Mayor Larry Delgado
Forget Big Bill. Put Saint Pete on ice. Hands down, the most important New Mexico political figure of 2005 thus far has been Santa Fe Mayor Larry Delgado. How's that? Delgado touched off a coast-to-coast debate over the future of the nation's oldest capitol city when he proposed that the City Different purchase over two billion gallons of water from the Estancia Basin south of the city. It was a gutsy, in-your-face call rare for a politician; one that will ring in the ears of future generations of New Mexicans.

"Delgado has made public our dirty little secret. New Mexico does not have a water shortage as much as it has a water allocation problem. The move to reduce agricultural use and divert it to cities like Santa Fe will be the biggest issue of the century. Delgado is the first warrior in the battle," remarked a tapped-in Santa Fe politico.

Before his city council said no, Delgado not only wanted to spend $26 million to buy water rights from a group of agricultural users willing to sell, he wanted to put up another $100 million to pipe in the water! This, in one of the most "green" cities in America.

"Delgado may be accused of being in the pockets of the developers, but he's reflecting a vision of a lot of people. Agriculture is a declining industry. It's that water that city dwellers will eventually get. The screaming and kicking will go on for years, but when push comes to shove, I think Delgado's viewpoint will prevail. Trouble is, he probably won't be around to see it," said our Santa Fe insider.

Visionary or madman? Whatever the case, Santa Fe's Larry Delgado has secured himself a prominent place in the history of La Politica. Don't say we didn't tell you.

OUR RECORD BREAKING WEEK

We had a visitor explosion here this week and I want to welcome our many new readers. We have Heather Wilson to thank. We blogged of the GOP ABQ Congresswoman's difficulty with the Prez's hot-potato Social Security reform plan which was picked up by national blog Talking Points Memo. That link translated into over 6,000 new visitors here. I know we are in a sea change when it comes to media in the U.S., but I feel like I am riding a tidal wave. Thanks for your continued support.

MY MEDIA CORNER

Insiders at KOB-TV 4 in ABQ report that come April the station plans a 4 p.m. newscast to compete with KRQE-TV 13. Veteran Nelson Martinez is slated to anchor the program and will be paired with a female anchor. The new offering will expand KOB's news presence, but some insiders worry that it could strain manpower at the newsroom.....On its 10 p.m news last night, KOB-TV announced that "Eyewitness News has learned" that ex Mora State Rep. Bengie Regensburg was planning on challenging Big Bill for the 06' Dem Guv nomination. Hey Eyewitness News, you learned that from www.joemonahan.com Tuesday. Did you forget?......Dianne Anderson, formerly of KOAT-TV, had the line of the week when she told me at the launch party for her new radio gig: "I look forward to having bad hair days and no one knowing about them." The comely blonde will do an afternoon talk show on 106.3 FM in ABQ/S. Fe and will follow Larry Ahrens who will take on morning chores at the station come mid-March.

Over at liberal talk radio station KABQ AM 1350, listeners are getting a dose of a famous TV personality. Jerry Springer is on the air, sitting in for Randi Rhodes who's on medical leave. Springer is on the Air America affiliate here from 4 to 7 p.m. The station might want to pay a bit more attention to its product though. Often, two tapes are running at once making the program and news unintelligible. Of course, the R's would say the whole station, with or without technical problems, is unintelligible.

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(c)NM POLITICS WITH JOE MONAHAN 2005
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