September 02, 2020 08:41 AM UTC

Senate Republicans Still Spending...In Other States

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• by: Colorado Pols

We noted in early August that the main Senate Super PAC — Senate Leadership Fund — was spending heavily in several states OTHER than Colorado, which was a bad sign for the re-election hopes of Colorado Sen. Cory Gardner (R-Yuma).

On Tuesday, Senate Republicans announced another big television ad blitz. Once again, Colorado is not on the list. From POLITICO PRO [subscription required]:

A cadre of groups run by allies of Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) have added heavily to their TV buys in five battleground Senate races, a spokesperson for the groups confirmed to POLITICO.

Three different organizations run by McConnell allies, which fall under the same umbrella, added $41 million in five races: Arizona, Iowa, Georgia, North Carolina and Maine [Pols emphasis], Jack Pandol, a spokesperson for the groups, confirmed. Outside groups in both parties are invested heavily in all five races, which are critical to the battle for the majority.

There’s no good way to spin this news for Gardner. Senate Leadership Fund has now declined to invest in Colorado for the second time in the last four weeks, and we know from available public polling data that they aren’t holding back because Gardner is winning. The top of the ticket isn’t spending in Colorado, either; President Trump’s campaign on Monday announced new ad buys in Wisconsin, North Carolina, Florida, Georgia and Minnesota.

The only reason not to throw money at Colorado NOW, with just 6 weeks to go until mail ballots go out, is if Senate Republicans don’t think Gardner can win.