Barela has hired Sara Lister as campaign manager. She also managed Darren White in his unsuccessful run against Heinrich. That was the cause for complaints among R's Wednesday night who are not aligned with White and who noted his criticism this week of moderate ABQ GOP State Rep. Janice-Arnold Jones. But Barela said he wants to leave the bitterness and division behind and "move forward." That may be a challenge if the personalities of the past are set up to clash over the direction of his campaign.

Barela would be the first GOP Hispanic nominee for the ABQ seat since Manuel Lujan left the position in 1989. But first Barela will apparently have to get past funeral home owner Kevin Daniels who is indicating that he will launch his own GOP bid for the House seat next month.

WATCHDOGS WATCHING

From ABQ Journal investigative reporter Thom Cole:

Read with interest this line from your blog Wednesday: "To our way of thinking, the big New Mexico journalism story is how the state could practically be carted away in pay to play schemes while the journalism watchdogs failed to give us a clue about what was happening."

As far as the Journal goes, I think you need to review the record of the past 6 1/2 years.

The Journal has traditionally had a strong and respected investigative team and that tradition continues today. The campaign finance coverage in the early Richardson years (2002-2005) was lighter than today and news reports about contributors getting contracts with the state would quickly fade after the Guv returned the money. Little follow-up occurred by law enforcement or the press. And here we are today. There's not much more to analyze than the Journal which in the past year has been hitting on all cylinders on the pay-to-play scandals. The ABQ Tribune is gone and there is little other media with either the financial wherewithal or the desire to do in-depth reporting. Most are struggling to meet daily news diets.

Driven by funding from national nonprofit groups, the state lately has received a large dose of agenda-driven, progressive journalism and blogs. But now New Mexico faces the prospect of big nonprofit money flooding into political campaigns without full disclosure or accountability. Because of their financial ties to the nonprofits, this new wave of journalists is seriously compromised and hard-pressed to investigate with credibility what appears to be the next big ethics and money story. That leads back to the Journal which (along with KRQE-TV's Larry Barker) is the last vestige of independent investigative reporting. But in a small and financially challenged state and with the business model for all newspapers under severe pressure, that may be as good as it gets.

DICK MORRIS ON BILL

The pay to play scandals in the state have become fodder for Republican consultant and commentator Dick Morris. He uses Big Bill's troubles to help promote his latest book, "Catastrophe," which Morris says will tell:

How Senator Roland Burris and his patron Gov. Rob Blagojevich have made money through pay to play schemes. And how Pennsylvania Governor Ed Rendell and New Mexico's Bill Richardson are following their example.

The investigations into Richardson's administration center on pay to play for campaign contributions, not his personal use. But books must be sold...

FROM THE E-MAIL
Lew Wallace
A reader writes on the appointment this week of Los Angeles native Sergio Garcia as the deputy executive director of the NM GOP:

The Republican Hispanic bench must be so thin they need to import party operatives from out of state. (GOP Chairman) Yates should know better than to expect anyone from out of state to do well in New Mexico.

"All experience gathered elsewhere fails in New Mexico."-- Gov. Lew Wallace. circa 1880.

Actually, the precise quote from territorial Governor Wallace is: "Every calculation based on experience elsewhere fails in New Mexico."

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(c)NM POLITICS WITH JOE MONAHAN 2009
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