Can Colorado Families Trust Rick O'Donnell To Stand up to Big Energy?

While Colorado Families Suffer at the Gas Pump, Rick O'Donnell Refuses to Return Tainted Energy Money, Offers More of the Same Cozy GOP Relationship with Special Interests

Pat Waak, Chairwoman of the Colorado Democratic Party, today issued the following statement:

While Colorado families continue to pay staggering prices at the gas pump, Rick O'Donnell holds tight to campaign contributions he obtained by selling privileged access to energy companies. Despite recent reports in the press that confirm that on March 9, a lobbyist for Xcel and executives of El Paso Natural Gas, the Colorado Mining Association and the Colorado Petroleum Association, among others, paid Rick O'Donnell's campaign for face time with the EPA Administrator, Rick O'Donnell has yet to return the unethical contributions.

In trying to defend his actions, O'Donnell told the Rocky Mountain News that he thinks that in a democracy, "people have a right and a responsibility to put their money where their mouth is." [Rocky Mountain News, April 19, 2006]

While Rick O'Donnell may believe that the special interests have a "responsibility" to try to buy his support for their agendas, hard-working Coloradoans still believe that they deserve a Representative who will fight for Colorado families regardless of whether or not they can afford to cut a $1000 check to a political campaign.

As Coloradoans struggle to afford to fill up their gas tanks, Rick O'Donnell owes them answers. Why is he holding on to money he obtained by currying favor with the energy industry? Can Colorado families trust him to stand up for their interests in Washington if he is already selling access to lobbyists here in Colorado?

We need new priorities in Washington. Colorado families deserve a Representative who will stand up for them, not Rick O'Donnell, who believes that only the special interest lobbyists and lawyers who can pay for access deserve to have their voices heard.