DCCC makes major CO-4 ad buy

Congressional candidate Betsy Markey: Campaign PhotoThe Democratic Congressional Campaign Commitee has reserved $667,000 worth of TV ad time in the 4th Congressional District, Real Clear Politics is reporting.

The ad buy of about 2,000 points is part of a $34.5 million media blitz by the cash-flush DCCC in 31 House races around the country, according to RCP's Reid Wilson.

The DCCC has a major financial advantage over the National Republican Congressional Committee: through the end of May, the DCCC had $47.1 million in the bank, compared to the NRCC's 6.65 million.

The $667,000 isn't fixed in stone, however. The DCCC has simply reserved the ad time -- the idea being to lock in a fixed price before other campaigns and commercial advertisers buy the remaining ad time and drive up prices, Wilson stated.

The DCCC can later choose to alter the ad buy based on how the CO-4 race is going.

With at least one poll showing former Larimer County Democratic Party Chair Betsy Markey leading incumbent U.S. Rep. Marilyn Musgrave in the CO-4 race, the DCCC has started to use its significant financial resources on Markey's behalf.

Last month, Markey was one of 13 Democratic candidates selected to join the DCCC's "Red to Blue" program -- meaning Markey will get help from Democratic strategists, on-the-ground support from the DCCC, and a likely six-figure fundraising boost.