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| Sen. Pope |
Here's a topic near and dear to the hearts of some of our New Mexico lawmakers. ABQ Dem Senator
Harold Pope wants to
ban the boozing at the venerable Roundhouse, or at least strictly limit when senators can imbibe.
Never mind that his plan might send his personal popularity plummeting with some of his colleagues, Pope is on to something. With our state atop
the list for alcohol-related deaths, it would seem an ideal time for legislators to set an example, instead of seeing a number of them arrested for drinking and driving. Pope's booze ban would include the time before or during any floor session or committee meeting. Says the ABQ Dem
westside lawmaker:
We want people to be professional and be on the job and be focused. We’re dealing with some serious issues every day, you know, what we vote on, and it’s stressful enough it can be contentious on the floor, and the last thing we need is to have folks having drinks or inebriated which is going to cause people to make bad choices. . . There’s just some things that I’ve seen that I’ve felt are unprofessional. As members of the Senate and the issues that we have in our state when it comes to alcohol and professionalism, I just feel that this is something a rule that we needed to add.
Pope did not rat out any of his fellow lawmakers as examples of bad behavior brought on by booze but that alcohol is often the lubricant for legislative debate is an open secret.
Last year a lobbyist who made a sexual harassment charge against ABQ Dem Senator Daniel Ivey-Soto talked of getting high on too much wine the senator served to her in his
office and which she said she drank because she felt pressure to go along.
Pope's proposal--
SR01--would amend Senate rules to include the limits on alcohol but would not apply to the House.
It would be interesting to hear the thoughts of the progressive lobbyists on banning booze as well as those of the advocates for a full-time paid legislature. Should that "modernized" legislature include a booze ban?
Alcohol is completely banned at some capitols including Oklahoma and Idaho. Pope is not calling for that so the flasks and bottles in the filing cabinets will still be safe but the senator's proposed anti-liquor crusade may be only the first round. The measure has street cred with the public. After all, how many of them are allowed to drink on the job?
DISAPPOINTED GABE |
| Rep. Vasquez |
Freshman Dem
Rep. Gabe Vasquez is disappointed that he was not invited to join President Biden at his recent El Paso visit to discuss the immigration crisis at the US Mexico border. He
says:
That is so close to our district. New Mexico has to have a place at the table when we have conversations around border security, around immigration, around the refugee crisis.
But hold on. Didn't Vasquez recently have an opportunity to discuss the border with the president but failed to seize it? Indeed he did.
It happened when Biden made a campaign appearance in ABQ's South Valley November 2 on behalf of MLG, Vasquez and other Dem candidates. Apparently sensing political peril from the visit in the conservative region of his southern congressional district, Vasquez notably took a pass on meeting the president that day. Ditto for US Sen. Martin Heinrich who didn't even show up at the airport to greet Biden when he arrived. If the delegation is going to pose as being serious on the border might they make more serious efforts to meet the man in charge?
Meanwhile, Rep. Vasquez is probably fortunate that Republican Yvette Herrell may again be his opponent when he seeks his second term in '24. As we previously reported, former Rep. Herrell has already filed paperwork with the FEC for a '24 run. Now there is this departing message from her:
During my time in Congress, I've had the privilege of meeting and working with countless great patriots in New Mexico, people who are willing to fight for freedom and prosperity. These courageous men and women remain strong in hard times and don't care about what the media or the Washington Establishment says--as long as they're on the side of truth and justice. . .All will play a part in saving our great nation. That is why, as I depart Washington and head home to the plains and mountains we know so well, I know the future is in good hands, no matter what challenges lie ahead. Serving the hardworking families of New Mexico has been my greatest honor, and I'm not done yet.
Based on her 1,300 vote loss to Vasquez in an off year election, Herrell could have a lot more time viewing those "plains and mountains." A comeback in '24--a presidential year with higher voter turnout--is a high climb.
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