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Thursday, February 27, 2020

Santa Fe Mayor Explains Bloomberg Endorsement And First African American Sits on NM Court Of Appeals 

So why did Santa Fe Mayor Alan Webber endorse Michael Bloomberg for president and risk the wrath of the many Bernie Sanders fans in the capital city area? 

Webber says the decision was pragmatic, that his view is that Bloomberg has the best chance of any Democrat to oust Trump. 

He explained that he agreed with the Bloomberg campaign that the presidential election will come down to a handful of swing states including Florida, Wisconsin and Michigan and in turn a handful of voters in those states will tip the balance and therefore the Electoral College. 

“Those voters are disaffected Republicans, independents and new voters, according to the polling. I believe Bloomberg has the best chance of capturing those types of voters so in that light the decision to endorse him is a simple one,” explained Webber. 

Webber, like Bloomberg, is an entrepreneur who accumulated considerable wealth in the private sector. We joked that his support for Bloomberg was because they both shared a passion for books—-bank books. Webber laughed but not too loudly. There were plenty of Bernie Sanders supporters listening. 

ANOTHER FIRST

Judge Henderson
Just when you thought all the political firsts have been achieved. . . 

This time it's the first African-American to serve on the NM Court of Appeals.

Shammara Haley Henderson, a civil rights attorney and former prosecutor in the US attorney's office, has been appointed by MLG to fill a vacancy left by Judge Monica Zamora who retired this year.

Besides the history behind the appointment, Henderson also brings youth to the court. In 2018 she was named the State Bar Outstanding Young Lawyer Of  The Year.

Henderson will have to work hard to stay in her new job. She must seek election to Zamora's unexpired term that ends in 2024. That starts with the June primary. She has filed to run as has attorney Jane Yohalem, who was passed over by the judicial nominating commission which recommended  Henderson to the Governor. The winner of the primary will be heavily favored to win the seat over the Republican hopeful, Gertrude Lee.

The ten member court scored another recent first when for the first time a majority of its members were women.

THE BOTTOM LINES

Charles Goodmacher of the NEA-NM reviews the outcome of the recent legislative session in this podcast. . . .

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(c)NM POLITICS WITH JOE MONAHAN 2020
 
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