FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: May 13, 2026

Media Contact:
Nate Jackson
(903-638-1874)
[email protected] 

Michael Bennet is Running an Empty Campaign – and His Attacks on Phil Weiser are BS

DENVER, CO – In response to the growing and misleading attacks against Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser from U.S. Sen. Michael Bennet’s Washington, D.C., establishment-style campaign – which is fueled by out-of-state billionaires, big corporations, and dark money – Weiser’s campaign for governor today is calling out Bennet’s attacks for what they are: BS.

1. All of the misleading attacks from Michael Bennet’s campaign in one place – and why they’re BS

Bennet’s claim: 

“Colorado needs a leader, not a lawyer.”

Why it’s BS:

The community note on Bennet’s X post says it all: 

Bennet’s claim:

Phil has only led four lawsuits.

Why it’s BS:

Phil has filed 64 lawsuits and counting against the second Trump administration – and he’s led 16 cases.

Bennet’s reference to “only four lawsuits” was likely reached by simply counting the number of times Colorado’s name is listed first on lawsuit cover pages. Bennet’s facts are simply wrong. And he apparently needs to hire better lawyers who know their stuff.

It takes all hands on deck to fight Trump, and Phil works on a team of Democratic attorneys general who each take point on different cases. Phil is an unquestioned leader in that group, and his team is involved with every case they join – no matter where Colorado is on the cover page, providing strategy and legal support to each one. And Colorado is better for it. Phil and his team have protected over $1.2 billion for our state from being part of these lawsuits.

To underscore Phil’s impact and leadership, four current governors and former attorneys general – in North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, and Washington – have endorsed Phil. No current governors have endorsed Bennet.

Bennet’s claim:

“Phil Weiser is misleading voters (don’t fall for it)” – Bennet campaign fundraising email, 5/10/26

Why it’s BS:

Bennet’s campaign is so desperate to try to raise money in Colorado that they’re attacking Phil’s character.

Their campaign’s fundraising email attempts to frame Phil as a political opportunist by highlighting the following quote from an article published June 17, 2019, in The Colorado Sun: “Weiser has not been as active as the country’s other Democratic attorneys general in pushing back against the Trump administration.”

THE VERY NEXT LINE IN THE SAME ARTICLE: “Pennsylvania’s Josh Shapiro, California’s Xavier Becerra and New York’s Letitia James are names more synonymous with the partisan battle against the Trump administration. Granted, they’ve been in office far longer than Weiser.”

ALSO FROM THE SAME ARTICLE: 

• “‘There is going to be an ongoing opportunity for us to join a range of lawsuits that are protecting our Colorado way of life (and) our population and standing up for the rule of law,’ Weiser said. The Democrat wasted little time.”
• “Through his first six months in office, Weiser has joined or launched eight lawsuits against President Donald Trump and his cabinet and filed six additional briefs in support of legal challenges to the current administration.”

Bennet’s claim: 

In August 2019, Weiser refused to join 20 Democratic attorneys general fighting to prevent the “prolonged detention” of immigrant children.

Why it’s BS:

Bennet’s campaign is trying to claim that Phil – the child and grandchild of refugees – hasn’t stood up for immigrants as attorney general. That’s completely false.

In Trump’s first term, Phil filed critical lawsuits against the Trump administration to protect Colorado’s immigrant community, including:

• In January 2019, Phil sued to challenge the addition of a citizenship question to the 2020 census – and won at the U.S. Supreme Court.
• In March 2019, Phil sued to defend the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program – and won at the U.S. Supreme Court. 
• In March 2019, Phil sued to protect millions of dollars for public safety that the Trump administration threatened to withhold because Colorado refused to cooperate with federal immigration enforcement – and won.
• In October 2019, Phil challenged the Trump administration’s changes to the “public charge” definition, which unfairly targeted immigrants and their families.

Interestingly, Bennet voted to confirm the head of Trump’s Customs and Border Protection – Kevin McAleenan – who put those kids in cages. Nineteen Democratic Senators opposed his nomination – but not Bennet.

Bennet’s claim:

In May 2020, Phil refused to join 18 Democratic attorneys general fighting to defend the “waters of the U.S.” rule as the Trump administration tried to gut the Clean Water Act.

Why it’s BS:

The exact same month the lawsuit mentioned above was filed, Phil filed his own lawsuit against the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, challenging the proposed new definition of “waters of the U.S.” that are protected under the Clean Water Act. Phil’s lawsuit – which won a preliminary injunction – argued that the new 2020 rule “will leave a substantial portion of Colorado’s streams and wetlands without federal protection and jeopardize the integrity and quality of Colorado’s waters.” 

Bennet’s claim:

In September 2020, Phil refused to join 15 Democratic attorneys general fighting to stop Trump’s plans to authorize oil and gas drilling on public lands in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.

Why it’s BS:

Phil didn’t have standing (or the right to sue) – a requirement the courts impose on all plaintiffs – to join this lawsuit since the state of Colorado wouldn’t have been harmed. The state of Washington was the lead on this case and eventually voluntarily dismissed their lawsuit to support the lawsuit led by Native American groups in Alaska, which clearly had the right to sue.

Interestingly, Bennet voted to advance the Keystone Pipeline, including voting with U.S. Senate Republicans to override President Obama’s veto to block its construction. Why, then, is he attacking Phil on this? It’s unclear.

Additionally, in January 2021, Phil sued to overturn a Bureau of Land Management plan to expand oil drilling on 680,000 acres of public land in western Colorado.

Bennet’s claim:

In June 2020, Phil refused to join 16 Democratic attorneys general fighting to defend clean air standards from coal and oil-fired power plants.

Why it’s BS:

In Trump’s first term, Phil filed or joined 15 lawsuits against the Trump administration focused on protecting Colorado’s climate and our land, air, and water, including:

• In August 2019, Phil sued to challenge the EPA’s rollback of clean air standards and climate rules.
• In September 2019, Phil sued to challenge the federal government’s unlawful regulation to preempt the state’s Zero-Emission Vehicle (ZEV) standards, which are a key part of state efforts to protect public health and the environment.
• In May 2020, Phil sued to challenge the federal government’s final rule rolling back the national clean car standards.
• In September 2020, Phil sued to challenge the EPA’s final rule rescinding standards that limit emissions of methane, volatile organic compounds (VOC), and other hazardous pollutants from new, reconstructed, and modified facilities in the oil and natural gas industry.

Bennet’s claim:

Phil failed to fight for our elections.

Why it’s BS:

• In December 2020, Phil sued to oppose a Texas lawsuit challenging the results of the 2020 presidential election – and won. 
• In August 2020, Phil sued to challenge drastic operational changes at the U.S. Postal Service that threatened critical mail delivery and could have undermined the 2020 presidential election.

2. Michael Bennet is running an empty campaign fueled by dark money, big corporations, and out-of-state billionaires

Perhaps the most obvious sign that Michael Bennet is running an empty Washington, D.C., establishment campaign is that he still refuses to say who he would appoint as his replacement to represent Colorado in the U.S. Senate if he’s elected governor. The Denver Post editorial board had something to say about that:

On the campaign trail, Phil has shown up to forums that Bennet has backed out of. When they have appeared together – such as at Indivisible Colorado’s virtual candidate forum in February – Phil has dominated. Following that forum, the statewide grassroots coalition’s thousands of members voted “strongly in Weiser’s favor” to endorse him for governor.

3. Phil Weiser is the grassroots candidate who always has – and always will – show up and fight for Coloradans each and every day

• Phil has filed 64 lawsuits and counting against the Trump administration – and he’s winning again and again. Phil also filed 30-plus lawsuits against the first Trump administration, and since being sworn in as Colorado’s attorney general in 2019, Phil’s standard has always been the same: Was the law violated, and was Colorado harmed? If so – Phil sues.
• In May, Phil announced a historic $6 million fundraising total – and in that same report detailed that 93% of his donors were from Coloradans – officially breaking the record for most money raised by a non-self-funding statewide candidate in Colorado history.

For more information, visit https://philforcolorado.com/. 

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