July 19, 2007 07:53 PM UTC

CBS-4 Denver Calls Republicans Out on Misleading Ad Against Udall

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• by: Senate 2008 Guru

( – promoted by Colorado Pols)

[First, a cheap plug for my blog Senate 2008 Guru: Following the Races.]

Kudos to CBS-4 Denver for actually engaging in some diligent journalism, calling out the National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC) for their hackneyed ad against Congressman Mark Udall, noting the ad’s lies and half-truths by the GOP regarding Udall’s record on taxes.  Excerpts include (emphasis added by me):

AD: HAVING UDALL IN CONGRESS IS TAXING IN 1999 HE VOTED FOR HIGHER TAXES BY 792 BILLION DOLLARS

Reality Check Begins

The claim is false. He didn’t vote to raise taxes, he voted against a tax cut passed by a Republican Congress and vetoed by President Clinton. While critics say Udall’s vote had the same effect as supporting higher taxes, the fact remains, Udall voted to maintain the status quo, which is not the same as voting for a tax hike. …

The ad also fails to mention that Udall voted for two modest tax cut measures offered by Democrats as an alternative to the Republican bill. …

AD: OVER 1.3 TRILLION IN 2001 AND 350 BILLION IN 2003 HIGHER TAXES ON MORE THAN 1.7 MILLION COLORADANS

The claim that Udall voted against those tax relief measures is true. Udall thought it was too much tax relief going to the wealthy. But he did agree with some of it, and voted for a democratically sponsored amendment that offered a much more scaled back tax cut.

I know, I know. You’re as shocked as I am that the NRSC would stoop to misleading voters on Democrats’ voting records. But it happens. Kudos to CBS-4 Denver for their diligence.