Friday, September 10, 2010Friday Clippings From The Newsroom Floor: Guv Debates Still Up In Air, The Campaign Mood Of The Moment And "Hungering" To Debate
Late Friday KOB-TV announced it has confirmed a live debate between Denish and Martinez from 7 to 8 p.m. October 21. So far, that is the lone confirmed TV debate.
 Media insiders report that the Guv candidates continue to clash over details of possible TV debates and that as far as they can tell no agreement has been reached for any such confrontations. There is nitpicking, they say, over a variety of issues, including which topics will be covered and when the debates would air.
The first absentee ballots for the election go out October 5, raising the question of whether the very early voters will see Democrat Diane Denish and Republican Susana Martinez face-off with one another in a prime-time telecast. It would be nice to have one in late September and another around Oct. 16 when the in-person early voting begins. Then there is the absence of any joint appearances by the two candidates. Traditionally, governor races have featured a number of forums where the candidates have appeared together and debated. Not so in Campaign '10. At least not yet. As far as we can tell only a couple have been booked. Are both sides afraid? They have been invited to make many joint appearances. Well, they aren't getting any medals for valor, that's for sure. It is now to Denish's advantage to have debates....let me rephrase that...Denish now needs the debates and joint appearances. She has to start tripping Martinez up or Susana is going to do a slow dance into the Governor's Mansion. It has been two weeks since the ABQ Journal took its poll showing Susana leading Di 45% to 39%. That survey is getting long in the tooth and we await new numbers to test the latest volley of campaign ads. But the race does seem static right now. THE ZEITGEIST  Jay Miller, veteran politico and author of the Inside the Capitol column, captures the mood of the moment:New Mexico’s gubernatorial contest has become Susana Martinez’s race to lose. Lt. Gov. Diane Denish can still win it but unless Martinez stumbles over a pile of kryptonite, she’s the favorite... Despite Lt. Gov. Denish’s overwhelming advantage in experience and resources, Martinez managed to pull ahead in internal polls conducted by other candidates throughout the state all summer long... Denish is down. She’s not out. She has been in many tough statewide battles before. But this time is different. She has an opponent who is younger, peppier, more animated than any she has ever faced. Meanwhile, Dems are promising that the state will be learning more about Martinez in the days ahead, seeming to signal that that we are going to hear a tougher tone when it comes to the Guv frontunner. Maybe they will come with something like this--dishonestdiane.com. And aren't you glad you aren't running? THOSE CROWDS The news isn't that the crowd estimates for Martinez gatherings in the Hispanic Democratic north may be inflated by the press up there, the news is that she is getting larger crowds than usual for a Republican candidate. Whether there are 150 folk or 500, the fact stands that her appeal in the north is a threat to the Dems. On the other hand, it is not news if a large crowd greets a Dem candidate for Governor. If they don't get a crowd, that's news. The Dems can quibble with the numbers or they can do something about them. THE ACTION  Top Dems said at the start of this campaign that Denish's financial advantage would prove short-lived. They appear to be right as the Republican Governors Association came Thursday with another $500,000 for Martinez. That's on top of $250,000 they gave her right after the June primary.The latest money reports are due to be released in Santa Fe Monday and will show us where the candidates stand cash wise as we head for the final stretch. The Democratic Governor's Association has come with its second ad hitting the Dona Ana County district attorney. They use a former border security official to make the attack: She took border protection money, steered it to friends in her office--Special bonuses for her favored employees... That's it, DGA? Maybe the polls and focus groups show this stuff is working, but show it to us again and we're headed to the hammock for a late summer snooze. Denish came with this following the announcement of the RGA donating Susana that half million: ...And if you thought Susana Martinez does business any differently than the national Republicans, think again. Susana Martinez handed out a $60,000 no-bid contract to a friend and political ally in her office. She also gave that same employee and many others in her office tens of thousands of dollars in Wall Street-style bonuses using federal border funds--taxpayer funds! Hey, give us another one of those exclamation points because we're not getting it. Wasn't all that stuff already in the papers before they took that poll showing Susana up by six points? Hey fellas, if you missed it we'll have the Alligators buy you a subscription. (I know when folks see it on TV it will be different. Not.) Meantime, frontrunner Susana was back on the illegal immigration beat in Farmington Friday, speaking of the evil of driver's licenses for illegals. The issue resonates better in the conservative rural areas than it does in the cities. And here's a yawner from a third party conservative group hammering ABQ Dem Rep. Martin Heinrich for being a "Washington liberal" who "voted for Nancy Pelosi's agenda 97% of the time." Obviously, the producers of that one are not going for an award in originality. But they are spending $250,000 for four weeks to air the commercial. TEAGUE TIME From the Las Cruces Sun-News and Dem Daniel Balke on the Teague vs. Pearce congressional battle: Harry will need to work hard to consolidate support among progressive Democrats in Doña Ana County, whose backing, tepid from the outset, became even more lukewarm after Teague's controversial vote against President Obama's health care plan. THE BOTTOM CLIPPING  Since neither Di or Susana seem anxious to debate, we doubt the scenario blogged about by NM PR guru Tom Carroll will play out here. Maybe Republican Jon Barela, who is having trouble getting Rep. Heinrich to debate, can benefit from it, but he may want to fatten up before he does:Democrat Ray Lutz and Libertarian Mike Benoit both went on hunger strikes to get Republican Duncan Hunter to debate, which he was refusing to do. Lutz went two weeks, losing 15 pounds and said he would go until Hunter agreed to debate. Did it work? Well, after huge media attention, Hunter gave in and granted one debate, in October. Lutz wanted more, but he wanted to live too, so he gave in and started eating. This past weekend he went back to food, starting with salad and fruit juice, sort of like Gandhi after his fasts. Wherever Hunter goes, there are signs that say, “Hungry for Debate.” Hunter is going to win, given that he’s in a safe Republican district, but Lutz and Benoit really turned up the heat. “Without the hunger strike, I don’t think we would have even this single debate,” said Lutz. No word yet on Benoit, but he’s probably at IN-N-OUT Burger right now making up for lost time. Thanks for stopping by this week. From Albuquerque, I'm Joe Monahan reporting Email your news and comments. Interested in advertising here? Drop us a line. (c)NM POLITICS WITH JOE MONAHAN 2010 Not for reproduction without permission of the author Thursday, September 09, 2010Running Scared: Even Veteran Roundhouse Dems Watch Their Backs, Plus: The Berry Beat; His Poll Results, And: Yet More Spanish Identity Debate
Rep. Stewart
 No Democratic incumbent with opposition can rest easy in a year when the voters have their pitchforks sharpened. That even applies to seemingly entrenched Democratic State House Dems Mimi Stewart and Al Park. They are odds-on favorites to get their Santa Fe passports stamped November 2, but they can't take it for granted.Stewart, 63, and in the Legislature since '95, sent out this revealing email pitch to her supporters this week I'm weary of the gloom-and-doom predictions and much prefer to work smartly and with conviction to turn out our supporters.... I have a Republican general election opponent and represent a swing district. I am running against a Tea Party supporter and young evangelical leader at Calvary Chapel. No one can underestimate Republican challengers this year... Stewart's foe is 33 year old Marie Antoinette Baca who is an unknown and who has not raised any money. The ABQ mid-Heights district has 47% Dems, 30% Republicans and 19% independents. It is somewhat of a swing district, as Stewart asserts, but she has not had a close election there since the 90's. The incumbent only had about $3,000 in the bank in July. She has been raising more. Campaign reports will be made public Monday. A defeat of Stewart, a longtime school teacher and leading liberal light, would be a fluke, but when you see pitchforks all about you it's not a bad idea to run scared. PARK'S PLACE Rep. Park  As for Al Park, the 40 year old chairman of House Judiciary, he may be making his last run for the Roundhouse. That's not necessarily because he will be defeated by civil engineer Larry Kennedy, 49, but because he is eyeing a run in 2012 for the NM Public Regulation Commission.Park won the swing ABQ NE and SE Heights seat in 2000. He once played with running for attorney general. While doing so he raised major bucks. He has a campaign kitty bursting with $279,000 in cash. With that kind of dough, he should be able to fend off newcomer Kennedy. But polling in the district shows the Republican, who has been walking door-to-door, is doing quite well. The district is 50% Dem and 26% R, but has 20% independents. The area used to swing back and forth before Park gained a firm grip. Al tells us he will not be outspent and recognizes this is a volatile political climate. However, he says his early August polling showed him to be in good shape. The lawmaker is not taking any chances, however. We spoke to him late Wednesday as he just completed another round of door-knocking in the district. While the Stewart and Park contests are by no means at the top of the list of seats that are likely to flip, they may be telling us something about the anti-incumbent mood in our state. It seems to be selective, impacting the Governor's race and the Legislature--the politicians who deal with the state budget--while not impacting much the statewide offices like Attorney General or Treasurer or the congressional races. OTHER HOUSE ACTION We gave you the top four legislative races to watch recently, but also keep an eye on the Rio Rancho contest featuring Republican Tim Lewis vs. Dem incumbent Jack Thomas. Dems think they have a good candidate in Stephanie Richard who is seeking to oust longtime GOP incumbent Jeannette Wallace in Los Alamos, but top R's say polling shows the 76 year old Wallace is performing well. TEAGUE ATTACK Southern Dem Congressman Harry Teague follows up his opening ad which showcased him as an affable good ol' boy with an attack ad on Republican challenger Steve Pearce. Teague accuses Pearce of opposing increases in healthcare for veterans and a $1500 pay bonus for troops when Pearce held the seat Teague took over in 2009. The ad then faults Pearce for taking $46,000 in congressional pay raises. The southern district is home to a large veterans' population. Teague has been currying their favor from his position on the House Veterans' Committee. Pearce is a Vietnam War veteran who flew cargo missions into the combat zone. Pearce has yet to buy TV time. He told KOB-TV he plans to go up in a week or two, but Dem political operatives were saying late Wednesday that Pearce appeared to be working to move up that timetable. Harry's hit piece may make Steve move even faster. THE BERRY BEAT  It's not surprising that ABQ Mayor RJ Berry scores a 63% approval rating in the late August ABQ Journal poll. That's because not much of anything has happened since he became mayor December 1. His first budget trimmed city worker salaries a couple of percent, he announced that persons jailed in ABQ would have their immigration status checked (a policy that was already essentially in effect) and he has toyed with--but not bought into--the idea of building a $400 million events center in Downtown ABQ.Berry is the first Republican mayor in the city in a quarter century. He sports an affable personality and fits the times. It has been an intensive period of on the job training for Berry, a former state legislator who came to the 11th floor with little executive experience. But when there is no money coming in, you don't need a lot of vision, you need management and Berry is seen as an effective caretaker. His relationship with the city council has had some bumps but has not yet deteriorated to the point of uncivility as it has with past mayors. There are concerns about the number of police involved shootings this year, but it remains to be seen whether this is an anomaly or a trend. Berry's public safety director, Darren White, is well known in political circles for being a lightning rod, but so far he has not started any fires that have gotten out of control. Berry's Hispanic support is a less lofty 57%. The big show he made on immigration policy was unnecessary, but if enforcement of the rule remains the same as it did under Mayor Chavez, he should not have it blow up on him. Democrats--Hispanic and otherwise--have not had to go to the mat with Berry because we are in a period where there is no agenda. Potential potholes for Berry include losing support on the city council where he seems to have a five to four majority on the big issues and approving that potential boondoggle of an events center. Berry's modest budget cutting is seen as necessary after the spending build up in the long bull market, but he could face more severe challenges if city revenues don't rebound. If the recession drags on Berry will also come under pressure to do a better job of attracting jobs to the city. We have had nothing significant come in here for a couple of years. After the boisterous Mayor Chavez, laid-back Berry is the beneficiary of reduced expectations. He has met those and then some.
IN THE CITY There are rumblings that the Berry administration in future months may look at proposals to privatize certain city services, something Republicans are fond of but the city unions are sure to look at sceptically. One department that might be ripe for privatization, however, is the city economic development department. Its job is to attract private industry to the city. Why not start any privatization experiment there? It would seem a natural fit. SUSANA IN THE NORTH She drew 400 at a GOP rally in Taos a couple of weeks ago and now the Las Vegas Optic reports GOP Guv candidate Susana Martinez attracted 500 to a Sunday rally in Vegas. Dems have to separate the ethnicity from the ideas. Do they have time? Do they know how? SPANISH IDENTITY (TAKE 4)  We're back with more of our Great Reader Debate on Spanish identity. That's because we found an email we discarded from University of New Mexico School of Law Professor Laura Gomez, who also published a book on the subject at hand. Here she is:Dear Joe, Thanks to you for running so many letters from your readers on identity issues for New Mexico Hispanics. And thanks to National Hispanic Cultural Center executive director head Estevan Rael-Galvez for having the courage to raise these issues. As he noted, this is a continuing conversation, not something we will resolve definitively. In my 2007 book Manifest Destinies: The Making of the Mexican America Race, I take on this topic, looking at New Mexico history from 1846 (when the U.S. invaded) to 1912 (when New Mexico was admitted to statehood, after several failed attempts). I sympathize with Rael-Galvez whose Albi interview and subsequent letter-to-the-editor hints at the nuances of this issue and the difficulty of addressing it in our sound-byte culture. Even in a 240-page book, I was not able to fully explore the complexity of the origins of the Spanish myth--as a response to intense anti-Mexican racism during the first decades of the U.S. period--and its continuing hold on the popular imagination. I have given more than 50 public talks and lectures on Manifest Destines... While my audiences of perhaps thousands of New Mexicans are in no sense a random sample of the population, I have been surprised that I have not, overall, generated more heat from people who are hostile to my claims. In contrast, I have frequently encountered New Mexicans (of all backgrounds) who are receptive to the complexity of the historical context and who often point out how these very dynamics played out in their own families (whether biological or via marriage). These many one-on-one conversations over the past three years have convinced me that we often seem to have two different conversations going on about our ethno-racial roots in New Mexico, one public and one private. In private, we tend to have a much more nuanced conversations about the many strands of our rich heritage prior to becoming part of the U.S. (Spanish to be sure, but also Pueblo Indian, Navajo, Apache, Comanche, and Mexican--to name just the major influences). And yet for a variety of interesting reasons, our public conversations are often reduced to "the tri-cultural myth" reductionist view that we were separate communities of "Spaniards, Anglos, and [undifferentiated] Indians." And so I applaud you--and Estevan Rael-Galvez--for helping bring this conversation into the public sphere. Best wishes, Laura E. Gómez, J.D., Ph.D. President, Law & Society Association www.lawandsociety.org Professor of Law & American Studies UNM School of Law Thanks for that, Laura. You may not have encountered "more heat" for your views elsewhere, but some of the letters published here lately did give plenty of lumps to your school of thought. FROM THE BOOK  Reader Michael Lamb of Chimayo sent us an except from the Gomez book:"...In fact, the earliest Spanish expeditions were racially diverse, including the dark-skinned, likely African-origin Estevan, who spoke six indigenous languages and who had been a leader in the Spanish explorations of Florida, Texas and central Mexico before coming to New Mexico in 1539. Estevan may have been a slave, but it seems unlikely given the autonomy he had on these various expeditions. Those of us in New Mexico who can trace our families back to the earliest period of Spanish settlements might well be his descendants, and, in a metaphorical sense, all New Mexicans are Estevan's children. Yet we do not need to rely on tenuous connections to Estevan to know that the Spanish-Mexican settlers of New Mexico were a racially mixed group. Most of them did not come from Spain at all, but from central and southern Mexico. In 1650, Mexico had as many Spaniards as African slaves (about 200,000 in each category), and a whopping 10 times as many Indians and Indian-Spanish mestizos as either Spaniards or Africans. There was no concept of "miscegenation" or illegal marriage and sexual mating across racial lines as there was in the colonial United States with respect to African Americans, so the result in Mexico was a thoroughly mixed population. Moreover, if your ancestors include the early "Spanish" settlers to New Mexico, it is likely that your family was even more mixed than those who stayed behind in central Mexico. You see, racially mixed persons could improve their fortunes by taking risks like moving to the dangerous northern frontier, which New Mexico was at this time. Coronado's 1540 expedition to New Mexico included twice as many Indians and mestizos as Spaniards. In 1598, Oñate's settlement party of 130 people included only 13 married couples, so that the remaining single men turned largely to native indigenous and mixed women to make families. By the time of the Pueblo Revolt in 1680, New Mexico's so-called Hispanic population was overwhelmingly of mixed racial ancestry. Yet virtually all such mixed persons who identified as Spanish were expelled from New Mexico for 12 years by the revolt's leaders. Very few of those original settlers chose to return in 1692. Instead, the organizers of re-settlement were forced to go deep into Mexico to recruit mostly single men and single women for what was seen as a risky endeavor. The settlers of Santa Cruz de la Cañada in 1694 were listed as "españoles-mexicanos" in the official records - 90 percent of them were born in Mexico, and they came from 15 regions in Mexico as well as from the continents of Africa, Asia and Europe. So where in the world did these racially mixed persons get the idea that they were "Spaniards" or the heirs to the Spanish conquest? I argue that claims to Spanish identity arose in New Mexico in the 1880s in direct response to the intense anti-Mexican racism experienced by native sons and daughters in the first decades of American rule." This is the home of New Mexico politics Email your news and comments. Interested in advertising here? Drop us a line. (c)NM POLITICS WITH JOE MONAHAN 2010 Not for reproduction without permission of the author Wednesday, September 08, 2010Di's Challenge: We Open The Suggestion Box, Plus: Susana's Roots Pondered, And: Teague & Barela Get On Tube & Allen Weh Resurfaces The challenge for Diane Denish is to prevent the constant brooding over her candidacy from becoming fear and panic. The Democratic gubernatorial nominee has time for the turnaround, but there is now a palpable sense of urgency. Her six point deficit against Republican Susana Martinez in the late August ABQ Journal poll has created a crop of armchair campaign mangers who say Denish needs to start galvanizing this electorate--now. To the suggestion box:--When traveling to the heavily Hispanic communities ask folks there: "What do you need?" That's not deal making or pay-to-play, but the way things are done. --Go with a Spanish TV ad but don't just put it on the Spanish TV stations. Put it on the 10 p.m. news on the big broadcast outlets and say a few words in Spanish. Pandering is not a crime. --Line up President Obama for a trip to the north where Hispanic crossover voting threatens your election. (The Pres remains popular in the north) And don't wait until late October. You need energy now. --Don't listen to the consultants who say "signs don't vote." The Denish candidacy needs buzz on the ground. Get the signs up--everywhere you can. --Either Di should get tougher on Susana on TV or one of those third party groups should. What about Martinez's early embrace of Sarah Palin? How long is the peanut gallery going to have to wait to see that spot? Early voting starts in early October. As for Martinez, the suggesters in chief argue she and running mate John Sanchez should plant themselves in northern New Mexico for the next two months and continue to cultivate crossover Hispanic Dems--one vote at a time. RIGHT NOW  Right now the Democratic voters don't see Susana Martinez as a threat. The Dems have taken shots, but wasted ammunition. They are calling Martinez a Republican every chance they can to remind Hispanic Dems that they are crossing over for a conservative. That seems effective, but now they need to roll out the heavy artillery.With the summer gone, we can now say that Martinez was more successful in defining Denish than in being defined by her foes. If you think you've already heard "Richardson-Denish" too much, get ready for another dose. FIRE LOCKS? The election results already seem to be in on University of New Mexico football coach Mike Locksley. The fans are calling for his head after Saturday's embarrassing 72-0 Lobo loss. That was the season opener, following last year's downer. But it's the entire athletic department that needs a reshuffling and a complete redefinition for the decade ahead. The enormous resources poured into athletics may no longer be sustainable. Are we planning for that? SUSANA AND UNM  We speculated last week that a Republican Governor like Susana Martinez might be in a good position to clean up the mess at the University of New Mexico because she lacked political ties to the school. That comment served as launching pad for this reader--identifying himself as Emilio Sanchez-- to question Susana's ties to New Mexico:Joe, You say "..but a Governor Martinez, lacking any deep ties to UNM." Don't you mean deep ties to NM? She was born in El Paso, went to school there and in Oklahoma. Her father enlisted in the Marines out of El Paso. She has not come clean on her roots. Most New Mexican Hispanics will tell you details of where they are from. For example, one abuelita was from Puerto de Luna, another from Anton Chico. My abuelito's came from Anton Chico and Chimayo. My ancestors came with Onate, De Anza, etc. I believe she doesn't provide this information because her grandparents were from the other side of the river and there is concern on their immigration. We've pointed out that there have been no news articles detailing Martinez's family background, even though she would be the nation's first Hispanic female governor. And it's not about finding a "gotcha" in that background. It's about knowing the people and places that formed the characters of the candidates. Not to say that there would not be a "gotcha" moment if Martinez had close relatives who had questionable immigration in their backgrounds. The GOP candidate used illegal immigration to put away the GOP primary. HE'S BACK But Allen, where's that formal endorsement of Susana Martinez who trounced you in the GOP primary? Not that we would ever put the needle in you. The news: New Mexico businessman Allen Weh announced today that he has formed a political policy organization called For Country. Weh said For Country aims to build awareness of the nation’s challenges and support for the principles the United States was founded on: limited government, free enterprise and a strong national defense. Along with the organization, Weh launched a new website: www.allenweh.com. Weh will spend money raised to help candidates who share his group's views. We don't think that includes Susana. Weh told the newspaper he hasn't decided who he will vote for in the Governor's race. BARELA TV  The first TV spot from ABQ GOP congressional candidate Jon Barela is serviceable Republican boilerplate that focuses on the $13 trillion national debt, not specifically his opponent. He will use this positive start to build up his name ID before beginning the inevitable attacks on his frontrunner foe--Dem Congressman Martin Heinrich.Barela carries the spot well, but he will need more emotional intensity to catch Heinrich who he trails by six in the latest Journal poll and by seven in a non-media survey. And how about a spot telling us about Jon Barela? Memo to his consultants: The public doesn't know the guy. One other thing. We hope Barela's diligence in addressing the national debt would not constrain him when it comes time to bring home needed federal funds to ABQ. He points out in his commercial that the Great Recession has cost the state 55,000 jobs, but if our federal funding is jeopardized by obsessing over the national debt, we could lose even more jobs--those plum federal slots that help keep ABQ's shaky economy humming. Not to mention the millions in federal contracts that many of our area businessmen depend on and which provide badly needed employment. Barela calls for shedding the national debt and "focus on creating jobs right here in New Mexico." That's a laudable goal but it could take years to achieve. Meanwhile, we need to protect what we have. Barela has worked on Capitol Hill so he gets the benefit of the doubt, but that doesn't mean a lot of us don't get nervous when we hear a possible future ABQ congressman making debt reduction a campaign centerpiece. We don't know how much Barela is spending on his first media buy, but we do know that Heinrich holds a major edge in the money department. National GOP money will be key for Jon. If he can move the numbers with his first round of ads, he could get some. Otherwise, he will be left to his own devices. STENY IN THE HOUSE From Rep. Heinrich: On Wednesday, September 8, 2010, at 10 a.m., U.S. House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer and Rep. Heinrich will announce the completion of Phase I for the Camino Don Tomas Recovery Act project and highlight the beginning of Phase II. The Camino Don Tomas project was funded in large part by a $1,530,487 grant from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. Welcome back, Steny. You campaigned here for Martin in 2008. But if you think a puny $1.5 million is going to get our attention, we've got news for you. This federally dependent state uses $1.5 million like you hand out $5 tips to the the Capitol Hill wait staff. Now put a billion next to that $1.5 and you own us. But do enjoy your stay. Maybe you and Martin can stop by KOAT-TV while you're here. We hear they miss him. TEAGUE TUBE Congressman Harry Teague's first TV spot follows the national Democratic template--it talks about all the time he spends in the district. That's the same theme Rep. Heinrich came with in his first ad. Both incumbents don't want voters to be thinking about the ugly things going on in Washington. Teague goes further. He says in his 60 second spot: "I’m going to represent the people of the 2nd Congressional District, not represent a party..." But Teague voted with his party on the controversial "cap and trade" bill--aka--climate change. That vote has prompted the first wave of negative TV against the Hobbs oilman.It comes from a third party group calling itself Americans for Job Security and rips Harry hard. Even though the bill passed the House, it never made it into law. But that isn't stopping Teague from being called a"job killer" in this fierce attack piece. Teague comes across as such a nice guy, it's hard to imagine him killing even a fly-- unless it was a fly that landed on the top of Steve Pearce's bald pate. DEFENDING VALERIE  Reaction to that casino fight story involving Santa Fe County Clerk Valerie Espinoza and the ex-wife of Santa Fe County Manager Robert Romero. A reader writes of this statement on the Tuesday blog:"Valerie now says she only has an "official relationship" with Romero. Right. And Lady Gaga is a virgin." I do not know for sure that Espinoza and Romero are not having an affair, but I think it rather unlikely, and she explicitly denied it. In any case, you should not suggest they are doing so without some kind of evidence, and there is no evidence or hint of any evidence in your piece (or in any of the several other pieces I have read on the encounter). She is not a friend of mine but she is an acquaintance and I have long had considerable professional respect for her. She has been a conscientious public servant and done a good job as Santa Fe County clerk, making several innovations in the office and responding to constituent concerns. She would have made a good secretary of state had she stayed in the race. Point taken, but if the pair were not emotionally involved then why did the ex-wife of the Santa Fe manager get so emotional and attack Espinoza when she saw her with her former husband? The newspaper reports: Espinoza told The New Mexican that she and the city manager have only a professional relationship. But Felicia Romero said that she believes the relationship is more than professional. She also said in an e-mail that she used to work at the county and blamed Espinoza for the loss of her job. This is the home of New Mexico politics. Email your news and comments. Interested in advertising here? Drop us a line. (c)NM POLITICS WITH JOE MONAHAN 2010 Not for reproduction without permission of the author Tuesday, September 07, 2010Mr. & Mrs. New Mexico Start To Tune-In: The Real Campaign Starts Now, Plus: Heinrich's Debate Decision, Malott's Mistake And Valerie's Cat Fight You mean you are only now starting to pay close attention to the state political scene? Bully for you. Someone has to show some restraint in this age of around-the-clock minutiae posing as news. Heck, when we were kids they would throw a hot dog at any politician who came around before Labor Day. Nowadays voters just learn to ignore them--until now.With the last summer holiday in the rear view mirror, Mr. and Mrs. New Mexico are ready to do their duty (albeit reluctantly) and actually start watching some of the already ubiquitous TV ads, read a few articles and maybe even glance at yer little 'ol blog now and again as they prepare to sort out who's who and who should get their vote. While they'll be looking for info on the major candidates, they won't be wandering all over the map when it comes to the issues. Not this year. Abortion? Save it for next time. Gay marriage and civil unions? Say what? Medical marijuana? Who cares? No, this election is about nothing less than the future economic security of the nearly two million souls who populate the state. Sure, the candidates may try to make it about something else, but everything will be filtered through a voter lens that is focused sharply on their jobs, their savings accounts, their kids' jobs and educations, their health costs and that of their parents. In other words, the bread and butter issues. The official jobless rate in the state is averaging a bit below 9 percent, but the experts tell you that when you count those who can only find part-time work or have given up on getting a job all together, the actual rate here is probably in teenage numbers--13 percent or more. Add to that a state budget crisis that looks like a rolling stone storming down a mountain and you have the most challenging economic circumstances of our lifetimes. And that's no hype. Not that any of this is going to prevent us--and you--from having a whole lot of fun in the next two months. Just drop by here every day from now until November 2. The stuff these candidates do will get your mind off any depression--economic or otherwise. And you don't even have to donate a can of food. NOW TO THE ACTION...  Will the refusal of ABQ Dem US Congressman Martin Heinrich to meet Republican challenger Jon Barela at a mid-October TV debate sponsored by KOAT and the ABQ Journal do him any harm? Probably not, but that doesn't make it a good decision.Heinrich had a polling scare this summer when the SurveyUSA showed him running behind Barela, but the first ABQ Journal poll straightened that out and gives Heinrich a healthy 47% to 41% lead (Even a conservative group's poll shows Heinrich leading 49% to 42%). We rank the race "likely Dem." Political guru Larry Sabato of the University of Virginia calls it lean Dem. Rothenberg also now has it lean Dem. But Heinrich is in the "People's House" and it's unusual for an ABQ congressman to not show up to just about everywhere he's invited. It leaves a bad taste that Heinrich is refusing the TV debate and shows that the young politico may be overly cautious. We hope this reticent temperament does not take hold when he is called upon to defend ABQ's interests on Capitol Hill. Heinrich will do at least one TV debate with Barela--on public television KNME-TV, which won't be as nearly as watched as a face-off on KOAT, but it does prevent Barela from claiming that Heinrich won't debate him. In addition, the congressman is attending various candidate forums where he and Barela will both be in attendance. KOAT-TV GM Mary Lynn Roper says she can't recall a candidate refusing to debate at the station in its "33 year history" of hosting such events. Well, not quite. Mary Lynn would be correct in saying it is very rare, but we clearly recall, in 1984, when GOP US Senator Pete Domenici, seeking a third term, refused to debate State Rep. Judy Pratt, his Dem opponent, on commercial TV. Like Heinrich, Pete agreed to one debate on KNME-TV so the press could not make it a major issue. (Pete beat Judy that year by garnering 72 percent--his highest ever). TEAGUE TV Embattled southern Dem Congressman Harry Teague has a lot more to worry about than Heinrich. He has Republican Steve Pearce breathing down his neck so he's starting to spend. Here's his first TV ad debuting today. It's a 60 second spot that concentrates on his visits to the districts, not his work in Washington. Heinrich did the same. While Teague stays on the high road (they show him driving his truck around) Pearce has been getting beat up by out-of-state interest group money that bought TV time. The spots appear to have helped Teague grab the early polling leading in the Journal survey. At best the race is a toss-up for Teague. DC's Rothenberg says it is "lean R" and he won't get a fight from this corner. MALOTT MUCK  And what of Bruce Malott? Bruce, what were you thinking? Taking a loan from a guy (the now infamous Anthony Correra) whose son Marc was making millions on placement fees from state investments made by the Educational Retirement Board on which you served as chairman? And it was a loan to pay your taxes? Heavens to Betsy, Bruce!In the end Bruce is a civilian (He has resigned from the board). It is his ties to Big Bill, and more important, to Lt. Governor and Dem Guv nominee Diane Denish that are of interest. Malott gave sizable campaign donations to Denish and now, like she's done during past donor ethical mishaps, she has been forced to donate the cash to charity. GOP Guv nominee Susana Martinez got on Di over this like a case of bad fleas. And she should. The Santa Fe mud pit where politicos splashed with players has splattered all over the body politic. It's a key issue for the Dona Ana County DA. But Susana has already taken that mud pile on a guided tour of all four corners of our beloved state. Unless Denish is directly implicated in a pay-to-play or "hand-in-the-till" scheme, Martinez is going to have to seek harder ground. She has run it to 45% in the Journal poll, but for a Republican to get that final five points is like, well, getting traction in quicksand. She can do it, but it may take more novelty than the diminutive DA has planned for. LET THE FUN BEGIN Espinoza  Earlier we promised you that the candidates would get your mind off your troubles, and that's no idle promise. Here we go. Take Santa Fe County Clerk Valerie Espinoza and Santa Fe City Manager Robert Romero. They apparently took each other and that caused a cat fight of near-legendary status. Frank's ex-wife saw the two hangin' at a northern NM casino and that was enough to set her off on a hair-pulling, face-scratching and we assume an obscenity laced rampage. Just our kind of gal.Well, this whole thing is in the courts where some lucky judge will have to separate the warring parties. Valerie now says she only has an "official relationship" with Romero. Right. And Lady Gaga is a virgin. Anyway, all of this was met with envy at the office of Secretary of State Mary Herrera who heretofore had the corner on Santa Fe political soap operas. But there was also time for some gloating seeing how Valerie has very publicly revealed her distaste for Mary and even thought of running against her in this year's Democratic primary. What a break for Mary. She can now tell voters that as crazy as she sometimes gets up there, just think if they had Valerie. But maybe it wouldn't be a bad idea if Mary started wearing those old-fashioned hair curlers. You never know when you're going to need some extra protection when trying your luck at the slot machines. In case you're thinking we are giving Valerie too hard of a time, let's bring in Joe Barela of Rio Rancho who informs: Wow! All of this makes you wonder if the Secretary of State will single-handedly bring down the Democrats in November. I mean it can't be making the voters too happy! This is just from Thursday, Sept. 2: Rio Grande Sun, Steve Terrell and KUNM-FM VILDASOL AND FLORES FIRED SOS Mary Herrera said late Monday that Administrator Manny Vildasol and Public Information Officer James Flores have been fired. She said the duo were let go after an investigation by a private investigator for state risk management. She said fellow employees of the pair complained that they were being tape recorded and video recorded and that the investigation resulted in the dismissal. She said she is confident the firings will hold up in court where she expects them to be challenged.
Herrera put Vildasol on paid administrative leave after he spoke publicly about turning over information to the FBI. Flores also talked to the FBI and was put on leave Aug. 25. Herrera says there has been no wrongdoing at the office and that the charges are politically motivated. NOT ETHICALLY TAINTED When we wrote of the land commission office last week we said the two previous Dem nominees were "ethically tainted." But it was Art Trujillo in 2002 who had the ethical baggage in the form of his drunk driving record. Jim Baca, the 2006 Dem land commission nominee and former ABQ mayor, did not have ethical baggage but had become deeply unpopular in the city as a result of his mayoralty. That paved the way for the re-election of Republican Pat Lyons who had beaten Trujillo in 2002. The last GOP land commissioner before Lyons was Bill Humphries who was elected in 1986. By the way, in 1982, we recall that Baca was elected land commissioner with a stunning winning margin of over 100,000 votes. Bet he wants that in his obit. THE MESSAGE Just what is the message of the NM Democratic Party in 2010? In a fund-raising letter for the party US Senator Jeff Bingaman says it's this: Our message of creating jobs, improving education and healthcare for our children and protecting our vast natural wonders must resonate throughout our State. Your continued support of our Party is crucial in this time. SPANISH IDENTITY (Take 3)  It's been a blast but it really must end soon, this Great Reader Debate over Spanish identity in New Mexico and the controversial remarks of Dr. Estevan Rael-Galvez, executive director of the National Hispanic Cultural Center. But we've been taken with the caliber of the e-mail and the audience seems to like the show, so here we go again...Michael Corwin of Corwin Research & Investigations: ...Dr. Stanley Hordes, formerly the NM state historian, did extensive research (his book is called To the Ends of the Earth) on the conversos/ hidden Jews of New Mexico (most 100% catholic by now including many, many priests) and how they came here from Spain (via Portugal where no blood oath was required as it was required to leave Spain) to the Canary Islands, from the Canary Islands to Mexico City, from Mexico City to Nuevo De Leon (when the Inquisition reached Mexico City) and finally up the Rio Grande into what is now New Mexico. Ironically, New Amsterdam (NY), Rhode Island, South Carolina and Georgia were very early on populated by jews from Portugal as well. In fact the merchant ships used by the newly created US navy in the revolutionary war were provided by the Seixas family who were the ancestors of the first US Supreme Court justice with Hispanic blood (long predating Justice Sotomayor). The difference was that there was no need to hide their heritage or religion in the places that did not fall under the Inquisition as did those who came here. Perhaps a part of this issue of identity and "pure blood" stems from those who came here that were not fleeing the Inquisition? Remember no blood oath from Portugal but a blood oath required from Spain. (Names like Sais, Chaves are considered Portuguese in origin while Saiz and Chavez are Spanish) By the way, the two parts of NM thought to have been settled heavily by conversos are Espanola Valley (highest level of circumcision in the state) and in Tome. Ironically, also the two areas with the highest concentration of drug addiction. Perhaps the Hispanic Cultural Center might be willing to launch a genetic/public health study to see if hundreds of years of burying your identity plays a role in such high levels of addiction? And Kevin Wenderoth comes with a "can't we all get along" plea: Sure, Hispanic people in New Mexico have surnames that could have only originated from Spain--but we don’t share their culture, food, or general way of life. Being born and growing up in Albuquerque my experience is that New Mexican culture is much more closely related to that of Mexico. And, after 400 years, it seems fairly inevitable that bloods from Native-Americans, Mexicans, Spaniards, and other Anglo Europeans would have mixed... New Mexicans should be proud of the influence Spain has had on our culture, but I think there are very few people in New Mexico who can claim to be only of Spanish-European descent. Can’t we all just be happy with being New Mexicans? We also received an insightful email from Laura Gómez, a professor at the University of New Mexico School of Law who wrote a book about the origin of the Mexican-American race. However, we were traveling and somehow lost the email. If she resends it we will put it up for you. NO WAY, JOSE  We've enjoyed the back and forth and the stimulating comments the controversy over the remarks made by Rael-Galvez, but if you think that means we're going to wade into another similar debate, fuggedaboutit! But we are being tempted. Here's a news release from a group that can't handle the Santa Fe Fiesta:Diocese of Santa Fe Leads Annual Celebration of the Conquest and Subjugation of Native Americans in New Mexico Santa Fe--For the 298th time, citizens of northern New Mexico will gather to celebrate the conquest and subjugation of local Native Americans. Under the guidance of the Archdiocese of Santa Fe and the Santa Fe Fiesta Council, Fiesta Santa Fe is a four month celebration culminating on September 10th, when a young Hispanic male imitating Spanish Conquistador Don Diego de Vargas and a young Hispanic female ‘Queen’ ride triumphant through, Santa Fe. On September 12th a Pontifical Mass is held at the Cathedral Basilica of St. Francis of Assisi to bring this cultural travesty to a close. Maybe we should ask This is the home of New Mexico politics. Email your news and comments. Interested in advertising here? Drop us a line. (c)NM POLITICS WITH JOE MONAHAN 2010 Not for reproduction without permission of the author Monday, September 06, 2010Labor Day Clippings From My Newsroom Floor: The Press & The State Jet, Plus: Even More Spanish Identity Debate, And: Some Campiagn Humor (Finally)
Here are some clippings from my newsroom floor before you jump back in the pool this Labor Day 2010 and get a final refresher before the campaigns kick into high gear tomorrow. We start off with jet fatigue...
The same press that gave us oodles of coverage of the purchase of a $5.5 million state jet and whose backsides were being comfortably ensconced in the plane are now complaining that the jet has dominated too much of the campaign for Governor which now has less than two months to go. The Rio Grande Sun cries in its beer over the campaign jet coverage, saying it's time to move on to more substantive matters. But it was early in Big Bill's administration that the paper devoted reams of copy (and conspiracy theories) about the various state plane rides he took. And the ABQ Journal--previously jet-obsessed with front-pager after front-pager--now laments that the story it ran riot with is now nearly daily fodder on the campaign trail. Well, the lesson for the press is you may want it both ways, but that doesn't mean you're going to get it. SPANISH IDENTITY (CONT.) There is going to be no easy way to bring to an end the Great Reader Debate over Spanish identity because the email--some of it pretty damn articulate--keeps pouring in. And because it's such a hot topic we'll stay with a day or two more. Here's Barry Simon of ABQ and the NM Institute for Conflict Literacy who says we went too far when we dubbed a letter of explanation written by Dr. Estevan Rael-Gálvez "an apology." (For those of you not up to snuff on all this, just scroll down to read previous entries). Here's Barry: ..Dr. Rael-Gálvez did not present an apology; he sent an apologia which is a justification of his original comments. How do I know this? Just read the first sentence of his email: "...I wish to apologize for any misunderstandings and...any offense caused by my remarks in the Alibi..." This is as conditional as it gets. He suggests that the readers were at fault for misunderstanding his comments. As such, they are responsible for feeling offended because of their misunderstandings. Then he goes on to blame the Alibi since the article was the result of a longer conversation. Clearly, Alibi misrepresented what he said in that conversation. Finally, he goes on to tell us he is an expert in this subject and that identity is fluid and, therefore, his original comments were not incorrect. And you accept this as an apology? What he should have written was "I wish to apologize for the statements I made about New Mexico and Spanish heritage. It was not my intention to offended anyone and I am deeply saddened by the hurt my comments have caused." Now that's an apology. Then he can go onto explain why he made these comments and then finish by offering some kind of reparation, such as pledging to be more sensitive in the future. However, I doubt you will get such an apology from Dr. Rael-Galvez because he is not sorry for his comments but only for the commotion they created. This was a PR ploy, often used by politicians and the politically inclined, to get past the situation his comments created, not a real attempt to take responsibility for what occurred. I suspect if you ask the offended parties if they accept this "apology," they would reply in the negative. Before he can truly apologize, the good doctor needs to understand the damage his comments caused and take responsibility for that. That takes empathy and humility. Hopefully, he has these qualities and will try again to genuinely apologize to those he hurt. WANT MORE? New Mexico public relations guru, John Cordova, comes with this take: One hundred years ago a Mexican philosopher and education minister coined the phrase the "Cosmic Race" noting that Mexicans were the best of all groups because they were a mixture of all races. His perceptions were a reaction to the Spanish and French elite-class pressure to define the Mexican Culture. New Mexico was experiencing a similar pressure at the time as we bid to be a state. We were being defined in Washington DC as "mongrels" unable to speak English. Elite pretensions and expediency prevailed and our genetic roots were edited and most of us were accepted as full fledged citizens. In the 1960s Reies Lopez Tijerina awakened many of us to the commonality of our genetics by referring to us as Indo-Hispanics as he attempted to created a "brown movement." He wasn't able to sustain a movement but he did raise our consciousness. And, of course, there was "push back" by those who preferred the "pure" Spanish myth. I have felt that it was a class-based myth, denying that we were Mexicans or Indians and leaving us with hard to explain physical characteristics. Those of us who are interested can trace our roots back four centuries but an honest accounting nearly always finds some Indian in the genealogical wood pile. We are proud of Estevan Rael-Galvez, his intellect and accomplishments. We need to lose our class pretensions and embrace our multi-genetic and multi-cultural reality. Finally for today, here's ABQ's Louis Martinez with a quick take: We need to check the Rael-Galvez DNA...Living on Venus has fried his brain. My family has records of their continuous habitation of the high desert upper Rio Grande Valley for four centuries and how they originally came from Spain and the Iberian Peninsula.. WE'RE HIGH ON THIS LIST In times past we were first in the nation in this category, but we are still way up there, underlining the importance of the federal establishment here: The state ranks fifth in the nation for the amount of money the federal government spent per resident in fiscal year 2009, according to a report released Tuesday by the U.S. Census Bureau. Direct federal per capita spending in New Mexico totaled a little less than $14,000 in FY09... Alaska topped the list with more than $20,000 in per capita federal spending. New Mexico, the report said, received $27.4 billion in direct federal spending in the fiscal year. Direct spending includes federal salaries, retirement, disability payments, unemployment benefits, procurement spending and federal grants... HUMOR WATCH Sure, the Guv campaign has been dry as cactus, but there is some humor out there. One of our readers asks: Have you seen the "No Tejana Susana" bumper stickers? I just saw one. Well,the Martinez camp might find that too amusing but their El Paso born candidate will be taking much tougher hits than that should she be elected November 2. And how about some tongue-in-cheek yard sign tips? We've got some from a wag in the Denish camp. Enjoy them. Happy Labor Day, New Mexico: --Make sure you put them up in a well-lit area. Preferably shrouded in a halo of Christmas lights that you know you will be putting up in a month anyway. You don't want that yard sign walking away late at night as they have been known to do. --Please do be sure to put your yard sign in the front yard. Backyard signs can usually only be seen by voters who have made up their minds (you), children with too much time on their hands, and of course Fido who may want to take a bite or leave his mark. --The signs are designed to easily go into grass or dirt yards, so please no jackhammer rentals this year to install signs into your driveway, sidewalks or city streets. The excitement is appreciated, but probably not by your local municipality or your neighbors! --We try to be very green here at the Denish-Colon campaign and re-use things as much as possible, but please keep in mind for after the election that these recycled yard signs are not edible, and no amount of red chile will change that. This is the home of New Mexico politics. Email your news and comments. Interested in advertising here? Drop us a line. (c)NM POLITICS WITH JOE MONAHAN 2010 Not for reproduction without permission of the author |
  
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