Phil Weiser – the Democratic Party nominee for Colorado Attorney General – secured three big endorsements this month from key newspapers in Colorado: Aurora Sentinel, Colorado Springs Independent and Grand Junction Daily Sentinel.

All three editorials emphasize two important reasons why Phil Weiser is the best choice for AG in November:

1. Phil’s wide-ranging legal and leadership experience; and
2. His intentions to protect Coloradans from federal overreach and those that would seek to harm the people of Colorado and the state’s resources.

The Aurora Sentinel Editorial Board explains why Weiser’s qualifications are best for the AG role:

“It’s clear, however, that Weiser’s superior experience in constitutional and policy law is a winning trait, having practiced and taught it. It makes him the person you’d want guiding which legal tactics and arguments to use in cases against the federal government or against big corporations. At stake is Colorado’s right to save sage grouse habitat, the state’s nascent marijuana industry, its right to keep the feds from forcing police to act as immigration officers, its need to regulate a fair and workable internet, and protecting Colorado consumers from complicated and global fraud efforts.”

And The Sentinel calls out the GOP AG candidate’s ad campaigns as “inaccurate nonsense”:

“So when Arapahoe County District Attorney George Brauchler echoes inaccurate nonsense that Weiser isn’t qualified to hold the job, he’s wrong. In fact, it’s Weiser’s qualifications and experience that wins our endorsement and should win that of anyone who thinks this through.”

Check out the full Aurora Sentinel endorsement here: “ Experience does count as Colorado AG, and Weiser’s gives him an edge over Brauchler”

In the Colorado Springs Independent, the endorsement highlights the importance of electing an AG in Colorado that will proactively protect the people and fight for Colorado values:

“[A]s the Trump administration continues its attack on basic norms, it appears that a little activism might be exactly what we need to protect what’s precious about Colorado. Besides, we’re not convinced that Brauchler is nonpartisan. We think he just agrees with the current administration.

Weiser talks a lot about fighting for consumer protections, particularly for students gouged by predatory lenders, at a time when the federal government is deregulating. He says he’d work to protect provisions of the Affordable Care Act that have allowed thousands of Coloradans to get health insurance. The child and grandchild of Holocaust survivors, he’d battle the federal government’s illegal attacks on law-abiding immigrants and fight to protect DREAMers. As the Trump administration continues to dismantle the Environmental Protection Agency, Weiser says he’d defend laws that keep our air and water clean, and allow Colorado to continue its good work toward a clean energy future. He also says he’d protect our marijuana industry and options for women’s health care — both targets of the federal government.”

The Indy closed the endorsement with the message, “We need an AG that will battle for states’ rights, and stand up for the Colorado we love”—read the full endorsement here.

The Grand Junction Daily Sentinel, which endorsed two Republicans for statewide office the same day the editorial board put their support behind Weiser, focused on Weiser’s superior qualifications for the job and the need for a fighter in the OAG.

“The sum of his experience is more practical, we think, than being an expert on courtroom procedure. The attorney general must not only understand how state and federal laws intersect, he or she must be able to direct a large staff lawyers to advise the executive branch and its agencies on carrying out the law.”

On Phil’s vision for protecting the rights of Coloradans from federal overreach and harm, The Daily Sentinel notes:

“The attorney general’s staff addresses a complex array of legal issues — from consumer protection and water law to antitrust cases, environmental protection and federal overreach. Weiser has taken licks for weighing in on policy issues that affect Coloradans — like supporting a ballot measure that caps interest rates on payday loans or promising to make pharmaceutical companies responsible for treatment of opioid addiction. Apparently some people think that makes him an activist. We think it makes him an intimidating watchdog.”

Check out the full Grand Junction Daily Sentinel endorsement here.

Echoed in an op-ed in the Colorado Sun authored by Governor John W. Hickenlooper’s chief legal counsel, past and present, who have worked with 2 different (Republican) AGs daily for the past 8 year, the key message of these three endorsements is that experience matters, and that Phil Weiser is the candidate with the experience to put the people of Colorado first.