UPDATED: After years of drought and locusts, Western Slope Democrats are cracking a smile here and there.Entz Campaign Spuddering
Sources close to the State Senate 5 Gail Schwartz campaign wonder if “the lights are out” on Lewis Entz’s quest for re-election. “Essentially, he is off the air,” according a Schwartz campaign supporter.
As reported on ColoradoPols last week, the Republican leaning 527’s pulled out of the race when internal polling showed Gail Schwartz with more than a two-digit lead over incumbent Republican, Lew Entz.
Entz never had the fundraising strength as Schwartz and he relied heavily on 527 independently produced advertising to attack Schwartz. However, the gist of the 527 attack ads never amounted to much more than charging Schwartz with living in the Aspen/Snowmass area–not quite a hot campaign issue.
On the other hand, the Schwartz campaign had plenty of ammunition against Entz. A couple of years ago, he cast the deciding vote to put Referendum A on the ballot, which proposed diverting water from Western Colorado to the Front Range. A strange move from a mountain potato farmer…voters from every single county in Colorado voted against the measure.
Some 527’s forgot all politics is local
In his column, DemNotes, first vice chair of the Democratic Party, Dan Slater relayed his experience campaigning with Democratic House District 55 incumbent, Bernie Buescher and SD7 candidate, Dana Barker. Slater mentioned that both Democratic and Republican voters have been “disgusted” by the estimated half million dollar anti-Buescher TV campaign by 527 organizations such as Trailhead.
Slater wrote:
The neighborhood we walked was filled with Republicans — easily half of the houses were “double Republican” homes. Yet, not once did somebody suggest they would not be voting for Bernie. Republicans and Democrats alike love Bernie Buescher: “Of course I’m voting for Bernie!” and “I already voted and I voted for Bernie!” were common replies at the door. Nobody mentioned the ad blitz against Bernie, other than to say it stiffened their resolve to vote for him even more.
Rifle, CO 81650: “If it ain’t elk, it ain’t art.”
Bob Beauprez’s campaign should have enlisted the help from folks in Rifle before publicizing their “training- elk” wildlife initiative. Living in an area located in the heart of the largest elk herd in the world in the White River National Forest, about every Rifle-ite is an elk expert and not one person has claimed an elk can be trained to do anything it doesn’t want to do.
How serious are Rifle-ites about their elk? Let’s take a couple block tour:
This elk statue is located at Rifle’s entryway into the downtown area.
Who’s going to argue about elk habits with this retailer? 
Rifle warns drivers about elk, not playing children.
For more feedback about Beauprez’s “training elk” initiative, read this Grand Junction Daily Sentinel editorial.
Photos by Leslie Robinson
