Heath Haussamen
Five days after I wrote a column reminding state officials and employees that using government e-mail for political purposes isn’t appropriate, it happened again.
This time, the press release came from the government account of a legislative staffer. The staffer sent out a political op-ed authored by Sen. Mary Jane Garcia, D-Doña Ana and the majority whip.
The release states that it’s from the office of the Senate majority whip. Those seeking more information are directed to call a phone number in the Roundhouse. But the op-ed is so blatantly political in nature that the state Democratic Party is promoting it.
From the column:
“This year the choice is very clear. Republican candidates sympathize with big business, and promote extremist and inflammatory rhetoric, while Democratic candidates stand for the common New Mexican.
“…We must not let the naysayers and obstructionists prevail in the upcoming election. Let’s not forget that eight years of Republican policies and leadership brought our country to the brink of ‘catastrophic failure’ comparable with that of the Great Depression. We cannot sit idle on the sidelines during this midterm election. On the contrary, we have to rally, fight back and call everyone we know and remind voters that our Democratic principles have led us out of the darkness before, and these principles will overcome once again. Let’s get out and vote Democrat so we can continue our promise to move NM forward in a way that helps common New Mexicans.”
I said this last week, but it has to be said again: It’s not appropriate to use government e-mail for political purposes. Government e-mail is funded with public money and exists for government communication – not partisan, political communication.
Government in this state is plagued by ethical problems, conflicts of interest, and appearances of impropriety. Such e-mails are an indicator of the culture of tolerance for shenanigans that exists in state government.
The tolerance for this sort of activity in state government is maddening. The fact that longtime elected officials like Garcia don’t seem to understand that this isn’t OK is depressing.
This is one symptom of the core problem in government that is leading so many people to vote against incumbents this election cycle. New Mexicans are tired of the way their government has been operating.