Senator Mark Udall's (D. CO) not taking Tea Party Rep. Cory Gardner (R. CO) granted:
http://talkingpointsmemo.com/...
Democratic Senator Mark Udall aired the first ad of his closely-watched re-election campaign on Tuesday, highlighting his challenger's opposition to abortion rights.
The 30-second spot against Republican Rep. Cory Gardner confirms that Udall will revisit the Democraticplaybook of attacking Republicans on women's rights that enabled Sen. Michael Bennet to fend off a strong GOP challenge in 2010 and has helped shift this swing state to Democratic control. A small number of independent and moderate Republican women voters who support abortion rights usually decide statewide elections in Colorado.
Over a montage of concerned-looking women, a female announcer says: "Congressman Gardner's history promoting harsh anti-abortion laws is disturbing." It notes that Gardner sponsored a bill to outlaw abortions in cases of rape and incest and supported an effort to grant an embryo the same legal rights as a person, which could have outlawed some forms of birth control and all abortions. - TPM, 4/22/14
Here's a little more info:
http://blogs.denverpost.com/...
Ever since Gardner entered the race, Democrats have hammered the Yuma Republican on his reproductive-rights record, even saying his announcement that he no longer supports state “personhood” ballot proposals is hollow because he still is backing a federal personhood measure.
“For generations, brave American women have fought to secure the right to make their own health care decisions based on what they believe is right for themselves and their families,” Udall said, in a news release.
“It astounds me that some still think the legality of birth control and access to reproductive health services should be subject to debate. I’ll never stop fighting to protect the rights of Colorado women because I trust them and respect the choices they make.”
It’s clear that Udall’s campaign is borrowing a page from U.S. Sen. Michael Bennet’s contest against Republican Ken Buck, who was hammered as being too extreme for Colorado. Bennet narrowly defeated Buck in 2010. - Denver Post, 4/22/14
Udall is pushing to make Gardner's record on reproductive rights a key issue in this race:
http://kdvr.com/...
At the heart of the ad is Gardner’s sponsorship of a 2007 proposal to make abortion a felony even in cases of rape or incest.
When he was a state lawmaker, Gardner signed onto Senate Bill 143 as a co-sponsor — he did not carry the bill himself, his campaign points out.
The measure would have outlawed all abortions with the exception of cases that is “designed to protect the death of a pregnant mother, if the physician makes reasonable medical efforts under the circumstances to preserve both the life of the mother and the life of her unborn child in a manner consistent with conventional medical practice.”
Gardner’s campaign pushes back: “the bill only prohibited the performing of an abortion (with an exception for life of the mother). It specifically exempted women from prosecution: ‘A pregnant mother upon whom an abortion is performed or attempted shall not be guilty of violating this section’.”
The Udall ad also alleges, “Gardner championed an eight-year crusade to outlaw birth control.”
That claim is based largely on Gardner’s past support for personhood, which he recently disavowed after strongly supporting ballot measures in 2008 and 2010 that aimed to define a fertilized egg as a person, thereby outlawing abortion and even threatening some forms of birth control. - KDVR, 4/22/14
Of course birth control and reproductive rights aren't the only issues Gardner is going to get with in this race:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/...
The League of Conservation Voters is going hard against Rep. Cory Gardner (R-Colo.). On Thursday, the LCV announced that it was adding Gardner, a second-term House member, to its list of lawmakers who have opposed environmental measures and would spend $1 million on anti-Gardner ads.
The ads highlight the $450,000 in campaign contributions Gardner has received from the oil and gas industry, according to figures from the Center for Responsive Politics. Oil and gas interests have been his largest industry supporters.
In March, Gardner announced that he is challenging Democratic Sen. Mark Udall, rather than running for reelection to the House. Gardner is the first Senate candidate added to the League of Conservation Voters' "Dirty Dozen" list, which the group creates every election cycle to highlight candidates that it would like to defeat.
In its release announcing the ads, the LCV also dinged Gardner's position on climate change. Gardner said in 2010, "I think the climate is changing, but I don't believe humans are causing that change to the extent that's been in the news." - Huffington Post, 4/18/14
The Kochs and Karl Rove are going to be spending big to get rid of Udall this year. If you want to donate and get involved with his re-election bid, you can do so here:
http://markudall.com/