Tuesday, January 02, 2007Big Bill: Four More Years Or Only Two? Plus: The "Mini-Katrina;" State Snowstorm Response Faulted, And: On The Media Beat; Storm Tests Their Mettle
Big Bill
![]() (The Guv's complete inaugural address is here.) THE MINI-KATRINA? While Big Bill has mastered the New Mexican electorate and Legislature in unprecedented fashion, his inability to hold sway over the state bureaucracy rose up and bit him as hundreds of travelers were stranded over the holiday weekend on Interstate 40 east of Albuquerque, many of them for several days. It wasn't exactly Big Bill's Katrina, but state government response to the snow disaster, critics claimed, had some disturbing parallels to that of the Bush administration's inadequate handling of the New Orleans hurricane. No question the Guv was right when he noted the storm dumped an unprecedented amount of snow, but the white stuff stopped falling Saturday, yet the vital interstate link remained closed all day Sunday forcing motorists, many with young families in tow, to turn off their engines and therefore their car heaters to preserve fuel while they awaited help or a reopening of the interstate, both of which were slow in coming. In a statement somewhat reminiscent of the feds Katrina response, NM Homeland Security Director Tim Manning said: "It takes a bit of time to clear out 20 miles of stopped cars." That had the Alligators on their two legs, asking why we have a nicely funded homeland security office if it is simply going to tell us the obvious and not improve response time? WELCOME TO LA POLITICA, CHIEF Chief Segotta ![]() It wasn't the first time the state cops have come under the gun for their handling of the roads. Several years ago they were faulted for closing the interstate too often during several bouts of snow. Apparently there are still lessons to be learned. Since the entire economy of the USA is impacted by the interstate in question, the chief, the Governor and his homeland security honcho may want to give that some thought. Big Bill said he would make a "major assessment" of the emergency response, but maintained "we were well-prepared." Maybe. Maybe not. When you are seeking the nation's highest office in a nomination contest that will be decided just 13 months from now, the stakes get higher. And so do the expectations. BILL'S LABOR PAINS Another end of year stumble marred what was otherwise a cheery 2006 for Big Bill. His choice to replace Conroy Chino as state labor secretary, Herb Crosby, had to drop out for "personal and business" commitments. He has been replaced by Betty Sparrow, one of the Guv's recent appointees to the agency. It was another reminder that the "vetting" process for appointees in the administration has been an ongoing issue, one that could pop up on the national campaign trail if our chief executive starts to make a serious move. MEDIA WATCH: THE BIG STORM ![]() In a time when the appetite for news was downright ravenous, the ABQ Journal was unable to delver the goods for two days running as icy streets thwarted their best efforts. They were able to post updates on their Web site, but even that wasn't foolproof as Comcast cable, a big net provider, was unable to provide service to many of their cable TV and Internet subscribers. Is management there taking a look at that fiasco? As usual, the giant electric company, PNM, did well in the emergency management department, perhaps because they have been doing it for close to a hundred years. They slowly but surely restored power to homes deprived of electricity by the fierce storm and hit the right tone in reassuring the public. Still, over a thousand ABQ and surrounding area homes remained without power Monday, testing the resources of the monopoly utility. But it was local TV news, often derided, and fairly so, for its inane crime coverage, that vindicated itself best as the weather presented them with a rare opportunity to showcase the public service components of their federally licensed money machines. I am told that the weather casters blew this one by not predicting its strength, but they made up for it in the subsequent solid coverage as they and the news departments covered this one, well, like a wet blanket. From the "crawls" at the bottom of the screen to the spot news reporting, it was reinforced that television is still the go to medium in times of crisis, even in the Internet age. (KOB-TV's Web site remains the ABQ market leader, posting breaking news faster and more often than its rivals.) One is heartened by the stations' performance, but left wondering why we can't see the same zest and enthusiasm applied to the coverage of more mundane, but equally important political and social issues. I know. Those pictures don't get ratings. MY BOTTOM LINES ![]() Send me your latest political news from the link at the top of the page and help us cover the new year in NM politics.. You can remain anonyomous; just not uninformed. Thanks for being here. Back at ya' tomorrow. (c)NM POLITICS WITH JOE MONAHAN 2007 Not for reproduction without permission of the author |
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