In a column published Wednesday on this site, Whitney Cheshire lauded the American Civil Liberties Union for our position on civic plaza surveillance cameras, but dismissed our free-speech lawsuit against state Sen. Rod Adair as just so much “politicking.”
It comes down to this…
Mr. Adair thinks his authority as a state senator trumps Mr. Beagle’s First Amendment right to take part in legislative committee hearings. He’s wrong. We would sue any state legislator, Democrat or Republican, to prove that, especially if he or she called upon state police to oust a citizen from the Roundhouse, as Senator Adair did.
It’s the combination of arrogance and power that incites us, Whitney, not party stripe. You above many others should know that. Didn’t I recently confide to you that we requested public records from Democratic Mayor Martin Chávez’s office for evidence of his possible collusion with the group that is pushing for a recall vote of Republican City Councilor Don Harris?
Why would the ACLU cast its lot with Democrats when the Democratic Party leadership has allowed the president to get away with torturing foreign detainees and illegally wiretapping Americans? If you want more evidence of our party blindness, check out our recent ads characterizing the Democratic leadership in Congress as sheep for whiffing on these critical issues.
So, rest easy Whitney. Renew your membership. Display your card proudly. The same principles that caused you to applaud our opposition to surveillance cameras guided our decision to sue Senator Adair. There is no more precious right in our country than the freedom to express ourselves.
Peter Simonson is the executive director of the ACLU of New Mexico, the largest nonpartisan civil liberties organization in the state.