Progressive Senator Fiercely Defends Sen. Ivey Soto From Progressive Attacks; Plus: Commentary Corner: Flap Over Denish And Park Playground Arouses Ageist Reaction; Thoughts On A Tempest In A Teapot

Sen. Ortiz y Pino

The progressive onslaught against centrist ABQ Dem. Sen. Daniel Ivey-Soto, the latest of which was carried on the Wednesday blog from a fund-raising letter from consultants urging that Ivey-Soto be defeated at the June 4 primary, has been met with fierce pushback--and by a progressive Senator. 

ABQ Dem District 12 Sen. Jerry Ortiz y Pino, whose liberal credentials are unquestioned, comes to the defense of Ivey-Soto who has been under siege over sex harassment charges and his voting record. He is begin challenged in the primary by progressive Heather Berghmans. 

Oritz y Pino writes: 

 Joe, I’m furious after reading the letter from Amanda Cooper, Nick Voges, and Jim Gollum you reprinted in yesterday's blog. Three separate, major falsehoods in what they said about Senator Daniel Ivey-Soto cannot go unchallenged. I have known Amanda and Nick for many years and am shocked that they could have penned such an effort at misinformation. Potential donors need to know they are resorting to fabrication in trying to defeat Daniel. 

When Amanda, Nick, and Jim allege that Senator Ivey-Soto “refused to support the legalization of abortion after the fall of Roe v. Wade,” I have no idea what they are talking about. The truth is that not only did he vote to legalize abortion rights in both 2019 and 2021, he was part of the Senate presentation on this issue, speaking on the Senate floor in favor of it as part of the coordinated presentation of these bills. As long as I have known Senator Ivey-Soto (including his service on the committee I chair), Daniel has been a stalwart ally supporting the fight for abortion rights. 

Their letter said that the Senator “voted against paid family and medical leave.” Senator Ivey-Soto, whom all his colleagues in the senate know is a stickler when it comes to reading the details of bills, may have voted against the 2023 version of the bill, but voted for the bill in 2024. I was there when he told our Democratic caucus that his change in vote came as a result of changes in the language in the bill that satisfied his concerns the previous year. So their claim does not tell the truth: he supported the measure when the bill matured from one year to the next. To me that attention to detail in getting it right is a quality we should all want in our legislators. 

Berghmans

Finally, the PAC operatives repeat the allegation that Daniel Ivey-Soto is a "disgraced incumbent" one who has faced "multiple credible claims of sexual harassment, bullying, and ethics violations." When did so-called "progressives" begin equating allegations with guilt? Daniel has not been found guilty of any of those allegations. He has demonstrated great character in the face of unproven claims. It would be a great loss if the Democratic voters of his district fall for this package of falsehoods and fail to re-nominate him to the Senate. His work there has set high standards for diligence, attention and transparency. I certainly count him among the legislators New Mexico has benefitted from in the past—and now I hope for four more years. 

Shame on Amanda Cooper, Nick Voges, and Jim Gollum for these lies and deceptions. They may prefer another candidate, but they shouldn't be permitted to resort to falsehoods to try to promote someone without half the background and independence that Senator Daniel Ivey-Soto has. 

Yep. The Dem primary battle in Ivey-Soto's District 15 is going to be a brass knuckles, take no prisoners brawl.  And you're going to see it all right here. But you already knew that.

COMMENTARY CORNER

Netherwood Park

Talk about the crime not fitting the punishment. 

Former Lt. Governor Diane Denish used her influence with MLG to have her veto $200,000 targeted for a playground at Netherwood Park in ABQ neighborhood and Denish took plenty of heat for it. But this ageist rant from the ABQ newspaper sounds like a verbal lynching, not reasoned opposition.

We get that Democrat Denish hates the Journal and has for years and that the Journal despises her. But is taking her bait and talking about her and seniors like their irrelevant rag dolls a mature response? 

Some samples from the rant:

You don’t have to be a man to be part of the Ole Boys Club in New Mexico politics. You can be a 70s-something female, too.

Is there ever consensus in a neighborhood on anything? Isn’t two-thirds support enough to override a grumpy old woman’s opposition?

As for Denish, she should focus her golden years at yelling at kids to get off her lawn

And if the sound of kids having fun outdoors bothers Denish and other Scroogies in her neighborhood, they can close their windows and mumble themselves to sleep. 

"Mumble themselves to sleep?" The average newspaper reader is probably near 70 these days so beating up on seniors doesn't seem to be the most persuasive tool.

More to the point. Denish lobbied the Governor. Contrary to the implication of the news story and the editorial and the claim of the sponsor of the vetoed appropriations, that is done all the time. And we mean all the time.

It's fair to ask whether Denish's influence outweighed those of her neighbors but was it unethical for her to call the Governor to express her opinion as a private citizen? Certainly not. 

Also, floating a flimsy survey where people emailed City Hall and implying it is scientific proof that the neighborhood was dying for the playground is plain old phooey. (Oops, we're aging our self with that word). 

It's the ageist vilification that is the worst part of this tempest in a teapot. There hasn't been a playground at Netherwood Park for 75 years which is known for its expansive and unobstructed views. Not everyone wants to be around noisy kids. That's no crime and it is a weak peg for an all-out investigative report and an even weaker excuse for a diatribe that condemns an entire class of people for the sake of getting revenge on an old enemy. 

Now get off our lawn!

THE BOTTOM LINES

We recently blogged that Republican Jay Block is a former Sandoval county commissioner. He is a current commissioner whose term expires at the end of the year.

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