Ineffective. That’s the message that resonated and stuck Friday night in a debate between Sen. Michael Bennet and Republican challenger Joe O’Dea in Fort Collins. The debate was broadcast by 9 News Denver and co-sponsored by Colorado Politics and The Gazettes in Denver and Colorado Springs.

O’Dea repeatedly reminded the audience of Bennet’s abysmal 13-year record of initiating one bill that became law. That law established a technical wording change regarding eligibility for membership in Blue Star Mothers of America. O’Dea didn’t say it, but we can assume construction executives who start and finish one building in 13 years go broke.

Bennet insisted “one bill in 13 years” claim – which Gazette research discovered weeks ago – is a lie. Sorry, senator, but congressional records don’t lie. Bennet claims the number is a lie because he has sponsored several bills in 13 years that have become part of other bills that became laws. Yet, the fact remains Bennet can take credit for initiating one standalone bill that became law.

Comparing apples to apples, former Sen. Cory Gardner sponsored 10 substantive bills that became law in just six years. Bennet’s predecessor, Democratic Sen. Ken Salazar, sponsored three bills that became laws in the four years he served before accepting a presidential appointment.

Before Salazar, Sen. Ben Nighthorse Campbell sponsored 39 bills that became law in less time than Bennet has served.

It wasn’t only O’Dea who made Bennet look ineffective. Bennet made Bennet look ineffective. When a moderator asked what he might do about the fentanyl crisis, Bennet said Congress must push much harder on China and Mexico and strengthen the border and law enforcement. Oh, and let’s help opioid addicts get well.

That’s all sounds perfect. But Coloradans have been losing loved ones to this scourge since 2020. It’s late 2022, and Bennet has done none of what he says he might start doing now. That’s ineffective procrastination we cannot afford.

O’Dea hammered home the “ineffective” theme best when he cornered Bennet on the lingering potential of Colorado losing Space Command to Alabama. Bennet said keeping Space Command in Colorado is essential to maintaining national defense during a time of world unrest.

It’s more important than ever, Bennet said, because Alabama forbids most abortions which means no one wants to move there. He seriously went to abortion in a question about Space Command.

The moderator asked what he’s doing to keep Space Command here.

“I’m making that argument to every level of the White House, the Department of Defense and Congress,” Bennet said.

O’Dea pounced on Bennet for “talking” instead of acting.

“That’s the difference between a contractor and politicians,” O’Dea said. “I’m going to use my seat.”

O’Dea correctly pointed out that Bennet had countless opportunities in a 50-50 divided Senate to hold up a bill in exchange for a presidential promise of keeping Space Command in Colorado. He would use such tactics in the tradition of West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin.

“All Michael Bennet had to do was say ‘I’m going to hold up this appointment, or this bill.’ Instead of doing a photo shoot at Camp Hale, I’d have dragged the president through Colorado Springs to show him how important Space Command is” to the community and Colorado’s economy.

O’Dea had Bennet on the defensive most of the night. If he wasn’t proving the senator’s ineffectiveness, he was convincingly blaming Bennet for rubber-stamping President Joe Biden’s spending bills. He blamed the spending for inflation.

A back-and-forth about the need for 85,000 new IRS agents, which Bennet supported, led to the senator telling a whopper of a lie. He claimed the richest Americans are “never” audited by the IRS.

In one awkward moment, Bennet clearly appeared caught off guard after a moderator asked him to pose a question to O’Dea. After seconds passed, Bennet came up with a weird question that only cast more light on O’Dea’s “ineffectiveness” points. Bennet asked O’Dea why he keeps saying one bill in 13 years.

Again, congressional records don’t lie. Bennet can take sole credit for only one bill.

The next 11 days will be an uphill battle for O’Dea in a state that favors Democrats. Sen. Bennet should be thankful most voters don’t watch debates.

Colorado Springs Gazette Editorial Board