Bennet and Coffman Campaign Advertisements: Subtle and Explicit

Michael Bennet has recently aired an ad focusing on his wife Susan and his daughters.  The ad portrays Bennet as a Colorado family man who wants the best education he can get for his children and to ensure that they can live freely and safe in Colorado.  The intent of the ad has little to do with real politics.  No policy views or specific points were made, just an overall effort to try and show how devoted to family Michael Bennet is. 

Showing his wife at this stage also serves as a reminder for how well Bennet has done among women voters in the past.  During his 2010 election, our paper reported that Bennet received 56 percent of the female vote, while his opponent Ken Buck only obtained 40 percent.  This very well may have carried Bennet to the Senate in 2010.  In that race, Ken Buck was known as a detestable character for many women.  Buck was known for his views on banning rape in all cases, without exception, and for failing to prosecute an alleged rapist.  The Bennet ad showing his wife as a focal point, not even having himself in the ad at all, is yet again another effort to ensure women that he believes in their independence and subtly stating that Coffman espouses dissimilar, less female-friendly values.

Mike Coffman still has some work to do with women.  He has voted against the Paycheck Fairness Act, the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, and the Children’s Health Insurance Program, all very popular amongst women.  While he does believe that rape ought not to be permissible in cases of rape or incest, there is still much ground to be made with the female demographic.

The recent ad run by the Coffman campaign tries to shift focus away from the supposed anti-women sentiment.  H.R. 3 is the No Taxpayer Funding for Abortion Act.  Part of the controversy of the bill was the original use of the term “forcible rape,” implying that there may be another type of rape.  In the final bill, however, this language was excluded.  Coffman supports the bill on economic grounds.  He believes that the focus should be on providing affordable and responsible health care for all women.  The ad expresses that the cost of taxpayer funded abortions is excessive and unnecessary, stating; “H.R. 3 keeps from forcing extra taxes upon hard working families.” 

While in the Senate, Michael Bennet was a co-sponsor on a nearly identical bill.  Senate Amendment 2962 was titled Prohibiting Federally Funded Abortion Services.  The interesting part of it is that only one day later, he voted to table the bill instead keeping the amendment alive and allowing it to be further considered.  The reason for such a rapid change of heart is uncertain.  But such an attitude says that he may not be willing to stick to his principles in the face of political pressure, as he was one of three democrats to sponsor the bill along with 14 republicans.  He shifted his views the very next day. 

For both candidates, it may be a war of words over the truth to win the women vote.