Here's a pic we came across of the five current members of the Bernalillo County Commission. They are the latest in a very, very long line of leaders.

Bernalillo County was established in 1852 as one of the nine original counties created by the Territorial Legislature. It was one of the seven Partidos created during Mexican rule. It may have been named for the Gonzales-Bernal family that lived in the area before 1692.

Pictured left to right are Dem Commission Chairman Art De La Cruz, Republican Michael Wiener, Dem Alan Armijo, Dem Maggie Hart Stebbins and Republican Michael Brasher.

Brasher, 59, has been around local government since 1989, as both a city councilor and county commissioner. He is term limited and will end his eight years on the commission and probably his political career in 2010. Armijo is also winding up a lengthy politcal stint. Like Brasher, he served on the city council and is finishing up eight years on the commission. Both seats will be taken over by new faces in '10.

Another interesting race to watch next year--if it develops--will be any Dem primary challenge to Commissoner Hart Stebbins who was appointed to her seat to fill the unexpired term of Deanna Archuleta.

Bernalillo County today has a population of over 635,000, or 32 percent of New Mexico's population of 1,984,000.

SANTA FE SCENE

The March city election in Santa Fe will be all about the economy, or should be. One city council candidate there emails to tell us he gets it:

I read your bit on the "Santa Fe Slump," and couldn't help but direct you to my platform for Santa Fe City Council.

It's a restructuring of the government and an economic shakeup all together. The community-owned electric utility would give the city a stable source of income other than gross receipts tax, while the mentorship program would get the city focused on developing the economy beyond tourism. Both would help encourage local entrepreneurship.

Simon, 27, is an enviornmentalist who worked as a a reporter for the ABQ Journal North.

FOLLOWING THE MONEY

Hassan Nemazee and New Mexico's investments catches the attention of Forbes.

THE NEW FACES

Here's a complete list of the new department directors and their contact info at ABQ's City Hall. A couple of them still have "acting" directors, but most of them were appointed by Mayor Berry.

ANOTHER NEW FACE
Forrester
Here's a pic of 27 year old Scott Forrester, the new executive director of the NM Democratic Party. Forrester is an Albuquerque native who attended St. Pius X High School. He worked with former ABQ Mayor Chavez as an executive assistant and was a top aide in the mayor's recent unsuccessful re-election bid. Forrester tells us he is gearing up for 2010 and the party is looking for a press aide. Javier Gonzales, the new party chair, tapped Forrester for the post. He succeeds Josh Geise who left the party on good terms. He should have. The Dems won just about everything in sight in the 2008 cycle.

MANNY'S CASTLE

This one had them talking this week. A video of the inside of "Manny's Castle." That would be the South Valley home of the now imprisoned former state Senate leader Manny Aragon.

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Mike Anaya
Not Again! So say some top NM Democrats as they assess the controversial land commission candidacy of Santa Fe County Commissioner Mike Anaya. The Dems have had a firm grasp on the lower tier statewide offices, but the land commission post has escaped them the past two cycles. R Pat Lyons has beaten two Dem opponents, both of whom brought a lot of baggage to the race. Now Dems are fretting that Anaya, if he manages to get the nomination, could meet the same fate. Here's the crux of the matter:

Back on the Guv beat, several readers come with an interesting take on the spending under Big Bill. They say the press constantly reminds us that state government grew some 50 percent since Bill took office in 2003, but they don't remind us of how little government grew in the previous eight years under Republican Governor Gary Johnson. They argue there was catching up to do from that administration as the state may have fallen behind in providing needed services.

We don't have the budgets from the Johnson years in front of us, but he did veto more spending bills than any other governor. As for the 50 percent growth, if the budget grew under Bill at a more subdued rate of 3 percent, we would still have had well over 20 percent growth which keeps the 50 percent number in perspective.

Not that we did not have a spending party and now the punch bowl has been pulled. But the set-up for that shopping spree was not only the large piles of cash generated by a boom economy, but also perhaps by pent-up demand for more government after nearly a decade of the parsimonious Johnson. After all, just about every Republican in the New Mexico Legislature voted for Big Bill's big spending.

MORE 1994
Gary Johnson
It was 1994 when Governor Gary was elected, and that election has proven to be an enduring topic of popularity around here. It came up again with the recent death of Governor Bruce King who lost to Gary Johnson that year as well as to Roberto Mondragon, the Green Party candidate who served two terms as Bruce's lieutenant governor.

John Lattuzio was chairman of the GOP IN '94. He is the latest to weigh in here on the race. From Alamogordo:

In all of the Monday morning quarterbacking that I’ve heard over his loss to Gary Johnson, one important issue is overlooked. And, that is the campaign to repeal the six cents per gallon gas tax that was created and administered by the NM Republican Party.

The reason this issue gets so little credit was its cost to the Party. My best estimate of the total cost was about $1,000.Just prior to the election, a barbecue was held in Belen that attracted close to 1,000 people. They all raised their hands and joined the ‘Posse’ organized to defeat the ‘Gas Tax Gang.’ The campaign was driven by the party faithful, and received more earned media for a campaign of this type than I had ever experienced.

Thanks for tuning in, John. That '94 race was also fascinating because of the challenge Bruce King received in the primary from Casey Luna, his lieutenant governor at the time and Jim Baca, who served as liquor director under King. Gary won the general election with 50% to Bruce's 40%. Roberto garnered 10 percent.

ABQ Federal Courthouse
Still no new US Attorney for New Mexico and no one is holding their breath. Not after this recent news:

The president has sent four nominees to fill U.S. Attorney positions, in the District of Wyoming, and the Eastern Districts of Wisconsin, North Carolina, and Michigan.

But no New Mexico.

The NM US attorney post is held by Republican Greg Fouratt, but Senator Bingaman is apparently in no hurry to get the White House to move to replace him with a Democrat. The various federal pay to play investigations here are thought to be the impediment. Dems don't want to look like they are interfering.

But with a full year of the administration almost gone, the position of US Attorney may start to look less appealing. By the time a new US attorney gets confirmed by the Senate, he may only have a two and a half year term or less before the President seeks re-election, and if he loses they are out. The less controversial position of US Marshal is also still held by a Republican. Can Senator Udall have some hearings in Rio Arriba, epicenter of a long running heroin plague? Or does the plague just pass to yet another generation?

THE NONDEBATE

A Guv debate set for tonight at 6 and sponsored by the conservative Rio Grande Foundation will not have a full house. Candidates Allen Weh and Susana Martinez, generally seen as the two conservative GOP contenders will be no shows. But the moderate GOP Guv hopefuls, Doug Turner and Janice Arnold-Jones, will be at the event at the ABQ museum. (Now we're getting word that Martinez will show.)

If either Weh or Martinez get the nomination, Dems will try to pigeon hole them as ultra conservatives, not appealing in a middle of the road state. Tonight's conservative forum might only complicate things.

SAY WHAT?

A newspaper editorial that is against a state ethics commission? That's a twist.

...if, or when, we get serious about busting crooks, we've already got the state's auditor and attorney general to put on their trail. Why not devote a half-million, if we had it, to the staffs of Hector Balderas or Gary King, instead of creating a whole new bureaucracy?

Political hacks, government contractors and lobbyists would be ineligible to sit on the (ethics) commission--but in this sparsely populated good-ol'-boy state, plenty of their buddies could serve. So what are the chances that even a majority of the 11-member commission could be trusted?

And what are the chances the Legislature will approve an ethics commission in the January session? Probably about as good as Tiger Woods staying married.

This is the home of New Mexico politics. Email your news and comments.

(c)NM POLITICS WITH JOE MONAHAN 2009
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Darren White
Darren White, with the permission of the new mayor and the apparent acquiescence of the city's new chief administrative officer, has turned himself into what some ABQ City Hall insiders last night were calling a "Superchief."

That reaction came when White went before the ABQ City Council to be confirmed as Mayor Berry's public safety director and was asked point blank by Councilor Debbie O'Malley whether he was the "boss" of ABQ Police Chief Ray Schultz. White, the former Bernalillo County sheriff, gave a one word response: "Yes."

And the eyebrows arched some more when White added that he does not answer to new Chief Administrative Officer David Campbell. White said he reports "directly" to the mayor.

Boss of the APD chief? Doesn't report to the CAO as all other department directors do and as all past public safety directors have? That is a complete redefinition of the powers of the post. The mayor's public safety directors previously exercised oversight over the police, fire and emergency operations departments, but day-to-day decisions came from the individual chiefs and the public safety director had no veto power over a chief's judgment.

But White, the 2008 GOP nominee for the ABQ US House seat, (He's back, Martin) commands a following in the local Republican Party which was responsible in a big way for bringing Berry to this particular party. David Campbell could not compete with that--at least not right away.

Councilors did not question White's assumption of added powers. They've given him the rope and now they will see what he does with it. He was approved 8 to 1, with Councilor Rey Garduno casting the dissenting vote.

Police Chief Ray Schultz, already derided by critics in the police department's rank and file as a toady to the 11th floor and former Mayor Chavez, is sure to take some more heat by ceding his power to White. But Schultz never has seemed much interested in leading.

THE COUP OF CAMPBELL

As for Campbell, Alligators and wall-leaners will be watching closely how he and White operate together. The public safety director is basically saying he is a co-equal with Campbell, even though the City Charter clearly vests authority over all departments ultimately with the CAO. Will Campbell chafe under the new arrangement or just laugh all the way to the bank with his freshly minted $159,000 annual pay? (Darren will pull down $125,000 a year, less than the $140,000 plus of Chief Schultz--his new underling.)

THE CAMPBELL VOTE

It did not appear Berry worked very hard to change the votes of three Republican councilors who have opposed from the start the appointment of Democrat Campbell as CAO. As expected, Councilors Winter, Cook and Lewis voted against the land-use attorney who was confirmed on a 6 to 3 vote. The foes claimed he had too many potential conflicts-of-interest because he practiced law for clients before city government.

The question now is whether that vote is a trend or the end. Berry walks away with a victory that is wishy-washy, but he got his man and now will see if going forward the trio of his fellow R's are going to be in his corner or not.

POWER CHECKED

While White was quick to create new authority for himself, the limitations of his power and that of Berry's was also quick to surface. Councilor Ken Sanchez read aloud the current city law enforcement policy toward undocumented residents and asked White if that policy will be followed by the new administration. Despite that campaign TV spot Berry cut hammering Mayor Chavez for creating a a "Sanctuary City" for illegals, White told Sanchez the administration would be following the current policy.

So much for election rhetoric, and in this case, for the best.

PRESIDENT SANCHEZ

The Alligators who were pegging Ken Sanchez as the new council president a couple of weeks ago saw their predictions borne out Monday night. Sanchez was unanimously named president of the nine member panel for the coming year. He is the councilor perhaps most steeped in the city's financial affairs. With the city facing a shortfall for the current budget year of up to $20 million or more, he was a natural for the presidency.

Ken got into the spirit of things when he asked Campbell to reduce his $159,000 a year salary. The silence, as they say, was deafening. Campbell said nary a word in response.

Dem Sanchez is now serving his second four year term. GOP Councilor Trudy Jones was named council VP.

THE FIRST TIME

It was Mayor Berry's first meeting with the new council and he appeared before them with greetings in the early going, but did not stay around to watch the confirmation hearings of Campbell or White. The debate over those two quickly surfaced the natural tensions between the council and mayor. And there will be more tension because the two branches of government will next be meeting over whose sacred cows will bleed the most to balance the city's books.

THE DEAD TREE BEAT

What of the newspaper biz in ABQ? We just received the latest circulation figures and there are no surprises. Circulation continues the secular decline it has been on for most of the decade. Audit Bureau of Circulation figures put ABQ Journal daily circulation at 94,066 for the six month period ending September 30. To give you some perspective, in 2005, the morning paper's circulation was at 108,177. That's a decline of 13 percent.

For the all-important Sunday edition--which insiders say generates 40 percent of the paper's profits--we're told circulation also declined. It was at 150, 787 in 2005. The last numbers we saw saw had it at around 130,000, a decline of about 14 percent over the four years. (If you have the Sunday circ numbers for the period ending Sep. 30 email them in.)

Earlier this year the Journal, citing a decline in ad revenue, ceased home delivery and rack sales in 30 communities, mainly in southern NM. The Journal Publishing Co. has also gone through a major round of layoffs.

We've said before that we could see the newspaper going to a six day a week publication schedule and publishing one day exclusively on the Web in order to save money. Some papers are already doing that.

HEADLINE FOR HARRY
Rep. Teague
Here's just the kind of headline southern NM Dem Congressman Harry Teague is going to need as he defends his seat from Republican Steve Pearce. It's from the editorial pages of the Las Cruces the Sun-News:

Our view: Teague basks in success of PTSD bill

Teague, 60, is on every national hit list you can think of as a prime Republican target for 2010. If he makes it next year, the seat will probably be his for as long as he wants.

This is the home of New Mexico politics. Email your news and comments.

(c)NM POLITICS WITH JOE MONAHAN 2009
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The Maloof Family
Word that the wealthy Maloof family is ending their business ties with New Mexico after being staked here for over a century rattled old-timers and newcomers alike as the shaky economy and the fallout from it continues to hold everyone in thrall. But there's more going on business wise with one of the state's most storied families than just the sale of its Coors beer and liquor distributorship.

The cornerstone of the Maloof business empire was that Coors distributorship the family secured in the 1930's and which made possible all the later and varied investments that eventually landed the family on the Forbes 400 Rich List for 2003, showing them with a net worth of $1 billion.

But they are long gone from that list and the Great Recession is reshaping their empire and their lives. The Maloofs recently sold the Sacramento Monarchs, a team in the Women's National Basketball Association. And word is growing louder that the family's once-high flying NBA franchise--the Sacramento Kings--will soon go up for sale. Sports insiders say a struggling NBA franchise like the Kings can lose $30 million a year.

But it is the crown jewel of the empire that is at the heart of the tumultuous times for the family of Lebanese decent whose ancestors settled in the Las Vegas, NM area late in the 19th century.

The Palms Resort and Casino, erected just off the Las Vegas strip in 2001 for $285 million, is being ravaged by the recession, along with the rest of Vegas. It's known as a fabulous property, managed by George Maloof, Jr, 45, and where famous Hollywood personalities and the Playboy philosophy are mixed into a highly profitable blend. But there's no let up in sight for the gambling recession as consumers--even well-off ones--reassess their past and future spending.

In the context of the basketball and casino stories, it's not surprising that the NM Coors business is being put up for sale. And then there's this...

MADOFF AND THE MALOOFS?
Madoff
The rumor mill is always churning when it comes to the high and mighty. Slam, a magazine that bills itself as a top source for pro basketball news, recently put out this sensational item:

There are persistent rumors that the Maloofs had money invested with Bernie Madoff, and we can all guess how that turned out.

Madoff ran a ponzi scheme, bilking billions from unsuspecting wealthy investors.

In addition to family matriarch, Colleen, who sold her Beverly Hills home this year for around $8 or $9 million (depending on the report), a couple of the Maloof children also put their Los Angeles estates on the market. Phil Maloof's Beverly Hills house was first listed at$16,995,000 and then listed at a much lower $10,865,000, and Joe Maloof sold his Brentwood mansion for $4.2 million. He purchased it in 2004 for $4.75 million. Colleen has owned a home in the affluent Altura Park area of ABQ's mid-NE Heights for many years. (We don't know the current ownership status.)

The four sons of Colleen and George Maloof (who passed in 1980) are all sought after bachelors who have had their share of time in the tabloids, but their mother is given credit for running a tight ship. The Maloof businesses grew exponentially under her early leadership and the sons carried it to even higher heights, all without a hint of scandal or other public issues that so often track the monied classes. Maloof daughter Adrienne is secretary-treasurer of the Maloof companies, is married and lives in Los Angeles.

Whether they invested with Madoff or not, the Maloof's are gone from the upper tier of the world-class rich as well as from the New Mexico business landscape. But their support of several generations of workers here, their generous philanthropy and the story of their hard scrabble ancestors building something where there was nothing, has earned them a chapter all their own in the never-ending book of La Politica.

SIDEBAR ACTION

We wondered if the Maloof's pulling out of New Mexico will make a difference when the debate over slapping more taxes on booze heats up next month at the state legislative session. You may recall it was several years ago when the last serious attempt was made to hike alcohol taxes. The Maloof's engineered a very effective lobbying campaign that included postcards sent far and wide. The tax was killed. They won't be around with such passion this session and the liquor industry could feel their absence. But lobbyist Ed Mahr, who represents the Maloof companies in NM, still doesn't see higher booze taxes in the future:

Republicans are against any tax increases and there are too many Dems who do not want to raise the price of liquor on their blue collar constituents. Also, NM's liquor taxes already are among the highest in the country and the liquor industry is part of NM's hospitality industry and that industry has tanked. Raising liquor taxes is not a good way to attract more tourists...Our retail liquor prices are already horrendous and raising them higher will not help the industry...

THE MALOOF CAMPAIGN

The peak of the Maloof's political involvement came when Phil Maloof, now 42, won the 1998 Democratic nomination for the ABQ congressional seat. He had served a term as a ABQ West Side state senator. The US House seat opened up upon the death of GOP Rep. Steve Schiff. The R's put up Heather Wilson who beat Maloof in both a special election and a regular election. Maloof spent $5.3 million on the losing effort. He now oversees Maloof Music in LA, a joint venture record label.

THE YEAR WAS 1974

Tonight the ABQ City Council gathers for its first meeting with the new councilors elected in the October election and all eyes will be on the vote to confirm Democratic lawyer Dave Campbell as Republican Mayor RJ Berry's chief administrative officer.

Three of Berry's fellow R's--Councilors Winter, Cook and Lewis are wary of Campbell, saying he has a conflict of interest because he was a land use attorney who did business with the city prior to becoming CAO. But the ABQ Journal, echoing community sentiment first heard here, urges in a Sunday editorial that the GOP councilors back off. They cite Campbell's lengthy response to the councilors concerns and the tradition of letting a new mayor like Berry form his own team.

If the three R's tonight vote against Campbell, it will be unusual but not unprecedented. Democrat Marion Cottrell, one of the members of the 1974 ABQ City Council--the first under the modern mayor/council form of government--recalled the CAO vote of that year when we ran into him recently at the local coffee shop.

Frank Kleinhenz was nominated by Republican Mayor Kinney to be his CAO. Three votes were cast against him, including mine. Frank had run against me for my council seat and I did not think mixing politics with the CAO position was appropriate. He was confirmed, I believe, on a 7 to 3 vote. We had more than nine councilors those first couple of years because we held over some of the old city commissioners...

The council today has nine members who will vote tonight on Campbell's nomination as well as choose a new council president for the coming year.

Cottrell, a Democrat, is a retired UNM professor who was a staunch supporter of Mayor Chavez, but he wished Mayor Berry well and said "things will work out fine" under his leadership. That's the spirit of bipartisanship that has survived in city government, though tested over the decades. One can only hope that it does not become part of history and that the new councilors and the old ones meeting tonight for the first time pause to reflect on its importance.

UNM NEWS
Stropp
Now we go deep inside the resignation story of University of New Mexico Foundation president, John Stroop. He is leaving within six months after a year and a half on the $325,0000 a year job. Analysis from a Senior Alligator and avid UNM watcher:

(Stroops's departure) could mean that (University of New Mexico David) Schmidly's days are numbered. It appears he wasn't consulted much on the "retirement." Schmidly brought John Stropp here to overhaul the foundation and that is occurring but not completed. The amount of money--as a percentage--taken from endowments really made some powerful interests like the Sandia Foundation angry.

The start of the UNM Foundation's capital campaign has been an on and off affair for three or four years and with Stropp leaving before the launch, I think we can see it delayed again. It is just as well, given the unresolved controversies hanging over UNM. Better to wait until Diane (Denish) is Governor and (UNM Regent) Jamie Koch and (UNM Vice-President David) Harris are gone.

The UNM Foundation is governed by a 42-member board of trustees that supervises the investment of approximately $325 million. The newspaper reported: "The foundation had to ask regents in May for help in covering a $3 million budget shortfall. Part of the foundation's operating funds are earnings from the endowment it manages and from short-term interest returns, both of which suffered when the economy tanked."

THE GUV RUN

Yes, we noticed how that Senior Gator said in his UNM missive "until" Diane Denish is Governor. Well, there are still a few ifs to go in the eleven months running up to election day, but with no obvious GOP heavyweight in the battle, engaging the public is in this contest is going to be a challenge and that benefits Denish.

And look at this. Is it possible the Dems could actually get a break on the pay to play stories that have been haunting the Richardson administration? First, this news from ABQ Journal investigative reporter Mike Gallagher:

Another money manager with ties to New York and New Mexico state investment scandals has pleaded guilty to bribing state officials in New York in exchange for a $250 million investment from that state's pension fund.

Elliott Broidy, founder and chairman of Markstone Capital Group, admitted paying nearly $1 million in bribes..to employees of the New York State Comptroller's Office to secure an investment from the state pension fund.... In 2004, the New Mexico State Investment Council invested $20 million in Markstone Capital...

Now the money line:

Broidy, a prominent fundraiser for the Republican National Committee, also served as a trustee of the Los Angeles Fire and Police Pension fund until earlier this year.

Say what? A Republican mixed up in New Mexico's ethics mess? Well, several insiders say look for the Dems to try to take advantage of that and try to have the blame spread around come campaign time.

NM GOP Chairman Harvey Yates, Jr. has been doing a good job hanging the ethics yoke around Denish, but no political house is completely clean in the aftermath of the money-soaked days of the recent past.

THE EARLY BIRDS

We told you last week about the ratings for the 10 p.m news broadcasts on the ABQ network affiliates, but several readers asked what about the 9 p.m. news on KASA FOX 2? A lot of viewers--especially early risers--are getting their prime time news fix not at 10 p.m. but at 9.

KASA's 9 p.m. hour long newscast finished the November sweeps with a 4.6 rating, up more than half a point from last November. That's a solid showing. KOB-TV's 10 p.m. news scored a 4.9. KASA now has its eye on tying the NBC affiliae in total households.

Lin Broadcasting owns both KASA and CBS affiliate KRQE. They bought KASA in 2006 for $55 million.

The KASA news hour is produced by the KRQE news team and anchored by Michael Herzenberg and Jessica Garate. Because of the tie-in with channel 13, the news is up-to-the minute and viewers do not feel they are missing out by not being around at 10. Of course, the news junkies watch both 9 and 10.

Jessica presents an interactive segment for the 9 p.m. broadcast where she reviews news from the blogs (including ours) and other Internet sources.

TV OUTLOOK

My industry insiders say the bad news for local TV news is that the overall number of viewers for their 10 p.m. news has been on a steady decline as viewers continue to break off to other media or diversions. For those of us in politics, it's important to remember, however, that older viewers are still avid local news consumers. That's the group most likely to vote and why the ubiquitous 30 second campaign commercial is not about to go the way of the horse and buggy.

The ABQ television market is now ranked the 44th largest of the 210 rated markets.

Will there come a day when all four stations--KOB, KRQE, KOAT and KASA--do not all take part in the news game? The stations seem to have weathered the worst of the recession, but there have been layoffs and/or cutbacks at all of them. Ad revenue appears to be flat at best. And with the audience splintering with the use of DVR's and the Internet, it is not unthinkable that in the next three to five years one of the NM stations could scale back or drop its news department entirely.

Still, local news is often less expensive to produce than purchasing syndicated programming. For now, that is helping to keep the current business model alive.

GAMBLING ANALYSIS

On our analysis from Friday showing how Indian gaming in the state is taking a hit from the recession, a reader of experiene notes that the drop in revenue at two of the casinos is not necessarily because of the economy:

...I estimate that at least half of Laguna’s (Dancing Eagle and Rt. 66) and Acoma’s (Sky City) drop in revenue between the 3rd quarter of '08 and '09 is not due to the economy, but to the opening of the new Navajo Casino. All the locals in the Gallup area no longer have to drive to the more distant casinos to have their fun. Also, a lot of eastbound commuters are stopping at the Navajo casino thus bypassing the ones in Cibola and western Bernalillo County.

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(c)NM POLITICS WITH JOE MONAHAN 2009
Not for reproduction without permission of the author