Editors note: This is the Journals weekly roundup of campaign news.
Republican Mitt Romneys choice of Paul Ryan as his running mate gave the ticket a bump, but not a game change, according to a poll of battleground states that includes Colorado.
The Purple Poll of the 12 states most likely to decide the election found Romney ahead 47 percent to 46 percent, up three points from July.
In Colorado, though, President Barack Obama led Romney 49 percent to 46 percent.
Strikingly, 94 percent of Colorado respondents said they were certain about the way they would vote and will not change their mind. The numbers were similar in other states.
So with 11 weeks left in the campaign, only 1 in 20 people is still undecided.
CUT it out: U.S. Rep. Scott Tiptons campaign called out his Democratic opponent, Sal Pace, for bragging about Paces ratings from a conservative anti-tax group.
During an Aug. 8 debate in Alamosa, Pace pointed to his rating by the Colorado Union of Taxpayers, or CUT, where he scored third highest among Democrats. CUT typically downgrades legislators for votes that could conceivably raise taxes or fees.
But Tiptons campaign manager, Michael Fortney, said that while Pace was indeed the third-highest Democrat in 2012, his score was nothing to brag about. Pace got a positive score of 17 percent, according to CUTs methodology.
Its very misleading to say hes the third-highest Democrat, Fortney said. Its not a very pro-taxpayer record.
Jobs blown away: Windmill maker Vestas said this week it would lay off 90 people at its Pueblo facility as a result of Congress not taking action to extend a wind tax credit.
Pace blamed Tipton for the bad news, saying Tipton has failed to sponsor a bill or amendment or to press Republican leaders of the House to extend the tax credit.
Let me be clear, Tiptons inaction is failing our community, Pace said in a news release.
Help track political ads: The Journal wants help in tracking political fliers. If you get one in the mail, you can take a picture of it and email it to joeh@cortezjournal.com, or tweet it with the hashtag #flierwatch.
Countdown: 80 days until the November election.
joeh@cortezjournal.com
