Scott McInnis

With the Colorado Republican Party possibly facing possible losses in the presidential, U.S. Senate, and 4th Congressional District races, among others, many say the party will have a post-election internal debate about possibly shifting the party to a more centrist position.

And, it's uncertain if that debate will be civil.

Former U.S. Rep. Scott McInnis (R-Grand Junction) told the Colorado Independent on Tuesday that he would have beat Democrat Mark Udall in this year's U.S. Senate race.

"I would have beat Udall, that wasn't the issue," McInnis said to the liberal news Web site. "Frankly I have more difficulties with the right wing of my party then I do with taking on a Democrat. Udall was not the biggest threat I faced in the election. My biggest threat was getting through the primary. Both parties have a pretty radical element to them."

Former Congressman and onetime U.S. Senate candidate Scott McInnis said he expects liberal 527s to dump major amounts of money into the U.S. Senate race after Labor Day, according to the Grand Junction Sentinel's Political Notebook.

"My guess is the 527 in Colorado, if you could track it, on each side will spend a minimum of $5 million or more. ... I think Colorado's going to have a U.S. Senate race somewhere in the $15 (million) to $20 million range," McInnis said to told Political Notebook's Mike Saccone

"They'll spend millions," McInnis continued. "It's very unfortunate. That's money that doesn't have to be disclosed. Basically they can get away with very generous contributions (and) very limited disclosure."

McInnis offered the recent contests in state House District 55 - held by state Rep. Bernie Buescher's (D-Grand Junction) - as an example of how influential 527 ads can be. In 2006, Saccone pointed out, 527 ads crowded out ads by the campaigns themselves.

You know its Friday because you get the latest comments, emails and threats from Wally's World. In this supersized edition of Feedback, we talk about polls and endorsements. But we promise that because of the use chemical sweeteners in this column, it won't affect your weight loss plan. So read all you want! It's the weekend.     

Former Republican U.S. Rep. Scott McInnis announced his endorsement today of Republican Wil Armstrong, candidate for the 6th Congressional District seat seeking to replace retiring U.S. Rep. Tom Tancaredo (R-Littleton).

In a statement released this afternoon, McInnis cited Armstrong's leadership skills, energy conservation policy, and his "real world experience" as reasons for the endorsement.

"He is the best man to shake up Washington and get it back on the right track," said McInnis, who represented the 3rd Congressional District from 1993 until 2005. "Wil's got a record of principled leadership in the business world and will take that experience to clean up Congress."