With the August 10 primaries bearing down, both Democratic Senate candidates in Colorado went negative this week, releasing ads attacking one another's fundraising practices.
First, challenger Andrew Romanoff released this ad tying incumbent Michael Bennet's voting record to campaign donations from the oil and banking industries.
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In a Tuesday Denver Post article, Romanoff downplayed the significance of claims that his campaign has become too negative. "I realize we're walking fine lines here," Romanoff told the Post. "If people are holding out for a flawless message or a perfect messenger, they probably won't vote very often."
The Bennet campaign initially responded to the ad and the Denver Post article on Romanoff's attacks with a fundraising email sent under the name of Bennet's wife. Bennet himself told the Post that he was largely unconcerned by Romanoff's attacks, saying "I've been focused on actually doing the work."
Then, on Tuesday, the Bennet campaign released an ad pointing out that, while Romanoff's Senate campaign has not accepted PAC money, the former Speaker of the Colorado State House had run a PAC for ten years that accepted money from the same industries that have donated to Bennet's campaign.
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The most recent round of public polling showed Bennet with a 16-point lead over Romanoff among likely Democratic voters. He also holds a commanding fundraising lead. Romanoff, however, is favored by party activists. He won the support of 60% of delegates at the party assemblies in May.