WASHINGTON – Today, Americans for Tax Reform (ATR) , the nation’s leading taxpayer group, announced that it is highly confidant Republican candidate Peter Coors would protect taxpayer’s rights and work to expand the economy as a U.S. Senator from Colorado.

Coors, Chairman of both Coors Brewing and Adolph Coors Companies, is vying against Attorney General Ken Salazar for an open Colorado Senate seat. He has received ATR’s accolades as he has proven to be a strong supporter of taxpayers\’ rights and vowed to oppose all efforts to increase taxes.

“Voters in Colorado can rest assured Coors won’t vote to raise taxes,” said Grover Norquist , president of ATR . “Coors put it on paper that he would stand for taxpayer’s rights; Salazar makes a lot of campaign promises but refuses to put his word in writing.”

Coors signed ATR’s “Taxpayer Protection Pledge," a written commitment to the taxpayers in a candidate\’s state to oppose any and all tax increases, joining President George W. Bush, 42 U.S. senators, and 217 members of the U.S. House of Representatives in signing the pledge. Salazar refused to take the Pledge.

Thirty-five years of bottom-line business experience are an asset for Coors in achieving his goals of boosting Colorado’s economy and creating jobs. In his budget proposal, Coors announced a plan to bring tax relief to Colorado’s families, making Bush’s tax cuts permanent and offering targeted tax cuts for ranchers, rural businesses and members of the National Guard among others. He also hopes to eliminate budget deficits by focusing on spending restraint.

Salazar also makes creating jobs and economic opportunity a priority but is hazy on how he would carry out such a policy. He claims himself to be a tax-cutter but believes in “realistic” tax policies, claiming on his campaign website that you can’t have funding for the military, homeland security and domestic needs while permanently cutting taxes at the same time.

“Anything can be a domestic need. Salazar is using John Kerry-speak for \’I’m gonna raise your taxes.\’” said Norquist.