Brian Colón (Photo by Heath Haussamen)
Who’s behind a negative robocall that went to Democratic voters around the state on Saturday attacking Lt. Gov. candidate Brian Colón? That remains a mystery.
The call stated that it was paid for by Democrats for Better Government. It said Colón was born in New York, active in the Republican Party while in college and involved in moving America Forward and a pay-to-play scandal that tainted Gov. Bill Richardson’s reputation. It questioned whether he took money that was missing from Moving America Forward.
The robocall also attacked Colón for being responsible for the primary voting snafu during the 2008 Democratic presidential primary, and said he supported gay marriage. At least, all that is according to reports from people who heard the call. I haven’t heard it myself.
Some of the claims made in the call are true: Colón was born on Long Island, but he moved with his family to New Mexico when he was a baby and has been here ever since. He did run the party when it was in charge of the 2008 presidential primary, and there were problems, but Colón took responsibility for them.
But his campaign spokesman said, to the best of his knowledge, that Colón was not involved in the college Republicans while a student at New Mexico State University or the University of New Mexico. At UNM he was a union organizer.
Serious allegations
The most serious allegations, however, surround Moving America Forward. The political action committee was at the center of a federal investigation into allegations that CDR Financial Products received a lucrative state investment contract in exchange for campaign contributions to Richardson and Moving America Forward and another PAC.
The investigation resulted in no criminal charges being filed.
But Colón wasn’t involved in the PAC. He was part of a nonprofit Richardson started called the Moving America Forward Foundation. The nonprofit had its records subpoenaed during the federal probe into the PAC, but it’s a different organization that was never directly tied to the scandal.
Colón “was not part of any investigation nor has he ever been questioned about that particular c3 or any of the many nonprofits he helps raise money for,” Colón spokesman Daniel Sena said. “The call leads people to believe Colón refused to cooperate.”
“The call enters into slander when it leads the listener to believe Colón actually took money from the nonprofit and implied he is now using it for his campaign,” Sena said.
Opponents denounce robocall
Colón is leading in the only scientific poll of the race that has been released to date. His two closest opponents in that poll of the Democratic lieutenant governor’s race, Lawrence Rael and Joe Campos, were quick to denounce the robocall.
Rael said in an interview that he called Colón to tell him he wasn’t involved and doesn’t know who was.
“We made a decision (early in the campaign) that we were going to run a clean campaign, were going to run on our merits,” Rael said. “… I told him that this wasn’t coming from me, that I had no idea where it was coming from.”
Rael said he found it “interesting” that the robocall was followed later Saturday afternoon by a positive robocall about Campos, but said he wasn’t accusing Campos of being behind the robocall.
Campos Campaign Manager Mark Fleisher said his candidate wasn’t behind the call.
“We were not involved. Don’t know who they are or anything about the group. Did not know it was coming,” he said.
Campos followed that with a message on his Facebook page denouncing the robocall.
“I wholeheartedly condemn this action and want to state unequivocally that my campaign had absolutely nothing to do with this,” Campos wrote. “I have never and will never participate in negative campaigning. It is divisive and detrimental to the party and to the entire democratic process.”
The other two candidates in the race, Jerry Ortiz y Pino and Linda Lopez, haven’t responded to e-mails asking if they were involved, but Ortiz y Pino’s wife posted a comment on the blog Democracy for New Mexico stating that she and her husband “do not condone this kind of negative and anonymous bashing of any candidate.”
Update, 6:20 p.m.
Democratic Party of New Mexico spokesman James Hallinan said this:
“The Democratic Party of New Mexico condemns the Karl Rove-like, negative robocall conducted yesterday by an unknown party. Democrats are united in bringing meaningful change to New Mexico in 2010 and will achieve this change though openness and transparency.”