Pay the utility bills before you buy a Maserati

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This is the sixth in a series of guest columns debating whether Doña Ana County voters should approve a 1/4 percent gross-receipts tax increase to help fund Spaceport America. Public officials and other readers are invited to participate in this debate. To submit a guest column for publication, e-mail me at heath@haussamen.com. Baseless personal attacks will not be published. By Tamie Smith The idea of travel beyond the boundaries of the Earth – into outer space – has always been an exciting concept to many persons. Continue Reading

State says it’s close to inking deal with Virgin Galactic

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The state is close to inking a deal that would officially make Virgin Galactic the anchor tenant at Spaceport America, a top official says. “Could be days. Could be a couple of weeks,” said New Mexico Economic Development Secretary Rick Homans. “I am hoping days. I will know more by this weekend.” Homans said what should be finalized in the coming days is a memorandum of understanding that would set the terms for a lease. Continue Reading

County tax is key element of spaceport funding plan

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This is the first in a series of articles examining the issues surrounding the April 3 election on whether to raise the gross receipts tax 1/4 percent in Doña Ana County to help fund Spaceport America. When staffers for Gov. Bill Richardson first pitched the proposal to create a commuter rail to the Legislature, they underestimated the cost by almost $300 million. So when the governor asked for $114.5 million during the 2006 legislative session to help fund Spaceport America, many lawmakers balked. Some publicly questioned how they could trust the administration’s assertion that the spaceport would cost $225 million or less. Ultimately, three conditions were placed on $100 million granted by the Legislature. Continue Reading

Domenici’s approval rating takes a hit in new poll

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A new poll shows that the U.S. attorney scandal has dented the popularity of U.S. Sen. Pete Domenici, R-N.M. The SurveyUSA poll, released Wednesday, finds approval of the job Domenici is doing at 57 percent and disapproval at 35 percent – the lowest totals since at least May 2005. The survey, which has a margin of error of four percent, was conducted March 12. The previous poll, conducted Feb. 12, found Domenici’s approval rating at 64 percent, with disapproval at 27 percent. In between the polls, former U.S. Attorney David Iglesias accused Domenici and Rep. Heather Wilson, R-N.M., of trying to pressure him to speed indictments in a public corruption probe in time to sway voters in the November 2006 election. Continue Reading

Edwards: Wife’s cancer relapse won’t slow 2008 run

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Cancer has returned and spread to the bone of Elizabeth Edwards, wife of Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards, but it won’t affect his campaign, he said today. At a news conference in Chapel Hill, N.C., the couple announced the development moments ago. Elizabeth Edwards was diagnosed with breast cancer about the same day Edwards and John Kerry lost the 2004 presidential race, and they waited for news that her recovery was complete before he began his second presidential run this year. But there’s always a chance cancer will return. “The campaign goes on strongly,” John Edwards said during the news conference. Continue Reading

House works all night, passes most proposals

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The House ended up working through the night and passed all items on Gov. Bill Richardson’s agenda except one that would place limits on campaign contributions. The session ended shortly before 7:30 a.m. after a contentious night that included attacks by Republicans against Richardson and House Democrats and long debates by exhausted lawmakers on controversial bills. Most House Democrats who were present went along with approval of the governor’s agenda and Speaker of the House Ben Lujan’s goal that they pass it in one meeting so everyone could go back home. But not all sounded happy about it. “We usually get a break at least by four or five (a.m.). Continue Reading

Despite GOP protests, House works through the night

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The House appears to be on track to work through the night, and a GOP motion to adjourn sine die and end the session was defeated by Democrats. House Republicans are working every procedural angle they can find to try to stop or stall the session, and a bipartisan group of members who are on the floor have described the scene to me as a huge mess. I’m not clear at this early hour (It’s almost 4 a.m. now and I’m in Las Cruces, not Santa Fe) what the exact vote was on the motion to adjourn sine die, but all Democrats voted against ending the session and all Republicans voted for it. Among those voting against the motion was Rep. Joseph Cervantes, D-Las Cruces, who was absent much of Wednesday but made the trip to Santa Fe and is now working alongside other House members. The vote came early this morning after a call of the House by Republicans and a number of excusals by Speaker of the House Ben Lujan. Continue Reading

House Dems appear ready to continue special session

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It doesn’t appear that House Republicans have the votes they need to end the special session today, but that doesn’t mean they won’t try. Minority Whip Dan Foley, R-Roswell, has made several attempts since the House convened more than 90 minutes ago to amend the feed bill for the special session – first to remove the funding for the Senate since it isn’t working, then to cut the funding for Legislative Council Services to shorten the session, then to remove the funding for the House. Each failed on a party-line vote, with all 36 Democrats who are present voting against the motions. For the first couple of votes, 24 Republicans were present, and there were later 25 present. The votes are likely indicators of how Democrats would vote on a motion to adjourn sine die. Continue Reading

Committee approves subpoenas for Rove, others

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A House subcommittee has authorized subpoenas for Karl Rove and others in its investigation into the firing of eight former U.S. attorneys, setting the stage for a showdown with the Bush Administration. Testimony would likely shed light on the decision late in the process to add former U.S. Attorney David Iglesias of New Mexico to the hit list – a move that was made shortly after Iglesias received calls from U.S. Rep. Heather Wilson and Sen. Pete Domenici, R-N.M. about a pending investigation in October 2006. The House Judiciary Commercial and Administrative Law Subcommittee voted today to authorize the issuance of subpoenas for Rove, Harriet Miers and other White House and Justice Department staffers. The move follows what has been a continually shifting set of explanations for the dismissals provided by the White House and Justice Department, which has led to rampant speculation that the firings were politically motivated. President Bush has promised to fight the subpoenas, saying he doesn’t want his aides to be afraid to give him advice because they might be called to testify about it. Continue Reading

House Republicans will try to end session today

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House Republicans will try to end Gov. Bill Richardson’s special session this afternoon. The House is set to convene at 2 p.m. Minority Whip Dan Foley, R-Roswell, confirmed that there will be an attempt to adjourn sine die. “We’re going to try to sine die today,” he said. “I think we have the votes.” The Senate has already adjourned sine die, so the session is over if the House does the same. If the House does not, senators have to return by Saturday evening, but could vote to quit working again. Continue Reading

20 months before election, Democrats attack Wilson

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With almost 20 months before the November 2008 general election, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee began running radio advertisements in the Albuquerque market today attacking U.S. Rep. Heather Wilson, R-N.M. The 60-second radio spot focuses on Wilson’s call to former U.S. Attorney David Iglesias in October 2006, and is the first in the 2008 1st Congressional District race, for which the Democrats don’t yet have a candidate. “October 2006. A phone call is made. A scandal begins,” the ad starts. It goes on to include Iglesias’ testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee, in which he claimed, under oath, that Wilson inquired about whether there were any sealed indictments in an ongoing investigation into kickbacks related to the awarding of contracts for the construction of government buildings in Bernalillo County. Continue Reading

Iglesias lashes out in New York Times op-ed

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In a biting column published today in the New York Times, former U.S. Attorney David Iglesias lashed out at his critics and said he wants a written statement from the Justice Department that performance was not the reason for his ouster. Iglesias wrote that the release this week of more than 3,000 pages of Justice Department e-mails makes it clear “that politics played a role” in the ousters of him and seven others late last year. “Of course, as one of the eight, I’ve felt this way for some time,” Iglesias wrote. “But now that the record is out there in black and white for the rest of the country to see, the argument that we were fired for ‘performance related’ reasons (in the words of Deputy Attorney General Paul McNulty) is starting to look more than a little wobbly.” Iglesias wrote that U.S. attorneys should be insulated from politics, and recalled former Attorney General John Ashcroft telling him in 2001 “that political should play no role during my tenure.” “I took that message to heart,” he wrote. “Little did I know that I could be fired for not being political.” Iglesias defended his tenure, pointing out that he had “excellent” evaluations, “the biggest political corruption prosecutions in New Mexico history,” a record number of prosecutions and a 95 percent conviction rate. Continue Reading

Richardson calls lawmakers back, then leaves state; House members ponder possible end to session

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Many lawmakers are furious that Gov. Bill Richardson forced them to rearrange plans and return to Santa Fe for a special session while he spends much of the week campaigning in California. Richardson’s two trips this week to that state were a factor in the Senate’s decision to adjourn sine die on Tuesday. A number of sources indicated there will likely be a similar attempt in the House today, in part because of the news of Richardson’s travels. Most did not want to be named because they fear retaliation. It may not be a public attempt. Continue Reading

Senate adjourns in defiance of governor

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The New Mexico Senate has just voted to adjourn sine die, meaning its members plan to go home without considering any of the legislation Gov. Bill Richardson has called them back to Santa Fe to approve. Sen. Linda Lopez, D-Albuquerque, made the motion to adjourn, which passed on a voice vote, Kate Nash is reporting on her blog. There was a challenge, which was upheld. The final vote to adjourn sine die was 24-14. The move puts the House in the position of siding with the governor or the Senate. Continue Reading

Iglesias was once considered a top-tier prosecutor

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E-mails released Monday night by the Bush Administration and other sources continue to confirm that, until sometime mid-2006, former U.S. Attorney David Iglesias was considered one of the brightest federal prosecutors in the nation by higher-ups in the Department of Justice. In April 2004, Kyle Sampson, former chief of staff for Attorney Alberto Gonzales, wrote that Iglesias was one of several who “might be enticed to leave their districts and come to Washington to run the (Executive Office of United States Attorneys), according to an e-mail found among thousands of pages by TPMMcukraker.com. In the e-mail, he described Iglesias as a “diverse up-and-comer; solid.” Despite that, Iglesias didn’t get the job. The Washington Post reported Monday that Iglesias was considered an expert in voter fraud issues by the Justice Department, which twice selected him to train colleagues in pursuing such allegations. The last time was in October, 2005, when he was invited to teach a seminar on voting integrity. Continue Reading