Pelosi, excoriated by the R's as a San Francisco liberal, will be in friendly territory in heavily Democratic Santa Fe. We recall her last visit to the state was in 2008 for the successful campaign of now US Rep. Martin Heinrich.

She took over the Speaker's position in 2007. While there has been beefing from the R's here over national policies she and Obama have pursued, we have not heard major complaints about how she has dealt with federal funding issues of import to our state.

The White House has proposed a major increase in certain defense funds which is going to translate into increased budgets for the national laboratories. And only this week the Air Force announced that Holloman Air Force Base near Alamogordo will become home to two new squadrons of F-16 fighter jets, ensuring that employment levels there remain strong. (The newspaper reported that New Mexico congressmen insist the move is good for the state, but a former Kirtland Air Force Base commander wasn't so sure. He expressed concern over the base's loss of a newer jet for an older one.)

New Mexico's three Dem congressmen, all serving their first term, seemed to have fared well under Pelosi. Rep. Heinrich is on the House Armed Services Committee; Rep. Lujan is not complaining about his treatment and Rep. Teague has been given a pass to vote "no" on some of the more liberal items coming before the House.

Pelosi may indeed be too liberal on major issues of the day for many New Mexicans, but it is the federal funding (and not just defense) that impacts our small state of barely 2 million that matters most. In that regard, Speaker Pelosi has shown herself to be a friend, not a foe.

It's almost August--only five months to go on the Guv's term in office--and there's still speculation that Big Bill could get out of here for a bigger and better job, making Lt. Governor Diane Denish Governor.

Well, the conjecture has faded to a barely heard murmur, but it got above the whisper level again this week when former Senator Bob Kerrey withdrew his name for consideration as the new top lobbyist for the Motion Picture Association of America. Richardson's name had surfaced in February as a possible MPAA pick, but Kerrey's emergence quieted the talk. Now that Kerrey is gone, the name floaters are free to again mention Big Bill. Here's the news:

The Motion Picture Association of America needs to keep looking for a new chief. After flirting with becoming Hollywood’s main lobbyist for months, former U.S. Sen. Bob Kerrey has turned down the MPAA job, the organization announced on Thursday.

"The Motion Picture Association of America, Inc. (MPAA) today announced that the MPAA Board and former Senator Bob Kerrey have agreed to end negotiations regarding the position of Chief Executive Officer of the MPAA. The search process for a new CEO will continue," the group said in a statement.

In an email to The Wrap, the former senator said that he broke things off.

"We couldn't reach agreement and I called to suggest we break off talks. They agreed," Kerrey wrote. "The decision was mutual. I like them a lot and wish them well."

But individuals close to the negotiations on the studios' side said that Kerrey had made mounting demands that resulted in some losing enthusiasm for giving him the job.