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August 31, 2020 12:24 PM UTC

Mitsch Bush Earns "Red to Blue" Status

  • 17 Comments
  • by: Colorado Pols
Diane Mitsch Bush

As Ernest Luning reports for the publication formerly known as the Colorado Statesman, Democrat Diane Mitsch Bush has been elevated by the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) to its “Red to Blue” list:

Diane Mitsch Bush, the Democratic nominee in Colorado’s 3rd Congressional District, has been added to the House Democrats’ program for top-tier challengers vying to flip competitive, Republican-held districts.

The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee announced Monday that Mitsch Bush earned a spot in its “Red to Blue” candidate support program by demonstrating strength in fundraising, grassroots engagement, organization and local support…

…Just 34 candidates have been named to the national program this cycle by House Democrats, who picked up 43 seats in the last election and are mostly playing defense in November.

As we’ve noted in the past, the “Red to Blue” program is more than just an atta-boy (or atta-girl, as the case may be) — it serves as a kind of certification to Democratic donors that a candidate has a legitimate chance of flipping a Republican-held district. Recent polling data indicates that CO-3 is shaping up to be a neck-and-neck battle.

Mitsch Bush was the Democratic nominee in CO-3 in 2018, eventually losing to incumbent Rep. Scott Tipton (R-Cortez). Her campaign did NOT earn “Red to Blue” status in 2018, however — only Jason Crow carried that badge in Colorado —  so her addition to the list in 2020 signifies that national Democrats indeed consider CO-3 to be one of the top pickup opportunities in the country.

Comments

17 thoughts on “Mitsch Bush Earns “Red to Blue” Status

      1. DMB needs free media she can post on her website. The more, the better.

        There is also this cool thing called “social media”, in which people share articles with friends, and friend’s friends, etc. 

         

    1. I just noticed a commercial for DMB that did not include the word Democrat. It did, however, include a couple of graphic banners that read, INDEPENDENT. The point of the commercial was that she will compromise where Boebert will not.

      That is a perfectly justifiable point but I am simply disappointed with her calculation that the 3rd CD won’t vote for a Democrat. The script even points out that she “works across the aisle”. I think the other side of the aisle from Boebert is populated with Democrats.

      Is the political situation such that we can’t be proud to be a Democrat? There is no need to shout it, but to not even mention the party is weak sauce.

      At some point in time we have to reverse the demonization of the name of our party. The only way we can is to be proud Democrats and prove them wrong; not run away from it.

      Yes…I know it may seem unimportant to the “winning is the only thing crowd”, but I think it is critical we counter the T***p narrative. 

      1. Sliced Bread

        Puppies

        Christian Democrats

        E Pluribus, Unum

         

        I cannot believe more than two or three voters know which is the D or which is the R candidate.  But I agree- winners define the terms and frame the narrative. And Democrats need to do some rebranding.

  1. Update: Emily’s List just endorsed Diane, too. That will mean dollars and volunteers. 
     

    Duke, that ad was targeted at Independents in CD3. I think it did a decent job.

    DMB’s Facebook and Twitter accounts have plenty of Democratic references. I know what you mean, that there is a “dreaded D word” mentality- the Party That Dare Not Speak Its Name-
     

    Ran into that attitude in Morgan County. 
    So our solution there was to be very visible and positive, float in every parade, etc. 

    I do wish that the DMB campaign would take Gertie’s advice and produce some radio spots- people spend a lot of time behind the wheel, and the few non-Bible thumping stations would bring a lot of bang for the buck. 
     

    Gertie, DMB has apparently gotten some mainstream media attention. 

     

    1. Radio spots in the 3rd are incredibly cheap. She needs to be across the board on them, from country to classic rock to even the hate-radio stations, where all are chasing the same small bucks available in their small markets. Even better, recognizable local voices should be reading them.

      Tevee in the district is tough. Grand Junction's local network affiliates are cheap by Denver standards. To get the southwest counties, a campaign has to buy Albuquerque. Pueblo requires the Colorado Springs stations, and the mountains need the expensive Denver spread. Radio is a different ballgame.

      Most of all, she needs to get out there. As I've suggested before, she should decamp to Pueblo and get visible there. Tipton did extremely well in Pueblo because he worked his ass off. She should do the same and remind Pueblo Democrats why they are Democrats — good wages and job protections for working people.

      Social media just ain't gonna cut it alone.

  2. My advice to the DMB campaign is to let us hear, right away, from notable Republicans who cannot support their candidate. It is not enough for them to sit it out. There are still many widely respected and listened to GOP luminaries who might be convinced to speak on Dianes' behalf. Western slope Republicans pay attention to that.

    Of course, Diane is her best in person. Her media presence is improving…As I mentioned in an earlier post, Boebert is a mile wide and an inch deep. A thing to be exploited. Some Republicans might be happy to speak to that.

    Get them on the air asap. 

  3. This is really great news, and well-deserved. For those of us working as volunteers on DMB's campaign (and there are hundreds of us – I'm not going to quote a number because I'm not a staffer, just a vol), we have participated in a very well-organized phone campaign for many weeks, and more recently a texting campaign. Thousands of calls to voters are being made every week, to D's, R's, U's, L's, G's, etc.

    Please be aware how challenging the demographics are in the District – I think DMB and her staff are navigating those difficult waters very strategically. We're having great conversations with voters, such as the Libertarian who told me a few days ago he's voting for all Democrats this year. 

    Join us – go to Diane's website and click volunteer and/or donate!

    1. Thanks for the update. I appreciate your upbeat assessment of DMBs campaign. Tipton was, at least, familiar territory. Calamity Jane will be tougher to predict.

      1. Yes, and the voters are also tough to predict. A few weeks ago I had another phonebank conversation that also reflects the strangeness: A registered Democrat, a woman in Steamboat, I believe, who told me she was never going to vote for another Democrat because of how the Dems are trying to get "mass voting." It was difficult to understand exactly what she was thinking, though I (gently) tried to have her explain what the Dems were trying to do. It became clear that it was GOP propaganda that she was choking on.

        After a brief discussion I mentioned that "our records show you're a registered Democrat." "Maybe I was a Democrat in college," she said (she was some number of decades beyond college). I suggested she check with her County Clerk so she would be sure to get the correct ballot in the next Primary . . . 

         

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