Republican Rep. Cory Gardner is criticizing Democratic Sen. Mark Udall in a new TV ad over the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria.
In the ad, Gardner says that Udall has missed Armed Services Committee hearings and hearings on “emerging threats” before replaying a clip of Udall saying that the Islamic State does not present an “imminent threat” to the United States.
“Mark Udall’s wrong, and absent when it counts,” the ad’s voiceover says.
Gardner’s line of attack is not surprising. Voters remain skeptical of President Obama’s strategy for combatting the Islamic State, and the issue is fresh enough that Republicans feel it could have a real impact.
Udall said recently that the Islamic State was not a direct threat to U.S. national security. The Gardner campaign is spending six figures on a statewide television buy for this ad, according to officials.
The Colorado Senate race is a jump ball, according to the RealClearPolitics average of recent surveys.
