Group Launches Website Linking Colorado's Bob Schaffer To Abramoff

Denver, CO (AHN) - A website has been launched by a liberal group linking Bob Schaffer, the Republican candidate for Colorado's Senate seat, to convicted lobbyist Jack Abramoff.

The site SchafferScandals.com links Schaffer to Ambramoff and oil excutives such as Alex Cranberg. It was launched by a group called ProgressNowAction. The site chronicles allegations against the Republican candidate, as well as reports Schaffer is unlikely to dispute such as Federal Election Commission data that said he had so far received $30,000 in campaign contributions from Cranberg and Cranberg's wife.

Schaffer, a former U.S. congressman, has been beleaguered by controversies surrounding his association with Abramoff and his support for a widely panned energy plan backed by President George W. Bush.

Abramoff, who was sentenced by a court to four years in prison on Thursday in a public corruption case, reportedly paid $13,000 through a non-profit for a trip Schaffer made to the Northern Mariana Islands in 1999.

The website was launched just as pundits had said Schaffer was gaining momentum in the race against Rep. Mark Udall (D-CO) because of growing public support for offshore oil drilling. Udall recently reworked his stance on coastal exploration and released new TV ads touting an energy plan that combined "responsible drilling" in the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) with the development of alternative energy sources.

Schaffer currently trails Rep. Mark Udall (D-CO), 31-39 percent, according to the latest Suffolk University poll. He and Udall will will meet for their first general election debate on Saturday at the Club 20 Fall Debate.