Wednesday, July 07, 2021Poll Waves Cautionary Flag Over MLG Hispanic Support, And: More Barker Beat; 4th Floor Weighs In Her overall job approval rating was 50 percent, disapproval 32% and not sure 18%. That mediocre performance among Hispanics may be weighing on her. Longtime Dem political consultant Sisto Abeyta thinks the issue is mainly Hispanic men. He comments: The Governor needs to be communicating more with Hispanics, especially Hispanic men who are small business owners and blue collar workers. The progressive agenda has left many of them cold. That in itself is not disastrous but when combined with economic troubles it hurts. Abeyta said MLG could also help her cause with the Hispanic electorate if the state could move faster in getting out the massive federal assistance dollars that have flowed into Santa Fe. Dem BernCo Commissioner Steven Michael Quezada is an example of the problem. He recently tweeted that his requests to meet with MLG have fallen on dead ears: "(She) has denied every request for a meeting with me as well," he tweeted in response to a TV reporter's complaint that he could not get an interview with the Governor. MLG favored Quezada's Dem opponent in his last primary election. That SurveyUSA poll also had MLG getting 49 percent approval in her handling the economy but only 40% approve of her handling of crime. BARKER BEAT So what was KRQE-TV investigative reporter Larry Barker covering when he got into that spat with the governor’s spokeswoman that made headlines. Turns out the story he was seeking comment on from the governor dealt with the state medical cannabis program. An MLG spokesman: Though the Dept. of Health had answered his questions, he didn't feel they had given him the access he usually wants, so he took it to the governor. Now, my only issue with that is he did it the literal moment before she was about to be introduced to give a speech, so he knew full well he would get denied and he'd get the dramatic footage of that denial that he wanted. . . The governor spoke to him directly after the fact and the interviews he wanted with DOH were arranged, so hopefully his story can proceed the way he wants to tell it. Barker was upset about initially being denied a gubernatorial interview. KOB -TV investigative reporter Chris Ramirez also recently complained about access, but the Fourth Floor says MLG has been forthcoming with the media: To suggest we routinely refuse to answer basic questions is a real leap that I don't believe would be supported by the vast majority of reporters. . .Staff answer questions; cabinet secretaries and staff get on the phone and conduct interviews whenever possible. If you want to make it about "access," well, just last week, the governor spoke directly with at least three different local reporters. Is every request for access granted? Of course not. That's true for any public office. How quickly it seems to have been forgotten that last year the governor held twice-weekly and monthly briefings on every subject under the sun… This is the home of New Mexico politics. Interested in reaching New Mexico's most informed audience? Advertise here.   (c)NM POLITICS WITH JOE MONAHAN 2021 |
|
