Auditor will consider request to scrutinize land deals

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State Auditor Hector Balderas says he’ll consider a request to investigate the land commissioner’s dealings with developers and determine whether he should get involved in a controversy over a provision in a lease agreement the attorney general says is illegal. Five state representatives sent a letter on Tuesday to Balderas requesting that he audit all land-sale, land-swap and leasing contracts entered into by the commissioner of public lands. Their request comes in light of a recent opinion issued by Attorney General Gary King’s office that says a lease agreement for land in Las Cruces includes a compensatory provision not authorized by state law. “We suspect other State Land Office contracts throughout the state may reflect similarly illegal financial arrangements,” the lawmakers stated in their letter, which you can read by clicking here. The lawmakers want Balderas to consider “whether contracts are written for the benefit of New Mexicans, not developers,” and wrote that the contracts “merit special scrutiny, an investigation of potential mismanagement and a complete audit by your office.” The letter is signed by Democratic Reps. Continue Reading

McCain expected to visit New Mexico next month

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John McCain, the Republican presidential nominee, is expected to visit New Mexico in early May, a source with knowledge of the planned visit confirmed this evening. No other details were provided by the source. It will be McCain’s first visit to the state as a 2008 presidential candidate, but he has already given a great deal of attention to the Land of Enchantment. New Mexico was the first state where he ran his first TV ad of the general election season, and his campaign manager was in Albuquerque recently to speak at a national meeting of state Republican Party chairs. McCain is also trying to help the Republican National Committee raise money to pass on to the Republican Party of New Mexico to help out in the battleground state. Continue Reading

AFSCME endorses McCamley in CD2 race

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The American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees has endorsed Democrat Bill McCamley in the Second Congressional District race. The influential union represents more than 12,000 city, county, state and university employees in New Mexico. In endorsing McCamley, the union cited his “great relationship with labor over the years,” according to a news release from the McCamley campaign. McCamley has worked with the union in his role as a Doña Ana County commissioner. “Bill is going to do great things for Southern New Mexico,” AFSCME committee member Fred Marquez said in the release. Continue Reading

Probe finds no proof that Domenici pressured Iglesias

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The Senate Ethics Committee has found no evidence that Sen. Pete Domenici, R-N.M., attempted to improperly influence an ongoing investigation during his October 2006 phone call to then-U.S. Attorney to David Iglesias but says Domenici should have known that the call would create the appearance of impropriety. The committee issued a “public letter of qualified admonition” to Domenici today, more than 13 months after it began its investigation. You can read the letter by clicking here. “The committee finds no substantial evidence to determine that you attempted to improperly influence an ongoing investigation,” the committee members wrote in the letter. “The committee does find that you should have known that a federal prosecutor receiving such a telephone call, coupled with an approaching election which may have turned on or been influenced by the prosecutor’s actions in the corruption matter, created an appearance of impropriety that reflected unfavorably on the Senate.” Domenici and U.S. Rep. Heather Wilson, R-N.M., separately called Iglesias in October 2006 to discuss an ongoing corruption investigation related to construction of the Bernalillo County Courthouse. Continue Reading

Environmental groups join forces to elect Udall

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Several national environmental groups are joining forces this year to try to elect Tom Udall and two other Democrats to the U.S. Senate, an unprecedented level of coordination that aims to build off their success in 2006 in ousting a U.S. House member. The news that the groups picked Udall as one of three candidates they will focus on electing further indicates the national importance of New Mexico’s U.S. Senate race. The groups that will join forces to elect Udall are the Sierra Club, Defenders of Wildlife Action Fund, League of Conservation Voters, Clean Water Action and Environment America. They’re also rallying behind Udall’s cousin, Mark Udall, who is running for an open Senate seat in Colorado, and former N.H. Gov. Jeanne Shaheen, who is trying to unseat Sen. John Sununu, R-N.H. Ivan Frishberg, the national political director for Environment America, said in a conference call with reporters today that many measures backed by environmental groups passed the House in 2007 only to fall approximately three votes short of the 60 needed in the Senate to stop the minority from filibustering votes. “This election is an opportunity to change that,” he said. Continue Reading

Richardson, Carville spar on Larry King Live

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Gov. Bill Richardson and Clintonista James Carville fought on CNN’s Larry King Live on Wednesday evening about the Democratic presidential primary. There wasn’t much sparring between the two about the spat that erupted when Richardson endorsed Barack Obama last month. At the time, Carville compared Richardson’s endorsement to Judas’ betrayal of Jesus, and a nasty fight ensued. The most poignant moment in the show came when Richardson accused Hillary Clinton of “clinging to the throne” and trying to change the rules in the middle of the primary season because she believes she’s entitled to the presidency. “You know, we’re America, we’re not Monaco,” Richardson said. Continue Reading

County treasurer announces re-election bid

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Doña Ana County Treasurer Jim Schoonover, a Republican, has announced his re-election bid. Schoonover said he wants to continue providing professional services to the citizens of the county and cited “a number of successes” during his current term in a news release sent from his campaign. He pledged to accomplish more with another term. “Serving as a public official is an exciting challenge, and it is an honor to serve the citizens of Doña Ana County,” Schoonover said. “During my term I have dramatically changed the operations of the treasurer’s office, creating an effective and efficient, professional operation.” Schoonover claimed several accomplishments in the news release, including “investment income in the millions of dollars,” “increased staff effectiveness through professional training,” “developed and implemented a records-retention system,” “improved customer service,” “worked effectively with the New Mexico Legislature and other elected officials throughout the state,” “reduced bureaucracy,” “created an easy-to-use, effective Web site for county residents,” “enhanced department security,” and “improved property tax collections.” “I am totally energized about the successful changes which have taken place in the treasurer’s office over the past four years,” Schoonover said. Continue Reading

Off and running

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By Jim Scarantino Hello to Heath’s readers. I am excited about this opportunity to make a biweekly contribution to one of the finest state political sites you’ll find on the Web. I hope my participation might make it even better. You may have seen my work elsewhere. I write for Albuquerque’s Weekly Alibi. Continue Reading

Wilson says new Pearce ad attacks Domenici

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Republican Steve Pearce is up with a new TV ad identifying him as the only conservative in the U.S. Senate race, and GOP primary opponent Heather Wilson is attacking him for what she says is an insult to the retiring senator they’re both seeking to replace. Here’s Pearce’s new ad, which is running statewide: In it, he says he’s “the only New Mexico congressman to oppose a disastrous government-run socialized medicine scheme.” He also calls himself the only conservative in the race, saying he has worked to cut taxes, eliminate wasteful spending and defend “our traditional New Mexican values.” “It’s a fact. There’s only one conservative running for Senate – Republican Steve Pearce,” the narrator of the ad states. The Wilson campaign quickly responded when the ad began running on Tuesday with a news release accusing Pearce of attacking Wilson and U.S. Sen. Pete Domenici. Wilson and Domenici joined New Mexico’s two Democratic members of Congress last year in supporting an expansion of the State Children’s Health Insurance Program, while Pearce stood alone in the New Mexico delegation in opposing it. Continue Reading

Congressional candidates airing new radio, TV ads

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Second Congressional District Republican candidate Aubrey Dunn is running a new radio ad across the district that his campaign said is the first radio ad from any candidate in the race. The 60-second radio ad comes from the same interview used in a television commercial Dunn began airing around the district on Monday. Like the TV spot, the radio ad a simple ad designed to introduce Dunn to voters. It’s currently running on eight stations around the district, including KOBE-AM 1450 in Las Cruces. Click here to listen to the ad. Continue Reading

State’s new economy will require increased literacy

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New Mexico, led by Gov. Bill Richardson, has done a lot in the last few years to try to improve the state’s economic situation by creating new jobs in high-tech and film industries. There has been some success, most notably in the film industry. New Mexico has managed to attract major Hollywood companies to the Albuquerque area. In addition, the state has created a renewable energy transmission authority with the goal of developing new energy technology in the state and selling excess power it generates to other states. And the state is trying to construct the world’s first purpose-built commercial spaceport and transform the Las Cruces area into the worldwide center of the commercial space industry. Continue Reading

Meet this site’s newest columnist

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Meet Jim Scarantino, this site’s newest columnist.He has been recognized as one of the country’s best political columnists by the American Association of Alternative Newsweeklies. His work has been published in more than 50 newspapers. He has been a guest on the Oliver North and Alan Colmes radio shows and is a regular panelist on KNME-TV’s “In Focus.” Jim also writes a column, “The Real Side,” for Albuquerque’s alternative paper, The Weekly Alibi. With that résumé, I’m honored to have Jim join this site and expect that, through his columns, he will make strong contributions to the conversation about New Mexico. His column, “Off the Leash,” will run on the second and fourth Thursdays of the month beginning tomorrow. Continue Reading

Listen to The Morning Show podcast

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Today on The Morning Show with Alan Riehl, I talked about Sierra County’s spaceport-tax vote, the U.S. Senate and presidential races and some local political happenings. I also talked at length with Riehl about the newest activities of Gov. Bill Richardson – who isn’t Riehl’s favorite politician around. You can listen to the 42-minute podcast by clicking here. Continue Reading

Guv to meet with Venezuelan leader about hostages

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Gov. Bill Richardson will travel to Caracas, Venezuela on Friday to meet with President Hugo Chavez. The trip is part of the governor’s attempt to secure the release of three Americans who have been held hostage in Columbia since 2003. “The hostage-negotiation process will take time and will require a sustained dialogue with key parties,” Richardson said in a news release announcing the trip. “It is critically important that we do not lose sight of the plight of the hostages and their families. I believe President Chavez can play a positive role in the ultimate release of the hostages.” The Americans are being held hostage by the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia. Continue Reading

Sierra tax approval moves spaceport closer to reality

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Voters in Sierra County have easily approved a tax increase that was critical to the future of Spaceport America. The unofficial results, with all precincts reporting, are 2,046 votes, or 66 percent, in favor of enacting the tax, and 1,066 votes, or 34 percent, opposed. “It is a good day in Sierra County, and all I have to say is, ‘Thank you, Sierra County,’” Steve Landeene, the spaceport’s executive director, said in an interview. “They have really made a statement, and that statement is that they want the spaceport and the opportunity for a brighter future for Sierra County and their children.” Today’s vote means the gross receipts tax in Sierra County will be raised by 1/4 of one percent, which will generate $2.3 million for construction of the spaceport. More importantly, it triggers the creation of a regional spaceport taxing district, which will allow the state to begin collecting a tax in Doña Ana County that will generate an estimated $49 million for the spaceport. Continue Reading