April 28, 2014 02:35 PM UTC

LCV Releases New Ad Highlighting Koch Brothers’ Smear Campaign to Elect Cory Gardner

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• by: ConservationColorado

(Return fire – Promoted by Colorado Pols)

The League of Conservation Voters today launched a new television ad in the Colorado Senate race calling out the Koch Brothers’ smear campaign to help elect Congressman Cory Gardner in November. The ad, “Smear,” starts running this week and is part of LCV’s $1 million dollar ad campaign highlighting Gardner’s Big Oil ties.  

“The Koch Brothers are steering a million dollars into misleading ads to buy one of their biggest allies a promotion to the Senate. But Cory Gardner and his oil billionaire backers will find that the facts are not for sale,” said Gene Karpinski, President of the League of Conservation Voters.

"The Koch Brothers smear campaign and their dirty money politics have no place in Colorado. Voters deserve to know Cory Gardner's record supporting subsidies and giveaways to Big Oil.  While Gardner caters to Big Oil and the Koch Brothers, Colorado voters and our environment lose," said Pete Maysmith, Executive Director of Conservation Colorado.
 

The ad highlights that the Koch Brothers have spent $1 million on “false” and “misleading” attack ads to help elect their ally to the Senate. Gardner has sided with Big Oil and the Koch Brothers by repeatedly voting  to keep giving billions in special taxpayer-funded subsidies to oil companies at a time of record profits for the industry. Documentation for the ad can be found here.

Gardner even signed a pledge on taxes that would protect billions in Big Oil subsidies. Despite their repeated claims to the contrary, the Koch Brothers and their front group, Americans for Prosperity, have worked to keep these oil industry giveaways on the books to pad their bottom line.   

Earlier this month, LCV added Gardner to their Dirty Dozen program and released their first television ad in the race, which reminded voters that Gardner has taken more than $450,000 in contributions from the oil and gas industry while repeatedly voting to protect their tax breaks, subsidies and giveaways.

Gardner’s voting record earned him a horrible 9% lifetime score on LCV’s National Environmental Scorecard. The non-partisan Scorecard is a nationally accepted yardstick used to rate members of Congress on environmental issues. Based on key environmental votes in the House and Senate, it is often used by the media to quickly describe a Member’s position. For more information, visit scorecard.lcv.org.