The early polling showing Sen. Heinrich running about 6 points ahead of Republican Nella Domenci has given readers and Alligators something to chew on. Here's ABQ attorney Armand Huertaz:

 Joe, Heinrich is the most paranoid man in New Mexico. This guy is acting like he is Sen. Sherrod Brown running in Ohio. He won’t even go to the Democratic National Convention? Does he know that he is running in deep blue NM? Is there something internal we don’t know about that is keeping this lobster chile-relleno eater scared? 

Also, shout out to the “reader” for their take on Domenici. Heaven forbid that a Republican candidate appeal to the middle in a deeply Democrat state and not just rubber stamp the most conservative aspects of her party. What?! Is she actually trying to win this thing? How dare this she-wolf! Is there a paranoia going around Team H? Is Nella gonna pull a miracle? 

A Senior Alligator long in the tooth says Heinrich's TV attack on Republican Nella Domenici that accusers her of investing in the "Chinese Communist" military buildup when she was a hedge fund executive came with this insight:

Joe, While Nella Domenici hits Heinrich for his inattention to the issues that affect New Mexicans, Heinrich decided to go after Nella by claiming she is tied to the Chinese Communist Party. For those of use who have been around long enough, we remember that this is the same attack playbook that Heinrich used against Jon Barela in 2010 when Martin felt his congressional seat might be threatened. 

I find it hard to believe that every strong candidate against Heinrich is an agent of the Chinese Communist Party. If Heinrich wants to keep his seat, he should stop recycling his old attacks and convince us he has actually done something good for New Mexico. 

We reported on Heinrich's 2010 attacks on Republican Jon Barela who ran against him for the ABQ US House seat that year. From our Sept. 27 2010 blog:

The latest TV in this race for the ABQ congressional seat gets a tad more personal as Dem US Rep. Martin Heinrich comes with an attack on Republican Jon Barela's lobbying history for Intel Corp. 

"While New Mexico workers struggle, Jon Barela's been fighting to create jobs--in foreign companies. Barela was a D.C. Lobbyist pushing to let George W. Bush negotiate unfair trade deals. Made deals that made it easier for corporations to ship our jobs to India and China."

 And the Barela camp's response from that campaign 14 years ago:

 The fact is Barela wants to create jobs in New Mexico, while Heinrich allowed tax breaks that helped foreign companies create jobs in China rather than the U.S.: “The Department of Energy estimated that 82,000 jobs have been created and has acknowledged that as much as 80 percent of some green programs, including $2.3 billion of manufacturing tax credits, went to foreign firms that employed workers primarily in countries including China, South Korea and Spain, rather than in the United States.” (Patrice Hill, “‘Green’ jobs no longer golden in stimulus,” Washington Times, 09/09/10) 

When it comes to politics there truly seems to be nothing new under the sun, although Heinrich may not relish the reminder.  

NELLA AND COPS

Heinrich remains heavily favored for re-election as the Democratic vote eventually comes home in the fall but Domenici is trying to slow that return in ABQ by tackling the crime crisis: And she's getting some help: 

The Albuquerque Police Officers Association (APOA), representing more than 800 police officers from the Albuquerque Police Department and the Aviation Police, has endorsed Nella Domenici over her opponent, an incumbent senator with a record of complete failure. Heinrich has made New Mexico’s crime problem a crisis with his misplaced priorities, including following Biden’s and Harris' open border policies enabling dangerous criminals, cartels, terrorists, and a massive flow of deadly fentanyl throughout New Mexico and the United States. 

Our endorsement is based on your continued support for law enforcement and public safety as a whole,” the APOA said in their endorsement of Domenici. “Your ability to understand the needs of public safety at the local level makes us believe that you are the best candidate. You bring a commonsense approach toward making decisions that will be fair, competent, and based on the principles of what is right.” 

HEINRICH AND WALZ

Heinrich may have boycotted the Dem convention where last night VP candidate Tim Walz was the major speaker, but he says he has a personal connection to the Minnesota Governor:

“Governor Tim Walz is a fantastic choice for Vice President. Having worked closely with him in the House, I can say that Tim is the real deal—someone who gets results without getting bogged down by political distractions. Whether it’s standing up for the rights and freedoms of Minnesotans or championing working families, Tim embodies the values that make our country strong. I’m confident that together with Vice President Kamala Harris, they’ll lead our nation with the courage, compassion, and common sense that we need. As a Senator from the Southwest, I’m proud to stand with this powerhouse duo as they fight for all Americans, from the heartland to the mesas.”

HAALAND DNC SPEECH

Tonight is the final night of the DNC and there will be a final NM touch. Sec. of Interior Deb Haaland will speak to the convention around 6 PM our time on the subject of climate change. She will also host a party tomorrow night for the NM delegates.

RUNNING FOR MAYOR?

Councilor Garcia

We're probably the first to print it but we really do think this fella will be running for mayor of Santa Fe next year:

MERCH TIME 

For those supporters who must have a New Mexico angle for their backing of the Harris/Walz ticket, there are these new yard signs being shopped by the state Dems. We haven't seen any NM signs for Trump but there are plenty of others available here.

This is the Home of New Mexico Politics.    

MLG gave a short noneventful speech on healthcare to the Democratic National Convention last night, making only a single and brief reference to "reproductive rights," the health subject she is most known for. 

(Full video here.)

We and others thought she might go there but the Dem powers that be are having all their speakers hew to the middle of the road so it was New Mexico's Governor hammering Trump over wanting to repeal the Affordable Care Act (Obamacare) and praising VP Harris for her vote as a senator to keep it alive.

She also called out the success of the Biden/Harris administration in getting Medicare to negotiate certain drug prices.

Abortion won only one line in the about four minute talk with MLG saying Harris would "ensure that every woman who needs it can access reproductive healthcare."

That earned her a mild round of applause from the crowd. Otherwise response to the speech was muted. 

A Republican reader criticized the speech, saying it was "uninspired and drew little applause. Not a strong performance. She put the DNC to sleep. But her suit and make-up looked good."

Well, we're sure the Guv will be heartened that she passed the appearance test but she did not fail the speech test. 

Most important, she did not flub her lines, got on and got off quickly as ordered and landed a couple of attacks on Trump/Vance. 

She did, however, appear to lose the audience with a wisecrack she made about Trump steaks," the former president's failed effort to launch a line of steaks over 15 years ago. Of all the anecdotes about Trump, that's the best she could come up with? In this case MLG's speechwriters belong in the doghouse--not the steak house. 

While only a couple of minutes in length the speech was squarely in prime time starting at 9:58 P.M. Eastern. While the major networks may have passed on carrying the remarks (we're not sure if they did or not), readers did report CNN and PBS carried the speech and there were plenty of other media outlets covering the event that are airing all the speeches. 

MORE MLG

The Guv Tuesday also joined other Democratic women Governors for a discussion on healthcare that focused more on abortion:

Speaking at a forum at The Drake hotel called “Power, Potential and Partnership” and moderated by All In Together founder Lauren Leader, Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham, the first Democratic Latina woman to be elected governor of New Mexico, said that many women and men have worked diligently to break the glass ceiling in American politics — before noting how that description is actually misleading, saying “it’s really cement.” 

Grisham shared an anecdote about how the vice president traveled to her state. It came in the aftermath of the Supreme Court overturning Roe v. Wade, where Harris met with medical school students and engaged in conversations about the importance of their work in providing reproductive care. “I'm now building primary care clinics with state funds that will provide reproductive services to women all across the country,” Grisham said, pointing to it as evidence of how policy can turn into action when women come together to share ideas. 

HER CHANCES 

Managerial problems in state government--CYFD and PED among them--and the inability to improve the state's standing in the national rankings--could be a yoke around the Governor's neck in getting appointed to any Harris cabinet. 

Competent management may not be the most important factor--Deb Haaland had little but was named Secretary of Interior--but MLG has had six years to show her managerial mettle and those opposed to or competing with her for a cabinet post could use her performance against her. 

Still, there are lot of plum jobs out there besides the cabinet and that will keep MLG animated as she campaigns for the Dem prez ticket the next two months.

MISSING MEN

Vasquez and Heinrich

It's the women--US Reps Melanie Stansbury and Teresa Leger Fernandez--pulling the weight for the state's all Democratic DC delegation in Chicago. 

Sen. Martin Heinrich and Rep. Gabe Vasquez stayed away. Both men face re-election in November but Sen. Ben Ray Lujan does not and he's also not there. 

None of them have fully explained their absence but one obvious reason--they don't want to be associated with the more progressive wing of their party--makes sense. 

From Roll Call:

At a time of decreased ticket-splitting between the presidential race and congressional races, there’s a bipartisan fear of being coupled with the national party and being subsequently dragged down by the top of the ticket. So party strategists unofficially recommend candidates running in competitive districts stay home and stay away from the conventions. 

GUV SUBPLOT

Sec. Haaland

Gov. Lujan Grisham received good news when she was awarded a speaking slot at tonight's edition of the Democratic National Convention. She will speak about "healthcare," code for abortion rights in which she has carved out a national pro-choice position and with results.

Even better news for MLG would be a ticket out of here courtesy of a President Kamala Harris. The second term Governor, soon to become an official lame duck following the November election, continues to see her standing with the Legislature deteriorate and a dreadful final two years of bickering and stalemate taking shape.

House Speaker Javier Martinez has now openly broken with her over the botched special legislative session she called on public safety measures. 

The split is so bad the Democratic Governor finds herself embracing the Republican newspaper and the ABQ Chamber of Commerce

So, will it be Harris to the rescue and Lieutenant Governor Howie Morales looking at new furniture for the Fourth Floor of the Roundhouse?

MLG messed up her chances for a cabinet slot under Biden but her relationship with Harris is stronger. But first Harris must win and that is far from a certainty. 

ABQ's interminable crime problem will be far from the Guv's mind over the next two months as she campaigns for Team Harris and in turn her own political future.

VASQUEZ DITCHES DNC 

Southern Dem US Rep. Gabe Vasquez, joined at the hip to Sen. Martin Heinrich, has joined his mentor in deciding not to attend the Dem convention. 

Vasquez is locked in a truly tight race with former GOP Rep. Yvette Herrell while Heinrich remains favored to beat Republican Nella Domenici but is playing defense to prevent making an opening for her.

Herrell went up on broadcast TV this week with her first ad and she's in no mood to play nice. She unveils a hit piece narrated by tough talking ABQ US Army veteran Steve Tafoya who tells the audience:

As a veteran it's tough to watch Gabe Vasquez destroy the country I sacrificed to defend. Gabe rejected anti-crime reform. He's working to tear down the border wall. He called to 'deconstruct' law enforcement.

Vasquez audio: It's not just about defunding the police, it's about defunding a system.

And just this year Vasquez had a warrant out for his arrest, the latest of his run-ins with the law. I know an enemy when I see one. Gabe Vasquez is a repeat offender and wrong for New Mexico. 

To voters just coming to the campaign the spot could seem devastating for Vasquez. But the warrant for his arrest was over him failing to appear in court in 2002 after being charged with driving without a license or insurance. 

Vasquez who was 18 at the time of the offenses, was neither booked nor arrested at any time and settled the matter in March by paying a bond, Luis Yañez, an attorney for Vasquez said. Vasquez never received notification of the outstanding citations but paid them immediately when he became aware of them.

The "deconstruct law enforcement" charge has sting and the spot features Vasquez from a TV interview where the then Las Cruces City Councilor strangely conceals his face with a bandana as he calls for defunding the police. 

But the video was already used in the 2022 campaign. 

Vasquez said then he was not in favor of defunding the police and that as a Las Cruces City Councilor he had voted to increase police budgets. 

OTHER "RUN-INS"

Rep. Vasquez

The Herrell ad reference to Vasquez being a "repeat offender" and having other "run-ins" with the law refers to other incidents involving Vasquez from his youth. Those have been reported on but not amplified via TV.

Voters may be hearing more about them in the days ahead. Here is a rundown from the UK's Daily Mail:

--In July 2004, Vasquez, who was a college student, placed a call to a human resources employee at a call center in Las Cruces. Vasquez, asked the center to speak with 'Chris,' and when the employee asked which Chris he was referring to, Vasquez replied 'Chris, the n***er.' The employee called back and left a message for Vasquez notifying him that she intended to report him to the police. Vasquez said:  'I have not and would never use language like this, this attack is categorically false. This is another example of how desperate Republicans are lying about my character rather than focusing on delivering for New Mexico.' 'It is not a coincidence that these lies are coming immediately after the video of Yvette Herrell wanting to ban all abortion in New Mexico, even in the case of rape and incest, came to light.'

--That wasn't Vasquez's only run-in with the police during his time at New Mexico State, which he attended from 2002-2008. He was given a criminal citation by police twice in 2005 for possession of marijuana and paraphernalia. In one instance, officers arrived at Vasquez's residence due to a loud music complaint and witnessed him cutting up marijuana and rolling it. In another, officers on bike patrol found Vasquez and his underage friends intoxicated and reeking of marijuana in a car. Vasquez handed marijuana over to the officers. All of the police records say the cases were 'suspended' and there is no indication further action was taken against Vasquez.

--Twice police were involved in domestic incidents when Vasquez and his ex-girlfriend were fighting. In 2004 Vasquez called the police because he said the ex, who he had broken up with a day earlier, refused to leave his apartment as they were arguing and he 'didn't want to do anything stupid and end up going to jail.' In a 2007 'possible domestic' incident, an officer arrived at a residence where Vasquez and a handful of other people were and Vasquez said he and his girlfriend had gotten into a verbal argument because he asked her 'not to drink so much because she just turned 21 and she gets kind of wild when she drinks. Vasquez said the girlfriend 'had a few too many' and 'began getting a little wild and dancing around in front of his friends'  and he asked her to stop. They then got into an argument and the girlfriend had a friend pick her up.

That's a lot of potential fodder for Herrell. Will she use it to make this race more about character than policy? That could be the smart play even though the events are long ago. Repeating the events incessantly with TV spots could make a difference. 

The use of veteran Tafoya as the narrator in Herrell's first ad confirms what we and other observers have been saying--Herrell must avoid a Democratic blow-out in ABQ's Hispanic and Dem-leaning South Valley if she is to thwart Vasquez's bid for a second term.

This is the Home of New Mexico Politics.    

A who's who of state Democratic politicos will be on hand today in Chicago as the Democratic National Convention kicks off but not all of them will be there for the four day confab. 

Most notably, Dem US Senator Martin Heinrich, citing "other commitments" won't be hanging around the Windy City.

It's the latest retrenchment by the state's senior senator as he grapples with a challenge from Republican Nella Domenici that has led Heinrich to rigorously pursue a risk-off strategy.

First, he became one of the few Dem US Senators to call for President Biden to get out of the presidential race. Then he came with a TV spot that veered right as it accused former hedge fund executive Domenici of investing in the military build out of "Communist China." Now he's the shying away from the Dem convention where protestors of the Israelis-Palestinian conflict will put Democrats on the spot.  

Three other Dem US Senators confirmed by polling to be locked in difficult races have announced they will skip the convention and stay focused on their re-election bids. They are Tester of Montana, Brown of Ohio and Rosen of Nevada.

Heinrich is an "automatic delegate" to the convention and along with the state's 44 other delegates has already voted to nominate VP Harris for president. (Complete list of delegates here.)

By his actions it would seem Heinrich is locked in a neck and neck race. He isn't, but the high number of undecideds in the most recent poll--21 percent--is reason for concern for a senator who has been around the political scene for over 20 years. In the horse race Heinrich led Domenici 40 to 34 percent.  

Heinrich's path to victory remains much easier than Domenici's but his anemic numbers are keeping him in check and Nella lurking but not advancing. 

BROADBAND DEBATE

Our ongoing drumbeat for the state Office of Broadband Access and Expansion to look more seriously at satellite internet for remote rural areas instead of laying fiber that is taking years and years to reach those locations caught the attention of former NM House Speaker Don Tripp of Socorro:

Joe, I was looking at your repeated posts about broadband in NM and I agree we should use satellite service for hard to reach New Mexicans . If we bought Starlink service for 20% of NM households (210,000) @ $499.00 for the equipment. That would be $105 million of the $675 million available and it wouldn’t take a generation to buildout! Makes you wonder why not?

Is it because Starlink, the main satellite internet provider is owned by right-winger Or do the major telcos have a lock on that $675 million in federal money flowing in here for broadband? 

We don't like to think so but as thousands of residents, including so many young students, wait and wait to get the broadband at home that they need to advance, the onus falls on the broadband office to start explaining themselves and for the legislature to initiate more robust oversight. 

And it wouldn't hurt if Sen. Ben Ray Lujan, a player in rural broadband in DC, would start thinking outside the box.

 MIKE SANTULLO

He called himself the fastest mouth of the west and lived up to the title.

Coming to Albuquerque from New York City in the early 70's, Mike Santullo brought with him the boisterous and confrontational style of East Coast talk radio that was a rarity here but later became a broadcast staple everywhere.

Santullo, who died last week in ABQ of heart failure, pioneered the talk format on KZIA, later taking his popular act to KRQE and KOB radio. He sprinkled in celebrity interviews along the way, ranging from Senator Ted Kennedy to legendary entertainer Arthur Godfrey. He even debated atheist Madlyn Murray O'Hair on-air and fought her to a draw.

Of course, any New Mexico politician worth their salt including Bruce King, Bill Richardson and Manuel Lujan were all repeat guests at his table.  

"Mike had a very quick wit and a big heart," recalled Jay Howard Deme whose family owned KZIA. "He had a voracious appetite for news, the ability to ad lib endlessly and an opinion on everything under the sun. How could his talk shows not be compelling?"

Santullo, fluent in Spanish and Italian, was also a notable radio news journalist, taking the helm of KQEO where in 1980 he ably covered the historic 1980 prison riot in Santa Fe for both local and national outlets.