: the Colorado GOP has not and does not endorse in primary races. These verifiably false and malicious mailers are criminal and we will be taking action. These mailers prove that Colorado Democrats know that Michael Bennet, Jared Polis, and Yadira Caraveo can’t run on their failed records so they are resorting to shameful lies.”
Unsurprisingly, the Democrats have resorted to criminal tactics as they waste millions in the Colorado Republican primaries. They will be held accountable. #copolitics pic.twitter.com/xEKKuXKIHE
— Kristi Burton Brown (@ColoradoKbb) June 14, 2022
Colorado Politics notes the anonymous fliers started fluttering about the same time that Democratic-aligned committees began running TV ads with similar messages.
The ads describe GOP gubernatorial candidate Ron Hanks as ‘too conservative for Colorado.’ Democrats seem to believe Hanks would be an easier candidate for Gov. Polis to defat in the November General Election.
Interestingly, Hanks doesn’t have a problem with the Democrat ads.
Hanks told Colorado Politics that the fliers appear to have accurately described the two candidates’ positions.
“It is their 1st Amendment right, and I served 32 years in the military to protect that right,” Hanks said in a text message. “If their statements were inaccurate, I would refute them.”
Kyle Kohli, executive director of Compass Colorado, reports that liberals are demoralized by all the meddling in the GOP primaries because it promotes and elevates candidates whom they despise. You know, Republicans.
It’s the same cynical ploy used by Colorado Secretary of State Jena Griswold, who consistently seeks to elevate the profile of one of her contenders, while insisting they are a threat to democracy.
“Dark money liberals hypocritically elevating candidates they argue are a threat to democracy is straight out of Jena Griswold’s partisan playbook,” Kohli said.
“These cynical games betray hypocrisy so glaring even liberals can’t ignore it. Dark money Democrat groups and politicians like Griswold don’t actually care about protecting democracy, they only care about protecting political careers.”