May 14, 2024 11:09 AM UTC

Williams, Boebert Close Ranks As Further Colorado GOP Endorsements Loom

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• by: Colorado Pols

UPDATE: The Colorado Republican Party has officially endorsed former State Rep. Janak Joshi over current State Rep. Gabe-ish Evans ahead of the June 25th Primary Election in CO-08. The announcement includes an extra-dickish swipe at Evans and Americans for Prosperity, the latter of which is spending big money trying to defeat State Party Chairman Dave Williams in his bid for Congress in CO-05:

“While the Party would ultimately support Gabe Evans if he wins the Republican Primary election, his refusal to disclose key issue positions and any possible history of criminal or ethics violations, plus his ties to the face conservative organization Americans for Prosperity (which raised 70 million to defeat President Donald J. Trump) make him much more likely to be defeated by the Democrats through his inability to convince voters that he is the best choice for CD8, especially with libertarians vowing to run a spoiler candidate against him.”

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As Ernest Luning reports for the Colorado Springs Gazette’s political blog, Colorado Republican Party chairman and CO-05 congressional candidate Dave “Let’s Go Brandon” Williams and CO-04 carpetbagging calamity Rep. Lauren Boebert, both enjoying the coveted endorsement of ex-President Donald Trump as well as the much more controversial state party endorsements in their respective primaries, are going public with campaigning as a unit:

“We’ve got enough cranks in Congress already,” Boebert posted to X, the platform formerly known as Twitter. “The PEOPLE want Dave Williams!”

Williams, the chairman of the Colorado GOP and a former state lawmaker from Colorado Springs, is running against Americans for Prosperity executive and former talk radio host Jeff Crank in the 5th Congressional District, which covers most of El Paso County…

Boebert’s tweet quoted a post on X by Florida Republican Matt Gaetz, who slammed a fundraising invitation for Crank’s campaign that cited Gaetz’ support for Williams as a reason to donate to Crank.

In contrast to the very public protestations against the state party meddling in their own primaries by candidates running against Boebert in the crowded CO-04 race, Jeff Crank has run a much lower-key campaign primarily carried by the Koch-funded conservative group Americans For Prosperity’s spending on his behalf. In what’s been characterized as an epic showdown between the GOP’s MAGA and so-called “establishment” wings, the establishment hasn’t put up much of a fight to stop Dave Williams from running away with the GOP CO-05 primary. Because Williams’ whole purpose in taking the job of GOP party chairman appears to have been to turn the party into his personal campaign vehicle, whatever attention Williams has been paying to his responsibilities as party chair will end on June 25th.

This allows for the possibility that, at least in the short term, failing Williams upward will let others repair the damage caused by Williams’ pillaging of the state party that much sooner.

The next shoe to drop, as readers know, are expected imminent endorsements in two other Republican congressional primaries: Boebert’s abandoned CO-03 race, where former state Rep. “Raging” Ron Hanks is expected to pick up the party’s official support as a longtime FOD (friend of Dave)–and in the swing CO-08 race where former Rep. Janak Joshi is favored by the MAGA right over AFP-backed state Rep. Gabe Evans. Jeff “You’ve Never” Hurd in CO-03 suffered a major credibility hit with the MAGA right when he refused to commit to voting for Trump in November, and Rep. Evans cleared the way for the party to endorse Rep. Joshi by refusing to fill out the party’s new primary candidate questionnaire.

In the cases of Boebert and Williams, where each have gone to extraordinary lengths to bigfoot the aspirations of both morally and vocationally superior Republican candidates in safe districts, the damage done is strictly among fellow Republicans. The same is true with the party’s expected endorsements in CO-03 and CO-08, the difference being that these primary endorsements could endanger Republican chances of winning these seats in November. Even if Hanks and Joshi don’t win, they each are set to drag the other candidates in their races off message ahead of the general election.

Everything taking place here is the collateral damage, or at the very least extreme difference, of Dave Williams’ personal ambition. Once Williams made the choice to get the party involved in his own primary, the rest of these treacherous primary endorsements were certain to follow. Williams’ anemic fundraising in his congressional race is just more proof of the extent to which Williams is relying on the resources of the Colorado GOP to win his primary. Rolling out the coattails for his close longtime friends is a bonus, but also incidental. In the end, bending the state party to serve Dave’s will has been all about Dave.

Catch him if you can.