Rep. Stansbury

She must feel confident because after teasing a run for the position of Ranking Member on the House Natural Resources Committee ABQ Congresswoman Melanie Stansbury has made it official and is in the race.

She faces fellow Democrat and House veteran Jared Huffman, 60, who represents a district north of San Francisco. Stansbury, 45, was first elected at a special election in 2021. Her district is mostly ABQ but also includes large sections of low-populated rural counties to the south.

The Ranking Member of a committee leads the minority members and usually becomes chairman of a House Committee when the chamber switches party control. 

Republicans will maintain the chairmanship of Natural Resources for the next two years since they scored the House majority at the November election but the margin is very close and could flip to the Dems in 2026. The ranking Democrat would then be expected to assume the coveted chair.

The stakes are high for New Mexico which has Deb Haaland as Secretary of Interior but who will be leaving when Trump comes in. The full Democratic Caucus will decide the Ranking Member positions next week.

A source close to Stansbury says Huffman may have an inside edge but "she’s picking up new members and every day feeling better."

One reason Stansbury may have gotten off the fence and made the run was this endorsement from Arizona Rep. Raúl Grijalva, the current Ranking Member who is not seeking the post again:

I am proud to endorse my friend and colleague. . .(She) has made her mark as a strategic and tenacious advocate for advancing environmental justice, strengthening tribal sovereignty, and securing water for communities in the drought-stricken West. Her tenure as Ranking Member on the Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee proves her leadership in standing up to polluting industries and holding them to account, even when Democrats don't hold the gavel. “The next four years will be a fight against Trump’s ‘drill, baby, drill’ plan. House Natural Resources will be the frontline of this fight, and I am confident Rep. Stansbury is the right person to lead this critical committee.

In her announcement Stansbury did not directly mention the President-elect:

My life’s work at the forefront of these land and water issues and climate justice is not just a job—it is part of who I am and why I am here. As we prepare for the 119th Congress, we must meet the moment and be prepared for the attacks that will undoubtedly come, while continuing to work with our colleagues across the aisle to get things done. To do so, we will need leadership who will lead with strength, integrity, grit, determination, and heart.

TRUMP FACTOR

Rep. Huffman

For his part, Huffman, 60, said:

Huffman emphasized the incoming Trump administration’s likely targeting of Biden-era environmental regulations:“My district experiences some of the worst impacts of the climate crisis including extreme drought, devastating wildfires, flooding, sea level rise, toxic algal blooms, and biodiversity loss.

Both Stansbury and Huffman are steeped in policy with Stansbury's expertise including arcane water law, environmental impacts and tribal relations. 

She has an uber-progressive record on social issues that causes consternation among moderates but like Senators Udall and Bingaman in their day she appears to be drawing bipartisan support for her other interests that are vitally important to the state.

To that end, southern Dem Congressman Gabe Vasquez suggests a pragmatic path for Stansbury should the leadership role become hers:

I believe that Congresswoman Stansbury has an ability to cut more deals, to be able to hopefully have a working relationship with Republican leadership in that committee, and not be so necessarily defensive about what the Trump administration is doing but find common ground.

PHRASING PROBLEM

Reader Mark Fidel writes of the Tuesday Vox Populi blog: 

Hi Joe: Jim McClure’s comments aren’t wrong, but he needs to work on his delivery. “ So wireless internet will bring connectivity to more New Mexicans more quickly, but could force broadband office employees to find honest work when the project is completed” By his description, the work that the broadband office’s employees are doing currently is not “honest“? Perhaps they should just go find “honest“ jobs now and let somebody else figure out the broadband problem. 

McClure's phrasing was indeed misleading. 

The issue isn't the employees of the Broadband Office but a policy towards satellite internet that needs to be made more flexible here and in DC. Their announcements of grants for laying fiber in rural New Mexico that will often take years to complete seems disconnected from the reality of what our rural kids could have at their fingertips now--high-speed, reliable satellite internet access. The Broadband office is proposing a $70 million accommodation of that viewpoint. That's promising but should be the beginning not the end.  

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