Thursday, September 24, 2020

Biden Presidency Could take Some Wind Out Of The Sails Of NM's National Labs, Plus: NM Claims Top Slot For "Healthiest Community And Haaland Eyes Higher Spot in House

. . . Biden leaves little doubt that if elected he would try to scale back President Trump’s buildup in nuclear weapons spending. . . .In a questionnaire by the Council for a Livable World in which Biden and other candidates were asked whether the U.S. should review its policy reserving the option of using nuclear weapons first, Biden said yes but did not elaborate. He also agreed that modernizing the U.S. arsenal could be done for less than the currently projected $1.2 trillion.

The nation's nukes are being modernized which means . . .

LANL’s nuclear weapons production programs are slated for a 33% increase ($2.9 billion in FY 2021). NNSA plans to spend at least $5.8 billion at LANL and $4.6 billion at the Savannah River Site (SRS) in South Carolina over the next decade on construction or upgrades of plutonium pit production facilities.

Nuclear Watch NM reports ABQ's Sandia Labs had an FY 20 budget of $3.72 billion and is set to go through the $4 billion mark. That has made Sandia--along with Kirtland Air Force Base--the backbone of the metro area economy.

Some anti-nuclear advocates have said the nuke modernization program is unnecessary and a waste but Biden is not proposing to end it, but make it less costly.

Dems cringe when they hear it but it's true---when it comes to federal funding in federally-dependent New Mexico Donald Trump has kept the green flowing like few presidents before him. There's got to be a few votes for him in that.

HEALTHY ON THE HILL

You might think with all the environmental pitfalls that have resulted from nuclear weapons work at Los Alamos that it would be an unlikely candidate to rank as the healthiest community in the USA. But it does

With its vast mountain ranges, diverse wildlife and clean air, Los Alamos County, New Mexico, has been ranked the healthiest community of 2020. . . The county received a perfect score for measurements including drinking water quality, affordable housing availability, park access and population with an advanced degree, according to the annual U.S. News Healthiest Communities rankings report. "A healthy environment is part of what definitely contributes to being a healthy community," said Los Alamos County Council Chair Sara Scott. "People have the opportunity and the interest in getting out, taking advantage of our mountains, trails, biking, horse-riding (and) golfing."

The Healthiest Communities rankings and analysis are based on evaluations of nearly 3,000 communities nationwide for 84 health and health-related measurements in 10 categories, including community vitality, equity, economy, education, environment, food and nutrition, population health, housing, infrastructure and public safety.

The county is also very healthy financially, usually ranking near the top of the list of USA counties with the highest per capita income, thanks, of course, to Uncle Sam.

CLIMBING HIGHER?

ABQ Dem US Rep. Deb Haaland says she is considering running for the #6 leadership position in the House--Vice Chairman:

Haaland, 59, made history as one of the first two Native American women elected to Congress in 2018; she would be the first to serve in House leadership, if elected. Haaland told CQ Roll Call her desire to promote caucus diversity is among the reasons she’s considering running. “I feel like I could move our caucus forward."

XTS VS. HERRELL

Political junkies will take a pass on football at 4 p.m. this Sunday and tune in to the first televised political debate of the season. Republican Yvette Herrell and Dem Xochitl Torres Small will face-off at 4 p.m. on KOAT-TV. Well, face-off is a stretch. Becuse of the pandemic the candidates will debate over zoom--not in the studio.

The southern battle is the only one of the three NM US House races seen as competitive this cycle. The latest ABQ Journal poll had Torres Small leading 47-45. She beat Herrell in 2018 by less than 4,000 voters. The ABQ Journal is also a debate sponsor and will stream the program on its website as will KOAT. The debate will not be live. It will be prerecorded on Saturday.

THE BOTTOM LINES

Santa Fe Mayor Alan Webber appreciates our concern for his city's economic future which we described as going through a "slow motion economic collapse." Not so says His Honor. "Our latest report on gross receipts tax collections has them down 11 percent, significantly less than anticipated . . .”

We erred in our first blog draft Wednesday regarding a photo taken outside the business of Silver City Dem state Senator Gabe Ramos that showed two political signs in support of candidates.

Ramos, defeated in the June primary by fellow Dem Siah Correa Hemphill, is indeed supporting the Republican in the race to succeed him as we blogged. But the R candidate is James "Jimbo" Williams not Luis Terrazas whose sign was also in the photo and who we said was Hemphill's opponent. Terrazas is another R Ramos is supporting. He is running for the state House seat held by Dem Rep. Rudy Martinez.

This is the home of New Mexico politics.

E-mail your news and comments. (newsguy@yahoo.com)



Interested in reaching New Mexico's most informed audience? Advertise here.



(c)NM POLITICS WITH JOE MONAHAN 2020 Even diehard Trump foes have to admit that rarely has a president been so generous to the state's nuclear labs, bolstering the budgets of Los Alamos and Sandia by billions with billions more in the pipeline. But in a Joe Biden presidency that pipeline could be more narrow

Wednesday, September 23, 2020

Crime Wave Takes Center Stage In ABQ Congress Race As Garcia Holmes TV Bashes Haaland, Plus" "Bitter Boys?" Dem Senators Refuse To Support Primary Foes Who Beat Them, And: Santa Fe's Ethnic Divide

Michelle Garcia Holmes Who better to take on the ABQ crime wave in a congressional race than a former ABQ police detective? That's what supporters of ABQ GOP congressional candidate Who better to take on the ABQ crime wave in a congressional race than a former ABQ police detective? That's what supporters of ABQ GOP congressional candidate Michelle Garcia Holmes believe and she isn't disappointing them. In her first TV ad in her campaign to unseat first term Dem Congresswoman Deb Haaland , Garcia Holmes comes with a broadside against the incumbent:

Narrator: Congresswoman Deb Haaland voted against law enforcement funding that would put violent criminals behind bars.

I'm Michelle Garcia Holmes. When I am in Congress I won't let drug and human traffickers or violent criminals get a pass. Defunding police does not create safer cities. It's time to vote people out who put politics above people's lives. I approved this message and ask for your vote so we can get the power back to the people.

Garcia Holmes delivers her lines in front of the downtown Bernalillo County Courthouse, hoping to get voters who are naturally obsessed with healthcare to switch gears when thinking about the congressional contest.

The ad features a photo of Luis Talamantes, a suspect in the notorious westside driveway shooting murder of Jackie Vigil, the mother of two state police officers. The ad's citations are a bit confusing. It does not cite Haaland's July vote in favor of defunding the federal Operation Legend which arrested Talamantes and was set up in ABQ and other crime-ridden cities by the Trump administration. However, the ad does cite an August ABQ Journal article about that arrest. Garcia Holmes does list on screen Haaland's July vote in favor of the George Floyd Justice in Policing measure which is her premise for the defunding police charge.

First, on her vote to defund Operation Legend Haaland said in July:

Federal law enforcement officers are snatching Americans off of street corners and placing them into unmarked cars for the ‘crime’ of exercising their First Amendment rights. The United States of America should not have secret police.

There have been no reported civil rights abuses or of federal agents acting in secret during Operation Legend, although a 2016 federal operation was accused of racial profiling in the city's crime-stricken SE Heights. And there were complaints filed against federal agents this summer who have been helping to police Portland, Oregon during riots there.

Rep. Deb Haaland Now on her vote on the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act . Her campaign says that vote does not mean she is for defunding police departments:

Deb has never said that once. She proudly supported the George Floyd Policing Act that does not defund the police nor has she ever said we should defund the police. She voted yes on the House Floor because it would eliminate legal protections that shield police officers from lawsuits, make it easier to prosecute them for wrongdoing, impose a new set of restrictions on the use of deadly force, and effectively ban the use of chokeholds. . . Deb believes in tackling systemic racism in all structures. She believes in true criminal justice reform.

Haaland's campaign added that the TV ad "takes the Trump approach" and is filled with "outright lies and misleading facts" and should be taken down.

The crime issue hits home in ABQ and if it were not for the pandemic would probably poll higher among voter concerns which now are centered on health care. Our media Alligators report Garcia Holmes so far has bought $112,000 in ad time running until Nov. 3. Her campaign says radio ads are also coming.

Haaland reported over $350,000 in cash on June 30 while Garcia Holmes reported $145,000. Earlier this month the ABQ Journal poll had Haaland leading 58 to 31 with 11% undecided. She has not yet gone up on TV.

The 1st Congressional district has not elected a Republican since Heather Wilson in 2006.

BITTER BOYS?

One progressive Dem calls them the "Bitter Boys Club." They are Dem state Senators ousted in the June Dem primary who are backing off supporting the primary winners.

They include Grants area Senator Clemente Sanchez who friends say will not vote for either candidate in the race to succeed him. He was defeated in the primary by Dem Pam Corodva. He refuses to comment directly but is not denying the reports.

Then there's disgraced Sen. Richard Martinez of Espanola, defeated in the Dem primary by Leo Jaramillo after being busted for DWI. He went on social media to give an endorsement to the Republican candidate. Jarmalillo is expected to prevail in the heavy Dem district.

Now there's Silver City Sen. Gabe Ramos who was defeated in the June Dem primary by Siah Correa Hemphill. The photo posted here is from outside Ramos' business and sports a sign for Jimbo Williams, the R running against Hemphill. Ramos also kicked in $1,000 to Williams' campaign.

All three senators are conservative Dems who sometimes voted with Senate Republicans on key issues as part of a conservative coalition that often controls outcomes in the Senate. Their decision not to back the Dems they lost to shows their true colors, not that those colors were really ever in question.

SANTA FE'S DIVIDE

Don Diego de Vargas

If Santa Fe Mayor Alan Webber thinks 2020 is a tough year--and it has been--he'd best If Santa Fe Mayor Alan Webber thinks 2020 is a tough year--and it has been--he'd best prepare for an even more challenging 2021 when he faces re-election:

Mayor Webber got into a heated argument with Virgil Vigil, president of Union Protectiva de Santa Fe, which bills itself as the city’s oldest Spanish cultural organization, over the mayor’s June decision to remove the statue (of De Vargas) ahead of a planned protest. The mayor has said he ordered the removal of the statue for safekeeping — a decision that has sparked backlash among some local Hispanics who consider the move an attack on their Spanish roots.

Given the growing concerns in Santa Fe over the slow motion economic collapse, fear of the virus being carried in by tourists and the increasing ethnic divide, speculation has arisen that Webber, 72, might even reverse his decision to seek a second term (he told us earlier this year he would be running). Not that he couldn't win with his strong progressive base.

As for the statutes of New Mexico's various historical figures, let sleeping dogs lie. There is always room for more of them that we can argue about without trying to cancel our over four hundred year history. Tearing them down only tears us apart.





E-mail your news and comments. (newsguy@yahoo.com)



Interested in reaching New Mexico's most informed audience? Advertise here.



(c)NM POLITICS WITH JOE MONAHAN 2020 This is the home of New Mexico politics.

Tuesday, September 22, 2020

Blog Headlines: The Year Anything Can Happen, Trump Not Fighting Here, Lujan Scores Ronchetti Silence Over Ginsburg Seat, NM High Court Set For Dem Domination And Reader Quibbles With Sen. Moores

It's the year when anything can and does happen so entertain this: The presidential contest ends in a 269-269 tie in the Electoral College and the election is tossed to the House of Representatives where the Dems have the edge . Right? Yes to the first part, but not the second. . .

The latest Crystal Ball Electoral College ratings show how the presidential election could result in a 269-269 deadlock, with neither Joe Biden nor Donald Trump possessing a majority of 270 electoral votes. — Even though Democrats hold a House majority and remain on track to maintain that majority next year, Republicans actually have and are likely to maintain an edge in a possible Electoral College tiebreaking vote. — All 50 state-level U.S. House delegations get a single vote to break an Electoral College tie. The Republicans control 26 delegations, the Democrats hold 23, and one state is split (Pennsylvania).

New Mexico would be voting for Biden as all three of our House members are Dems.

Our state won't be a cliffhanger. The Trump campaign is not putting up a fight here. After a brief flirtation with July TV ads, they've gone dark. The last poll had the President getting 39 percent here. His topline number Election Night could be about 42-43 percent, what Steve Pearce received when he lost the governorship in 2018 to MLG.

The southern congressional race still has potential for the R's. Yvette Herrell even came with an amusing TV ad defending her mother against charges that she benefitted from Yvette's service in the state House. But the race appears to be leaning Dem because Trump has not been performing in the district (up only 4 points over Biden in the Journal poll). Herrell still has time but the XTL lead of 47 to 45 is starting to look sticky.

What's also sticky--for GOP US Senate candidate Mark Ronchetti--is what his fellow R's are up to in DC regarding the seat of the late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. It's a damned if you do and damned if you don't moment for Ronchetti.

Trump R's want him to say fill that seat now--before the election. But Dems want the seat put on hold until after the election, a position that enrages the Trumpers. Ronchetti, trying to appease both sides, has fallen silent, but that only gets him damned--predictably--by his Dem rival, Rep. Ben Ray Lujan:

Despite so much being at stake, Mark Ronchetti has refused to answer key questions: Would he support the nomination of a Supreme Court justice that would overturn the Affordable Care Act? Should a nomination occur before or after Inauguration Day 2021?. . . Ronchetti is staying silent as Senate Republicans attempt to quickly push through a Supreme Court nominee who would support their dangerous lawsuit to strip New Mexicans with asthma, cancer and diabetes of health care coverage protections. New Mexicans deserve to know the truth about where Mark Ronchetti stands on health care.”

Health care is the #1 polling issue of Campaign '20. Ronchetti's TV ads strenuously assert he is for covering pre-exisiting conditions, contrary to Lujan's assertion. But the untimely death of Justice Ginsburg raises the issue to a new level and forces Ronchetti to make a stand. Or stand silent.

(Yes, we noticed that Ben Ray shied away from the consequences to reproductive rights of a newly conservative Supreme Court, a top of the mind issue for many Dem voters in the metro areas but not as much among socially conservative Democrats in the rural areas).

DEM DOMINATION

Dem domination of the New Mexico Supreme Court will likely soon be absolute. The Court's lone R, Chief Justice Judy Nakamura, has set her retirement for December 1. A Democrat will almost certainly be appointed to fill her position and the two Supreme Court races on the November ballot heavily favor the Dems, meaning all five justices would be D's.

The court would be joining the all Dem NM congressional delegation, the all Dem state Senate and House, the Governorship and all statewide executive offices such as attorney general and state auditor.

When will the state return to at least a semblance of competition between the two parties? Not until the Trump era ends and the R's learn how to appeal to the state's Hispanics and Native Americans who continue to vote against them in landslide numbers. Another possibility: The Dems get too fat and happy and fall into the corruption trap that has historically been their downfall.

A QUIBBLE

Reader Mitchell Freedman comments on the Monday comment from ABQ GOP State Senator Mark Moores regarding the Scientific American article praising New Mexico's response to COVID:

Sen. Moores I had to laugh at Sen. Moores' quibble about the article not touting his small 50 person private company's swabbing of thousands of New Mexicans compared to Tricore. Tricore has almost 1,500 employees and over seven times the top line revenue. While his company has swabbed thousands during the pandemic, Tricore has swabbed hundreds of thousands. Moores goes on to say Tricore is a semi-public agency because it is owned in part by the University of New Mexico. Why is that relevant, other than to subtly minimize Tricore's importance under his conservative anti-government ideology? Yes, I agree Moores' relatively small company has played a positive role in controlling the virus through testing. However, Senator Moores should be more interested in berating his fellow Republicans as to why our state's Democratic governor has done a much better job containing the virus than Republican governors in nearby Texas and Arizona. Maybe Moores should be supporting the governor of his own state as she has bravely stood up against lawsuits and legislative moves from Republican leadership to undermine her orders.

Moores appears to be in good shape for re-election to a third term in his ABQ NE Heights seat. He has donated heavily to endangered GOP Senators in the ABQ metro.





E-mail your news and comments. (newsguy@yahoo.com)



Interested in reaching New Mexico's most informed audience? Advertise here.



(c)NM POLITICS WITH JOE MONAHAN 2020 This is the home of New Mexico politics.

Monday, September 21, 2020

Gauging The Impact Of Ginsburg Passing On NM Voters; Abortion To Surface? Plus: Absentee Voting By The Book

Yet another big event in 2020 but will the death of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg have an impact on the New Mexico election? There's no consensus among the political intelligentsia but a number of them believe that in Blue New Mexico another Trump appointment to the high court raises the hot button issue of abortion and that's where we could see repercussions.

Pro-life votes, a distinct minority, are already in Trump's corner. They will be energized by the prospect of a 6 to 3 conservative court but there are just not that many more votes to add to Trump's tally. On the margins, political pros say, renewed interest for Trump in the conservative bastions of the southern congressional district could help Republican Yvette Herrell who is challenging Dem US Rep. Xochitl Torres Small. But any small boost in GOP fortunes could be offset by pro-choice voters in the Las Cruces area.

Pro-choice groups are already warning that a muscular conservative court could mean the justices revisit Roe v. Wade which expanded abortion rights. That could have New Mexico women--especially those in the ABQ, Santa Fe and Las Cruces metros--hardening their opposition to both Trump and pro-life GOP US Senate candidate Mark Ronchetti who faces Dem Rep. Ben Ray Lujan.

Abortion is not a matter the GOP needs to surface in the state's population centers. In 2013 when a pro-life group forced a special ABQ election on banning late term abortions nearly 80,000 voters turned out and the measure was soundly defeated , 55% to 45%. Pro-choice voters have only grown in strength since then

We wouldn't be surprised to see some Democratic women state House members, who are making their first re-election bids in the newly moderate ABQ NE Heights, make the Supreme Court, abortion and the future of Obamacare as a headliner in the mailboxes before this election is over. Ditto for some of the Dem state Senate candidates.

And don't forget fund-raising. In the aftermath of Ginsburg's death Dems nationally were opening their wallets wide as they prepared for the epic battle over the Supreme Court seat and the November election.

Veteran NM analyst Greg Payne adds a cautionary note to the speculation:

So much has happened and is happening in this crazy year that I am not sure this will make much of a difference in voting patterns.

CLEMENTE AND CORDOVA

So one of the Alligators in good standing (some have been ejected from the pond on occasion) reported that outgoing Dem State Senator Clemente Sanchez is supporting Republican Josh Sanchez against Dem Pam Cordova who beat Clemente in the Dem primary for the Valencia/Cibola District 30 seat. Well, maybe not quite.

Clemente berated us on social media, yelling in all caps, "I AM A DEMOCRAT." Okay, so we asked him via messaging who he is supporting in the race. No response. But a close friend of Clemente's tells us he was upset about our report not because he is supporting Cordova--he isn't--but neither is he supporting Josh Sanchez. The report now is that Clemente won't be voting in the contest to succeed him. That is unless he again raises his voice in dissent on social media.

COVID TESTING

We blogged a recent Scientific American article praising New Mexico's effort in fighting COVID but ABQ GOP State Senator Mark Moores takes issue with one aspect of that article:

Joe, regarding COVID testing. Tricore’s is not an independent laboratory. It is owned 50% by UNM along with Presbyterian hospital. It was set up as a nonprofit hospital coop that is supposed to provide services to only its members. It has created a separate for profit subsidiary to get around that IRS prohibition. Half of its board is appointed and controlled by UNM thus making it a quasi-state agency. The only independent private laboratory preforming COVID testing is ours--Pathology Consultants of New Mexico. We have capacity to run 1,000 COVID tests a day. I bet I’m the only elected official who has personally suited up in PPE in 100+ degree summer days and swabbed thousands of patients at drive throughs. We didn’t hide in our basement when COVID hit, we went to work.

Well, Sen. Moores did not hide in the basement this summer, but if the Dems deliver on their pledge to increase their numbers in the Senate, he and the other R's could end up hiding in the basement of the Roundhouse.

MAILING THAT ABSENTEE

We blogged last week that the "deadline" for mailing absentee ballots is Oct. 27. Actually, that is not a legal deadline but a suggested deadline from the Secretary of State to ensure that ballots are received by 7 p.m. Election Night which is the legal deadline for receipt of an absentee ballot. Absentees received after that time will not be counted.

There is a sure fire way to avoid the worry that your absentee will be lost or won't get there on time--take it to one of the secure drop boxes that will be set up by country clerks next month.



A Senior Alligator sends the letter of the law on getting that absentee ballot in:

-Section 1-6-9 NMSA 1978 (Mailed Ballots; Manner of Voting; Delivery Methods); The official mailing envelope containing a completed ballot may be returned: By using the U.S. Postal Service; By using a commercial delivery service approved by the NM Secretary of State and provided that the voter is responsible to pay for the mailing; In person to the County Clerk or a polling place, and; By depositing the official mailing envelope containing the completed ballot in a "secured container" (commonly known as a "drop box") made available by the County Clerk.



NMSA 1978 in the Absentee Voter portion of the NM Election Code (Absentee Ballot; Delivery to County Clerk); "A. A voter, caregiver to that voter or member of that voter's immediate family may deliver the voter's absentee ballot to the county clerk in person or by mail; provided that the voter has subscribed the official mailing envelope of the absentee ballot. B. As used in this section, "immediate family" means the spouse, children, parents or siblings of a voter."



NMSA 1978 of the NM Election Code (Conduct of Election, Election Day Delivery of Absentee Ballot By Voter, Procedures);"A voter who requested and received an absentee ballot shall be allowed to deliver the official mailing envelope containing the voter's absentee ballot on election day to any polling place in the county in which the voter is registered if the voter presents the official mailing envelope to the presiding judge before the polls close on election day."

Any way you cut it there is going to be more absentee ballots cast in this election in state history, and that could set a trend for the future.





E-mail your news and comments. (newsguy@yahoo.com)



Interested in reaching New Mexico's most informed audience? Advertise here.



(c)NM POLITICS WITH JOE MONAHAN 2020 This is the home of New Mexico politics.

Thursday, September 17, 2020

Ronchetti Trying To Outrun Ben Ray With Negative TV As Campaign Clock Ticks Away, Plus: MLG On The Trail For Biden, And: Big Oil Reacts To Big Demographic Changes

Lujan and Ronchetti GOP US Senate candidate Mark Ronchetti is trying to make the most of a rare polling gift he received this month. He has gone

Lujan is not letting it go unnoticed as the pair plays tit for tat with their negative ads. Ronchetti is vastly underfunded compared to Lujan and he has to make a polling move soon in order to attract the national dollars that would be needed to make a race of it in October.



Meanwhile, it appears the chances of there being three TV debates between the pair is on the rise. Lujan said if Congress is in recess October 5, when KOB-TV has its debate scheduled, he will make the stage. The



House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) acknowledged that most lawmakers will likely return to their districts when the scheduled session ends on Oct. 2, leaving party leaders seeking to hash out an agreement with the White House. If such a deal emerges, then members would be called back to Washington. In that sense, the dynamics would look very similar to those surrounding the long August recess. . .



While Ronchetti has harangued Lujan over not doing three broadcast debates (Lujan has agreed to KNME and KOAT-TV debates) political pros caution that he needs to be careful what he wishes for. Lujan has appeared and performed ably for several years on such national news broadcasts as Face the Nation and the rest. For some reason, he continues to be underestimated but is a walking book on what makes government tick and why. Ronchetti is a political novice who could find himself outplayed in a debate or two, despite his lengthy experience as a seasoned TV performer doing daily weather forecasts.



The October 5 debate would be the first and could be the most important. That's because county clerks will be mailing tens of thousands of absentee ballots to voters the morning of October 6.



GUV ON TRAIL



MLG is on the campaign trail. The New Mexico Governor has been named a co-chair of the Biden transition committee and



Meanwhile MLG continues to draw positive attention for her handling of the COVID crisis here. The latest to chime in is



Testing has been a crucial part of New Mexico’s strategy. Tests are available to all the state’s residents, whether they are symptomatic or not, and are processed either at New Mexico’s own laboratory or at TriCore Reference Laboratories, an independent organization based in Albuquerque. Both facilities were switched to 24/7 work schedules very early on to maximize testing output.



If Biden wins we guess MLG can clip the positive article and put it in her package applying to become Secretary of Health and Human Services.



Also, for the first time in its 175 year history Scientific American has



OIL FACES CHANGE







“Young voters, female voters, Hispanic voters, really every sector except for older conservative male voters,” Flynn said in the recording of the meeting, “their No. 1 issue when it comes to our industry is always going to be environmental stewardship, and concerns about what we’re doing with the environment.”



This reminds us of early August when oilman and former southern Dem Congressman Harry Teague endorsed Republican Yvette Herrell and the NMOGA's Flynn, a Republican,



MAYOR 2021



The email brings this:



Joe, this is one of your Republican Alligators reaching out. I work with a lot of Republican leaders and there’s a lot of talk about former ABQ GOP City Councilor Dan Lewis running for Mayor again. He’s actively raising money for county, legislative and federal candidates. He beat 6 other candidates last time and got over 36,000 votes in the runoff. I’ve also heard Public Education Commissioner David Robbins mentioned. . . Please don’t reveal me. :)



Don't worry, Gator, our lips are sealed. But Dan Lewis for Mayor? Sure, he received 36,000 votes in 2017 against Dem Tim Keller but that amounted to only 38 percent of the vote compared to Keller's



This is the home of New Mexico politics.



E-mail your news and comments. (newsguy@yahoo.com)



Interested in reaching New Mexico's most informed audience? Advertise here.



(c)NM POLITICS WITH JOE MONAHAN 2020 Lujan is not letting it go unnoticed as the pair plays tit for tat with their negative ads. Ronchetti is vastly underfunded compared to Lujan and he has to make a polling move soon in order to attract the national dollars that would be needed to make a race of it in October.Meanwhile, it appears the chances of there being three TV debates between the pair is on the rise. Lujan said if Congress is in recess October 5, when KOB-TV has its debate scheduled, he will make the stage. The latest While Ronchetti has harangued Lujan over not doing three broadcast debates (Lujan has agreed to KNME and KOAT-TV debates) political pros caution that he needs to be careful what he wishes for. Lujan has appeared and performed ably for several years on such national news broadcasts as Face the Nation and the rest. For some reason, he continues to be underestimated but is a walking book on what makes government tick and why. Ronchetti is a political novice who could find himself outplayed in a debate or two, despite his lengthy experience as a seasoned TV performer doing daily weather forecasts.The October 5 debate would be the first and could be the most important. That's because county clerks will be mailing tens of thousands of absentee ballots to voters the morning of October 6.MLG is on the campaign trail. The New Mexico Governor has been named a co-chair of the Biden transition committee and was on CNN this week trying to drum up Hispanic support for the Dem nominee. The campaign has been concerned about lagging support among Hispanics in the battleground states.Meanwhile MLG continues to draw positive attention for her handling of the COVID crisis here. The latest to chime in is Scientific American magazine:If Biden wins we guess MLG can clip the positive article and put it in her package applying to become Secretary of Health and Human Services.Also, for the first time in its 175 year history Scientific American has endorsed a presidential candidate--Joe Biden--while criticizing Trump's handling of COVID. The NYT comes with a secret recording of a meeting over the environment featuring top oil and gas leaders. It's interesting because the oil boys express concern about demographic changes among the public. Here's Ryan Flynn of the NM Oil and Gas Association on the tapes:This reminds us of early August when oilman and former southern Dem Congressman Harry Teague endorsed Republican Yvette Herrell and the NMOGA's Flynn, a Republican, softened the blow by saying nice things about Dem Hispanic lawmaker Rep. Torres Small who Herrell is trying to unseat. Future profit and survival in the era of climate change are on the minds of the oil crowd and it's sending them down paths previously ignored.The email brings this:Don't worry, Gator, our lips are sealed. But Dan Lewis for Mayor? Sure, he received 36,000 votes in 2017 against Dem Tim Keller but that amounted to only 38 percent of the vote compared to Keller's 62 percent landslide . For now, GOP Gator, you are on training wheels.This is the home of New Mexico politics. GOP US Senate candidate Mark Ronchetti is trying to make the most of a rare polling gift he received this month. He has gone full-scale negative in an effort to turn the race his way after Dem US Rep. Ben Ray Lujan came up short of the magic and psychologically important number of 50 percent in the ABQ Journal survey . Never mind that Ronchetti is stranded at 40% compared to Lujan's 49%, the perception of the poll has given him a glimmer of hope.

Wednesday, September 16, 2020

Money Chase Highlights Key State Senate Contests In Final Stretch, Plus: Keller And Crime; Administration Pushes Back





Among the hotly competitive contests is Dem Katy Duhigg challenging GOP freshman state Senator Candace Gould for a seat centered in the ABQ North Valley. Both contenders are ready for battle. Duhigg raised $85,000 in the period and



Gould raised less than Duhigg--$51,000--but her cash position is solid. She



There's been scuttlebutt that the R's might have a chance to take District 30, the western NM Senate seat held by Dem Clemente Sanchez who was defeated in the Dem primary by Pam Cordova, but put that on your longshot list. Cordova, a fixture in Dem politics in Valencia County, raised $88,000 in the reporting period, compared to just $23,000 for R Joshua Sanchez. Cordova reports $75,000 in cash. Sanchez has $31,000. Insiders say conservative Clemente, none too happy about his primary defeat, is supporting the R.



Back in ABQ, Harold Pope Jr., vying to become the first African-American state senator, reports raising $51,000 and having $69,000 in cash. He's trying to unseat GOP Senator Sander Rue in the swing westside district. He reports raising just $19,500 but has a healthy cash position of $60,000. NM Democrats kicked in $5000 to Pope and Chevron was there for Rue with $5,000.



ABQ NE Heights Dem State Senator Daniel Ivey-Soto reports more cash than just about any Senator-- $99,000. Big contributors included the oil boys. Chevron gave $7,600 and Occidental Petroleum came with $4,000.



Ivey-Soto does not have a competitive race. His R foe raised only $15,000. But what he does have is a competitive contest to become the next Senate President Pro Tem. That power position is being vacated by Mary Kay Papen and Senate Dems will make their new choice after the election. Certainly the oil boys don't want the Senate to go too far to the left and Ivey-Soto won't take it there. His bulging campaign coffers could come in handy for contributions to fellow senators in tight races as he works to round up votes to advance to the highest rungs in the 42 member chamber.



Finally on the Senate money chase today, from the Journal's



Republican Crystal Diamond of Elephant Butte reported Monday having raised $111,810 during the recent reporting period, with contributions from Chevron and several incumbent GOP senators. Her opponent, Democrat Neomi Martinez-Parra of Lordsburg, who defeated Sen. John Arthur Smith in the primary, reported raising more than $95,000, with financial backing from several union groups and incumbent Democrats.



That one looks like a contest for the title of the Senator from Chevron or the Senator from AFSCME.



All the latest state campaign finance reports are



KELLER AND CRIME







One, how could the CAO have been "micro-managing" the Onate protest response when she was sitting in a Council meeting the whole time? The video is public here. It should also have been included in your story that the Council President (Pat Davis) who initiated those claims retracted and apologized in a public meeting.



You're giving space to a lawyer looking for a tax-funded payday, but somehow missed the poll out Sunday that shows Mayor Keller with a 60% approval. That didn't fit your narrative? This isn't an outlier, either: we've seen consistent approval numbers for the Mayor across all three years of his tenure. In crisis after crisis, the Mayor has been a leader people trust to steer the ship. The extremely low disapproval, at 22%, might be even more significant if you're trying to read the tea leaves for an incumbent mayor. Keller's leadership is resonating with real people who don't live and die in the bubble of political intrigue, and that's what matters most.



As for the



Sanderoff. . .said it appears that the public perception of Keller has improved during the COVID-19 pandemic. He said that may be partly because the virus has temporarily supplanted crime as voters’ top concern. . .Crime, which was a major issue well before Keller took office, remains a significant problem now. Although Albuquerque’s property crime dipped in 2019, the city recorded the highest number of homicides for any year in recent memory in 2019 and is on pace to break that record this year. The public’s focus may have shifted to COVID-19 for now, but Sanderoff said Keller’s legacy is still tied to the city’s response to crime. “Crime is still lurking as the biggest issue facing the city, and whether people ultimately will continue to approve of the mayor’s performance will ultimately be determined by how he’s perceive as handling crime,” said Sanderoff.



You can call that "political intrigue" or poltical reality. Take your pick.



This is the home of New Mexico politics.



E-mail your news and comments. (newsguy@yahoo.com)



Interested in reaching New Mexico's most informed audience? Advertise here.



(c)NM POLITICS WITH JOE MONAHAN 2020 It takes cash to campaign so what do some of those key state Senate races look like in the final stretch now that the money reports have been filed? The reports filed Monday covered June 30 thru Sept. 7 and show where the action is. . .Among the hotly competitive contests is Dem Katy Duhigg challenging GOP freshman state Senator Candace Gould for a seat centered in the ABQ North Valley. Both contenders are ready for battle. Duhigg raised $85,000 in the period and reports $123,000 in cash. Her contributions included $5000 from the Duhigg law firm, $2500 from Emily's List and a number of big labor union contributions.Gould raised less than Duhigg--$51,000--but her cash position is solid. She reports $131,000 on hand in this banner contest. Her contributors include $5000 from GOP state Senator Mark Moores and another $5000 from GOP Sen. Cliff Pirtle.There's been scuttlebutt that the R's might have a chance to take District 30, the western NM Senate seat held by Dem Clemente Sanchez who was defeated in the Dem primary by Pam Cordova, but put that on your longshot list. Cordova, a fixture in Dem politics in Valencia County, raised $88,000 in the reporting period, compared to just $23,000 for R Joshua Sanchez. Cordova reports $75,000 in cash. Sanchez has $31,000. Insiders say conservative Clemente, none too happy about his primary defeat, is supporting the R.Back in ABQ, Harold Pope Jr., vying to become the first African-American state senator, reports raising $51,000 and having $69,000 in cash. He's trying to unseat GOP Senator Sander Rue in the swing westside district. He reports raising just $19,500 but has a healthy cash position of $60,000. NM Democrats kicked in $5000 to Pope and Chevron was there for Rue with $5,000.ABQ NE Heights Dem State Senator Daniel Ivey-Soto reports more cash than just about any Senator-- $99,000. Big contributors included the oil boys. Chevron gave $7,600 and Occidental Petroleum came with $4,000.Ivey-Soto does not have a competitive race. His R foe raised only $15,000. But what he does have is a competitive contest to become the next Senate President Pro Tem. That power position is being vacated by Mary Kay Papen and Senate Dems will make their new choice after the election. Certainly the oil boys don't want the Senate to go too far to the left and Ivey-Soto won't take it there. His bulging campaign coffers could come in handy for contributions to fellow senators in tight races as he works to round up votes to advance to the highest rungs in the 42 member chamber.Finally on the Senate money chase today, from the Journal's Dan Boyd That one looks like a contest for the title of the Senator from Chevron or the Senator from AFSCME.All the latest state campaign finance reports are here Some pushback from the 11th floor of City Hall over criticism on the Monday blog of Mayor Keller and Chief Administrative Officer Sarita Nair from Tom Grover, a former cop turned attorney who defends many police officers. Grover argued that the troubled APD is due to "micromanaging" by the administration. Keller spokesman Matt Ross with the rebuttal:As for the ABQ Journal poll , we wrote our blog before that poll came out but it actually does "fit our narrative" about Keller which is that ultimately his fate will be decided on the crime issue and that the 60 percent approval hardly tells the full story. We go to pollster Brian Sanderoff for his analysis which dovetails with our own:You can call that "political intrigue" or poltical reality. Take your pick.This is the home of New Mexico politics.

Tuesday, September 15, 2020

Early Numbers Point To Record Setting Absentee Ballots For 2020 Election, Plus: ABQ's Long-Running Weekly Alibi Dies; Councilor Davis Deal Falls Through; New Paper Planned





And that's before the county clerks in those counties and 8 others began sending out absentee ballot applications to all registered voters Monday. Voters who have requested absentees will have them sent to them beginning October 6.



A national nonprofit--the



One intriguing question: will all of this activity mean more votes than normal will be cast well before the Nov. 3 Election Day? Surely more than normal will be, but political pros like veteran Dem consultant Mark Fleisher say voters tend to wait until the final days to vote. That's



. . . Sixty per cent of our ballots came in election week. . .You’re getting inundated right at the last minute, and I think that you’re going to see that trend across the country. I’d like to think voters are going to vote early and be really good and helpful on this front, but I’ve done this too long. . . I think you’re going to see election offices across the country swamped by that late surge of mail-in ballots, and it doesn’t matter how good you are. King County elections, where Seattle is, is one of the most efficient and well-run, and I can tell you that the volume still slows down their processing. It’s just the nature of people waiting until the last minute to vote.



New Mexico has bought itself some insurance to protect against a late wave of absentees that would overwhelm the clerks or not reach them because of mail issues. Secretary of State Toulouse Oliver says the



Still, we have had recent absentee problems. Dona Ana County was



The ten counties that are sending absentee ballot applications to all registered voters include the most populated ones of Bernalillo, Dona Ana and Santa Fe plus Sandoval, Colfax, Grant, Valencia, Los Alamos, Guadalupe and San Miguel counties.



As for overall turnout in the election, that too could reach historic highs because voting is being made easier by that absentee push. That could favor the Dems who



END OF THE ALIBI







As you know, I was working to purchase the Alibi and keep it running under that name. Unfortunately, circumstances beyond our control prevented the sale at close and the Alibi has published its last edition. For those (like us!) who believe Albuquerque needs a strong alternative news source, don't despair. Many of the former contributors and key staff alt-weekly readers know and love have joined our team. We're launching a new weekly in early October - stay tuned!



THE BOTTOM LINES



Reader Dave Matthews gets sarcastic about a recent entry from a Senior Alligator of the Dem variety describing one of the state House races:



“Dem Rep. Abbas Akhil, who defeated incumbent Jim Dines in '18 by only 115 votes to serve as the state's first Muslim-American legislator. . . "



Muslim-American?? I guess that means I’m a Christian-American! Or maybe a Lutheran-New Mexican. What’s next? Agnostic-Democrat? Buddhist-Republican? The identity politics has gotten way out of hand. Sincerely, Dave Mathews, Duffer-Northeast Heightsian.



During these times of turmoil we welcome your thoughts, comments and general existential angst.



This is the home of New Mexico politics.



E-mail your news and comments. (newsguy@yahoo.com)



Interested in reaching New Mexico's most informed audience? Advertise here.



(c)NM POLITICS WITH JOE MONAHAN 2020 Early trends confirm that this will be an historic election when it comes to mail-in ballots. Already more than 15,000 of Dona Ana county's 90,000 registered voters--or about 17 percent-- have requested absentees. In big Bernalillo County Clerk Linda Stover reports over 83,000 absentee ballots have been requested, or over 19 percent of the county's 435,000 registered voters.And that's before the county clerks in those counties and 8 others began sending out absentee ballot applications to all registered voters Monday. Voters who have requested absentees will have them sent to them beginning October 6.A national nonprofit--the Center for Voter Information --blanketed the state in August with absentee applications , helping to explain the already high number of requests.One intriguing question: will all of this activity mean more votes than normal will be cast well before the Nov. 3 Election Day? Surely more than normal will be, but political pros like veteran Dem consultant Mark Fleisher say voters tend to wait until the final days to vote. That's backed up by the Secretary of State in the state of Washington where all-mail elections have been the norm for a decade:New Mexico has bought itself some insurance to protect against a late wave of absentees that would overwhelm the clerks or not reach them because of mail issues. Secretary of State Toulouse Oliver says the deadline for mailing an absentee ballot has been moved up to October 27. However, voters can still drop them off at special drop boxes set up by the clerks or at the polls until 7 p.m. November 3. Clerks here are also allowed to begin processing absentee ballots well before Election Day.Still, we have had recent absentee problems. Dona Ana County was overwhelmed by absentees and could not get them counted for days in the Nov. '18 election. In this year's June primary the Santa Fe County Clerk was unable to complete the absentee count Election Night and it also dragged on. Bernalillo County stopped counting absentees at 11 p.m. primary night because of an exhausted crew, although unlike Dona Ana and Santa Fe no major races were still unresolved.The ten counties that are sending absentee ballot applications to all registered voters include the most populated ones of Bernalillo, Dona Ana and Santa Fe plus Sandoval, Colfax, Grant, Valencia, Los Alamos, Guadalupe and San Miguel counties.As for overall turnout in the election, that too could reach historic highs because voting is being made easier by that absentee push. That could favor the Dems who outnumber the R's 45.6 percent to 30.9 percent. As of August there were about 1.311 million registered voters in the state. Pros expect at least 800,000 votes to be cast in the presidential election--and probably more--surpassing the 779,000 from 2016. The ABQ alternative newspaper Weekly Alibi has ended a nearly thirty year run. A deal being pursued by ABQ Dem City Councilor Pat Davis to purchase the struggling weekly has fallen through. He says:Reader Dave Matthews gets sarcastic about a recent entry from a Senior Alligator of the Dem variety describing one of the state House races:During these times of turmoil we welcome your thoughts, comments and general existential angst.This is the home of New Mexico politics.

Monday, September 14, 2020

Sen. Udall In Play For Sec. Of Interior, "All The Signals Are There" Plus: Lujan Blinks On TV Debate, Big Endorsements In Southern CD Race And Keller's Crime Problem

Sen. Udall Add another New Mexico name that's high on the list of possibles for a Joe Biden cabinet, should the Dem presidential nominee prevail November 3.



Joining MLG in the inside the beltway speculation is Dem Sen.



Udall is on a short list of possible Interior secretaries if Biden is elected, according to former high-level Interior Department officials working for the former vice president's campaign. And Udall would be interested if asked, sources told E&E News. The Democrat, who announced last year he would not seek a third Senate term, has made it clear he's not retiring from public service. "I intend to find new ways to serve New Mexico and our country after I finish this term," he said. . . No final decisions have been made. . . But Udall is at the top of the list, insiders say, citing his strong conservation track record. . . All the signals are there," one official involved in the insider discussions said. . .



Udall, 72, joins MLG, 60, in having serious interest in being in a Biden cabinet and winning serious consideration. The NYT



A New Mexican as Sec. of Interior is not unheard of. ABQ GOP Congressman



Udall's ascension to the cabinet would have little impact on state politics. His Senate seat will be filled in November, with Dem Ben Ray Lujan the favorite to prevail over R Mark Ronchetti. But an MLG departure would be an earth shaker. Lt. Gov. Howie Morales would become Governor, naming his own lieutenant governor and igniting a flurry of speculation about what fellow Dems would challenge him for the 2022 Dem Guv nomination. Then there is the question of how Morales would handle the governorship handed off to him in the middle of a pandemic and an economic disaster wrought by the pandemic.



DEBATE BLINK



In that US Senate race Rep. Lujan has blinked on his decision to not appear at an Oct. 5 TV debate sponsored by KOB-TV and his hometown newspaper, the Santa Fe New Mexican. He



Lujan was slammed in



SENATE TRAIL



The latest polling has Lujan running nine points ahead (49-40) and while negative campaigning has sprouted up he also continues to push his softer side. An example is his



SOUTHERN ACTION







Trump's backing is welcome but he could use some endorsements of his own in the largely conservative district. The recent ABQ Journal poll had him winning the district by only 4 points, hardly the landslide Herrell wants so she can ride his coattails into office.



Meanwhile, clever XTS continues to come with little surprises that must be irritating the Herrell camp. First, the NM Oil and Gas Assocation said nice things about her. Now the R leaning US Chamber of Commerce has given her an



KELLER'S CRIME PROBLEM



ABQ Mayor Tim Keller isn't up for re-election until November of next year but he can hear the footsteps of potential rivals, one reason crime-ridden ABQ is getting a new police chief. Keller made



Keller named Harold Medina as acting chief, a move immediately decried by APD



Medina, Geier and Keller (Pierre-Louis, Journal) Ineffectively micromanaging APD. That’s the accusation Keller and his Chief Administrative Officer Sarita Nair have had to deal with as crime continues to soar. Under questioning from freshman GOP City Councilor



Tom Grover, a former APD officer and now an attorney who has had many officers and others associated with APD as clients, fired back at the CAO's denial of micromanagement:



“Let me be clear: To the extent you’re suggesting that the 11th floor is making operational or tactical decisions about the Police Department, we are not,” said Sarita Nair to Brook Bassan. But this doesn’t appear to be true. A memo from Paulette Diaz (Geier’s secretary) is evidence that they do micromanage. Geier getting pushed out when he tries to control his office is also evidence that they do. The administration choosing Medina as interim chief when he’s been their snitch and has even been looking for other jobs is evidence that they totally do micromanage. So please spare us the continued lies. (Like Sarita wasn’t micromanaging during the Oñate protest).



Handling APD has been like juggling porcupines and has left visible political wounds on Mayor Keller. Never mind that the epic mismanagement by his predecessor, Mayor Berry, set him up for a fall. He owns it now and he can't return it to the sender.



This is the home of New Mexico politics.



E-mail your news and comments. (newsguy@yahoo.com)



Interested in reaching New Mexico's most informed audience? Advertise here.



(c)NM POLITICS WITH JOE MONAHAN 2020 Add another New Mexico name that's high on the list of possibles for a Joe Biden cabinet, should the Dem presidential nominee prevail November 3.Joining MLG in the inside the beltway speculation is Dem Sen. Tom Udall who is being prominently mentioned for Secretary of Interior, the post his late father Stewart Udall held and excelled at under President Kennedy. Energy and Environment News (E&E) comes with details Udall, 72, joins MLG, 60, in having serious interest in being in a Biden cabinet and winning serious consideration. The NYT reported in July the Governor was on the list to become Secretary of the Health and Human Services Department A New Mexican as Sec. of Interior is not unheard of. ABQ GOP Congressman Manuel Lujan, Jr. was named to the slot by President Bush in 1989 and served four years. In the 20's Albert Fall of NM held the position, a tenure stained by the Teapot Dome Scandal.Udall's ascension to the cabinet would have little impact on state politics. His Senate seat will be filled in November, with Dem Ben Ray Lujan the favorite to prevail over R Mark Ronchetti. But an MLG departure would be an earth shaker. Lt. Gov. Howie Morales would become Governor, naming his own lieutenant governor and igniting a flurry of speculation about what fellow Dems would challenge him for the 2022 Dem Guv nomination. Then there is the question of how Morales would handle the governorship handed off to him in the middle of a pandemic and an economic disaster wrought by the pandemic.In that US Senate race Rep. Lujan has blinked on his decision to not appear at an Oct. 5 TV debate sponsored by KOB-TV and his hometown newspaper, the Santa Fe New Mexican. He now says if the Congress is not in session he will appear. The debate sponsors had said if he did not show they would place an empty chair on the stage to represent him.Lujan was slammed in a newspaper editorial for avoiding the debate and rival Ronchetti has been pounding away at Lujan's no debate decision on social media , even though the five term lawmaker has agreed to two debates--on KOAT and KNME TV. Lujan says he needs to be in DC to vote on any coronavirus aid package that comes up but if the Congress has recessed by then he will do the third debate. Now the question is who gets the empty chair?The latest polling has Lujan running nine points ahead (49-40) and while negative campaigning has sprouted up he also continues to push his softer side. An example is his new TV spot . Ronchetti's latest ad accuses Lujan of sharing "San Francisco values" with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. He also announced his endorsement by the NRA.President Trump made it official and tweeted out his support of southern GOP congressional candidate Yvette Herrell who is locked in an intense battle with Dem US Rep. Xochitl Torres Small.Trump's backing is welcome but he could use some endorsements of his own in the largely conservative district. The recent ABQ Journal poll had him winning the district by only 4 points, hardly the landslide Herrell wants so she can ride his coattails into office.Meanwhile, clever XTS continues to come with little surprises that must be irritating the Herrell camp. First, the NM Oil and Gas Assocation said nice things about her. Now the R leaning US Chamber of Commerce has given her an outright endorsement . XTS was one of the House Dems who scored better than 70 percent on the Chamber's scorecard.ABQ Mayor Tim Keller isn't up for re-election until November of next year but he can hear the footsteps of potential rivals, one reason crime-ridden ABQ is getting a new police chief. Keller made the announcement of APD Chief Mike Geier's departure at an uncharacteristically somber news conference . The weight of the crime epidemic and State Auditor Brian Colon's investigation of alleged wrongdoing at the agency appears to have fully settled on the Mayor's shoulders. Dem BernCo Sheriff Manny Gonzales has all but announced a mayoral bid and Republicans are starting to make noise about possible challengers.Keller named Harold Medina as acting chief, a move immediately decried by APD critics as presenting the same old wine in a brand new bottle. They say Medina is a product of an aggressive APD culture that brought the Feds to town to reform the troubled department. Keller says he will launch a national search for a permanent chief but with the election so close he could be hard-pressed to persuade anyone to come here.Ineffectively micromanaging APD. That’s the accusation Keller and his Chief Administrative Officer Sarita Nair have had to deal with as crime continues to soar. Under questioning from freshman GOP City Councilor Brook Bassan Nair denied the charge and became upset and frosty toward Bassan when she asked about the administration's support of Chief Geier before his departure was later announced. Pretty messy.Tom Grover, a former APD officer and now an attorney who has had many officers and others associated with APD as clients, fired back at the CAO's denial of micromanagement:Handling APD has been like juggling porcupines and has left visible political wounds on Mayor Keller. Never mind that the epic mismanagement by his predecessor, Mayor Berry, set him up for a fall. He owns it now and he can't return it to the sender.This is the home of New Mexico politics.

Thursday, September 10, 2020

NM R's Unveil "Fair Deal" But Is It A Desperate Deal? Plus: More Key State House Races Analyzed, And: Conspiracy Free Voting





The "Fair Deal" is



But the ninth inning Hail Mary the R's are throwing is light on specifics. How do you separate yourself from the man who is your party?



(The) news conference was light on the specifics of the Republican agenda, with legislators instead directing reporters to Respect New Mexico’s website. Legislators and candidates did say they favored “sensible criminal justice reform,” “comprehensive education reform” and retooling the state’s tax system, but they did not provide more specific proposals in those areas.



Some Trump supporters are none too happy with the Fair Deal. Trumper and ABQ radio talker



Republicans need to dance with the gal that brought them to the prom--that's Trump. They need to get into the grassroots and get out the GOP vote in the many Republican districts they lost for the first time in 2018. You don't do that by abandoning the one person who can light a fire under Republican voters.



But are there enough Trump voters left to activate in those districts? Either way they go--with Trump or without him---GOP legislative leaders face a daunting task. Here's reader Kelley DuPont anguishing about her vote in her ABQ westside state Senate district:



(Republican) Sander Rue is my Senator. He’s nice, he’s visited our home in the past while campaigning. I think he’s done a good job. Sad to say I’ll probably vote for the Democrat whom I know nothing about. I’m so turned off by Donald Trump and (NMGOP Chairman) Steve Pearce that I’ll most likely never vote for a Republican in my lifetime.



The Dem candidate in that race is retired Air Force officer Harold Pope, Jr.



MORE RACES TO WATCH







In 2018 in central New Mexico, Democrats narrowly lost House Districts 22 and 57 by 140 votes and 217 votes, respectively. In both cases, the Democratic candidates are running again. With more money and greater name recognition, these challengers may have a better opportunity to flip these seats than they did last cycle.



House District 57 in Rio Rancho features a rematch of teacher Billie Helean against incumbent Republican Jason Harper, a Sandia scientist who has represented the district since 2013.



Jessica Velasquez is running again in the East Mountains/Placitas district of HD22. But instead of facing Republican Greg Schmedes, who left his House seat to run for the Senate—successfully defeating Jim White in the SD19 primary—Velasquez is facing conservative activist and gun rights advocate Stefani Lord.



Three rural House districts could shape up to be nail-biters in November. In eastern NM’s HD63, Republicans defeated Democratic incumbent George Dodge by a mere 27 votes in 2018. Now, first-term Representative Martin Zamora is facing an elite challenger in Dr. Randal Brown. A long-time family doctor in Santa Rosa, Dr. Brown would bring valuable medical expertise to the Roundhouse, a strong selling point during a pandemic.



In House District 53 in Doña Ana and Otero counties, Rep. Willie Madrid is once again facing former GOP Rep. Ricky Little for the third time. Little won in 2016 by 138 votes, and then Madrid prevailed in 2018 by a healthier, but not overwhelming, margin of 291 votes.



Up in the Four Corners in District 4, first-term Democratic Rep. Anthony Allison, a Navajo, is facing Mark Duncan, the Mayor of Kirtland and the termed-out San Juan County Treasurer. Campaigns in swing House District 4 are always hard-fought and victories are often narrow, but will the Navajo-majority district elect a non-Native state representative? To our knowledge, that would be a first.



NO TORTILLA TAX



If you are being charged NM gross receipts tax on groceries ordered delivered to your door, you shouldn't be, says Fred Nathan of



. . . We learned that some grocery stores were taxing food that people order for delivery even though the sale of food has been tax-exempt in New Mexico since 2005. Being able to have groceries delivered without paying taxes that can run at high as 9% is especially important for elderly . . . and immunocompromised New Mexicans during the current pandemic. . .Now we have good news: Governor Lujan Grisham's Secretary of Taxation and Revenue has issued a directive clarifying that food should not be taxed when New Mexicans order it from a grocery store online and have it delivered.



CONSPIRACY FREE VOTING







Registered voters in New Mexico can now begin using the Secretary of State’s online absentee ballot request portal to apply for an absentee ballot for the November 3rd General Election. New Mexico is a “no-excuse” absentee ballot state, meaning that any registered voter is able to apply for, receive, and vote with an absentee ballot.



“Voting by absentee ballot is a safe and secure way to make your voice heard in November while also protecting your health and the health of your community. . .New Mexico’s election administrators are prepared and are providing a number of ways for voters to cast their ballot, whether by mailing an absentee ballot, dropping your completed absentee ballot off with your County Clerk or designated drop location, or by voting in-person during Early Voting or on Election Day.”



Voters should also know that if their absentee ballot is not completed correctly, a notification with the reason why the absentee ballot was not accepted will be sent by the County Clerk to that voter within 24 hours of receiving it. That notification will include instructions on how the voter can remedy whatever discrepancy led to their ballot not being accepted.



For those who can't get over the Black Helicopters flying over head or the Russians behind a tree, the best bet may be to drop off your ballot at a designated drop location. Here in Bernalillo County, Clerk Linda Stover says they will be ready for hand delivered ballots at



This is the home of New Mexico politics.



E-mail your news and comments. (newsguy@yahoo.com)



Interested in reaching New Mexico's most informed audience? Advertise here.



(c)NM POLITICS WITH JOE MONAHAN 2020 Top state Republicans are calling it their "Fair Deal" but others might label it a desperate deal because the on-the-ropes Grand Old Party is starting to sense another tidal wave forming that could wash away even more of their legislative seats.The "Fair Deal" is a title taken directly from President Harry Truman, not President Trump. That says it all. The NM R's are trying to separate themselves from the Prez as he faces a substantial loss here to Dem Joe Biden and could take with him a number of GOP House and Senate seats.But the ninth inning Hail Mary the R's are throwing is light on specifics. How do you separate yourself from the man who is your party? Not easily Some Trump supporters are none too happy with the Fair Deal. Trumper and ABQ radio talker Eddy Aragon says:But are there enough Trump voters left to activate in those districts? Either way they go--with Trump or without him---GOP legislative leaders face a daunting task. Here's reader Kelley DuPont anguishing about her vote in her ABQ westside state Senate district:The Dem candidate in that race is retired Air Force officer Harold Pope, Jr. Speaking of legislative seats, let's pick up where we left off yesterday and examine the remainder of the key state House races with our Senior Alligator of a Dem variety. Here's their take on contests outside of the ABQ metro that merit watching:If you are being charged NM gross receipts tax on groceries ordered delivered to your door, you shouldn't be, says Fred Nathan of Think NM Secretary of State Maggie Toulouse Oliver has her hands full trying to combat the conspiracy theories and fear over absentee voting that could grow if left unchecked. She reports:For those who can't get over the Black Helicopters flying over head or the Russians behind a tree, the best bet may be to drop off your ballot at a designated drop location. Here in Bernalillo County, Clerk Linda Stover says they will be ready for hand delivered ballots at these locations This is the home of New Mexico politics.

Wednesday, September 09, 2020

Gaming The State House; Dems Try For Repeat Of '18 Metro Blue Wave; R's Mount Defense; Expert Senior Alligator Analysis, Plus: Crazy South Valley La Politica But What Else Is New?