The only declared 2010 GOP gubernatorial candidate stakes his hopes on his ideas to change the state’s economy by ending pay to play and shrinking government, taxes and some regulation
As he looks “through the fog” of the economic downturn and scandals plaguing state government, Greg Zanetti envisions a New Mexico in which the Rio Grande Valley’s high-tech corridor and the state’s rural industries are empowered to work together to make the Land of Enchantment the leader in energy and other issues.
Zanetti, the only declared 2010 Republican candidate for governor, wants to do that through shrinking government, lowering taxes and decreasing the regulation of those more tangible industries in the rural areas, such as oil, gas, dairy and copper. But that doesn’t mean he favors blanket deregulation.
The Albuquerque financial adviser has been warning for years as a local radio and television commentator about the problems with investment trends. He said the state has been morphing into “a giant casino” with its move into riskier and less tangible investments, and he favors more regulation of the financial industry.
The state’s investment practices have been mired in a pay-to-play scandal in recent months that began in New York and has spread across the nation. Meanwhile, while investment marketers — some with political connections — made millions off of complex investment deals that state officials agreed to without fully understanding, the state’s rural industries have been treated as “adversaries” and “punished” with too much taxation and regulation, Zanetti said.
“We’re rewarding based on money, family ties,” Zanetti said Wednesday during an interview in Las Cruces. “… I’m talking about structural change to the state. I’m tired of being 50th.”
‘I understand money’
Zanetti’s visit to Las Cruces earlier this week was his fourth as a gubernatorial candidate. He was in town to meet with GOP activists and members of the business community.
The primary is more than a year away, and Zanetti is in the race so early because he knows what it will take for a less-known candidate to win. Though Zanetti has been active — in addition to his TV and radio interviews, he’s twice chaired the Bernalillo County GOP and ran unsuccessfully for lieutenant governor 15 years ago — he said his name recognition isn’t nearly high enough.
So he’s traveling the state to build connections and become better known.
Zanetti, who is also an Army National Guard brigadier general, faces potential primary opposition next year from a number of high-profile Republicans. Former state GOP chairman Allen Weh has formed an exploratory committee. Former U.S. Reps. Steve Pearce and Heather Wilson are among the Republicans actively considering the race, as is state Rep. Janice Arnold-Jones.
While Zanetti said all have their strengths, he has all of those potential candidates beaten on the critical issue for the state during the current economic downturn and financial scandals.
“As smart as they are — and they are — I understand money better than all of them,” Zanetti said.
Zanetti is no fan of the path the nation is taking to try to climb out of recession, saying, “You don’t solve a spending problem with more spending.”
He said he thinks voters recognize that and are ready for something different. However, asked if he believes 2010 will be a good year for the GOP, Zanetti said he isn’t sure. If the scandals plaguing Democratic Gov. Bill Richardson’s administration fade away and the economy improves, Zanetti said people might not be as willing to vote for the change he’s pushing.
But if the scandals grow worse and the economy doesn’t improve, the situation will be entirely different next year. While Zanetti isn’t optimistic that the current economic policies will pull the nation out of recession, he said it’s too early to know what the political climate will be next November.
The only declared Democratic candidate for governor is Lt. Gov. Diane Denish.
‘I’d rather reward hard work’
Zanetti’s military background means he also understands law enforcement and the importance of securing the border, he said. Among the experiences he cited were being stationed along the Czech/German border during the Cold War, and one of his battalions being stationed on the New Mexico/Mexico border in 2006. He also recently completed a year as deputy commander at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba.
In an article put out by the joint task force at Guantanamo Bay in January, when Zanetti was wrapping up his time there, Zanetti was quoted as saying he expected “that bad things were happening here” because of media coverage.
“All that turned out to be false,” Zanetti was quoted as saying. “I realized this is the most American place on the planet. It’s where Americans are performing their best. Every expectation I had was wrong.”
But Zanetti’s campaign hinges primarily on his financial knowledge and vision for the state’s future. He said all economic revolutions in history came from the marriage of emerging, high-tech industries with existing industries like those in the state’s rural areas, and he’s ready to help bring about such a revolution as New Mexico leads the way in areas including alternative energy and nanotechnology.
That starts with leveling the playing field between various industries.
“If you can give a tax exemption to the film industry, why don’t you just clear the deck… give it to them all?” Zanetti asked.
He said his belief in decreasing taxes and regulations for many industries doesn’t contradict with his view that the financial industry needs more regulation.
“I’d rather reward people who are producing than people who are consuming,” he said. “… I’d rather reward hard work than entitlement.”