New Pearce TV ad calls Wilson a liberal

By |

Republican U.S. Senate candidate Steve Pearce has begun airing a new television ad calling his primary opponent a liberal – a continuation of the attacks between the two candidates even as the ad also complains about his opponent’s negative attacks. Heather Wilson is doing the same thing in her current TV ad – complaining about Pearce’s negative attacks and then attacking him. Here’s Pearce’s new ad: The first 25 seconds of the 30-second spot continue Pearce’s recent attack on the fact that Wilson missed 22 U.S. House votes recently because she was in New Mexico campaigning. This ad says she missed votes “just to film negative campaign ads.” In the background of the ad is someone calling out “Heather Wilson” and someone else responding with “absent” several times to emphasize the point. The last five seconds sort of randomly insert the line, “Heather Wilson. Continue Reading

New Pearce TV ad calls Wilson a liberal

By |

Republican U.S. Senate candidate Steve Pearce has begun airing a new television ad calling his primary opponent a liberal – a continuation of the attacks between the two candidates even as the ad also complains about his opponent’s negative attacks. Heather Wilson is doing the same thing in her current TV ad – complaining about Pearce’s negative attacks and then attacking him. Here’s Pearce’s new ad: The first 25 seconds of the 30-second spot continue Pearce’s recent attack on the fact that Wilson missed 22 U.S. House votes recently because she was in New Mexico campaigning. This ad says she missed votes “just to film negative campaign ads.” In the background of the ad is someone calling out “Heather Wilson” and someone else responding with “absent” several times to emphasize the point. The last five seconds sort of randomly insert the line, “Heather Wilson. Continue Reading

New Pearce TV ad calls Wilson a liberal

By |

Republican U.S. Senate candidate Steve Pearce has begun airing a new television ad calling his primary opponent a liberal – a continuation of the attacks between the two candidates even as the ad also complains about his opponent’s negative attacks. Heather Wilson is doing the same thing in her current TV ad – complaining about Pearce’s negative attacks and then attacking him. Here’s Pearce’s new ad: The first 25 seconds of the 30-second spot continue Pearce’s recent attack on the fact that Wilson missed 22 U.S. House votes recently because she was in New Mexico campaigning. This ad says she missed votes “just to film negative campaign ads.” In the background of the ad is someone calling out “Heather Wilson” and someone else responding with “absent” several times to emphasize the point. The last five seconds sort of randomly insert the line, “Heather Wilson. Continue Reading

Pearce and Wilson announce new endorsements

By |

Steve Pearce and Heather Wilson have both gained high-profile endorsements in the last few days as they jockey for position in the GOP U.S. Senate primary. Wilson has picked up the endorsements of Episcopal Rev. Canon Albert Tarbell of Albuquerque and U.S. Sen. Wayne Allard, R-Colo. Allard is the first U.S. senator to endorse a candidate in the New Mexico Senate primary. “New Mexico Republicans should nominate a candidate in June who’ll be able to defeat the Democrats and hold Senator Pete Domenici’s seat come January,” Allard said in a news release from the Wilson campaign. “Control of the U.S. Senate is hanging on just a handful of races around the country, and this New Mexico race is one of them. Continue Reading

Vigil to petition Supreme Court after appeal rejected

By |

The 10th Circuit Court of Appeals has upheld former state Treasurer Robert Vigil’s conviction on a felony count of attempted extortion in the scandal the rocked New Mexico and led to prison time for two former treasurers. You can read the opinion from the appeals court in Denver by clicking here. Vigil’s attorney, Sam Bregman, told the Associated Press and 770 KKOB-AM in Albuquerque that he will appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court. “There’s plenty of fight left, and we will continue to fight this legal issue because we believe we’re right,” the Associated Press quoted Bregman as saying. “We’re still very firm in our belief that Robert Vigil committed no crime for which he was convicted.” Vigil was convicted in September 2006 on one count of attempted extortion but acquitted on 23 other felony charges. Continue Reading

McCamley gives his campaign $47.50 to buy gas

By |

Democratic 2nd Congressional District candidate Bill McCamley wrote his campaign a check for $47.50 today, saying the little he could afford to give will buy “most” of a tank of gas and help him continue to travel the district and talk about issues with voters. The move comes a day after McCamley’s primary opponent, Harry Teague, filed notice with the Federal Election Commission that he had loaned his campaign another $475,000, bringing the total amount he’s loaned his campaign to almost $685,000. McCamley said his contribution was a direct response to Teague’s. “I don’t have that kind of money,” McCamley said at a news conference today in Las Cruces, where he signed the check. McCamley portrayed himself as a middle-class candidate who is taking on a wealthy oilman. Continue Reading

Realtors group to back Newman with nearly $250K

By |

The influential National Association of Realtors Political Action Committee plans to spend almost $250,000 to help Republican 2nd Congressional District candidate Monty Newman in the June primary. The PAC filed notice with the Federal Election Commission on Friday that it was spending a little more than $235,000 to help Newman, and on Monday it filed notice that it was spending another $12,000. In all, the PAC has filed notice that it plans to spend $247,317.51 to help Newman, who was vice president of the Realtors association in 2005 and 2007. The PAC, according to information it provided to the FEC, plans to spend most of that on mailers, but some will be spent on survey costs, consulting services and accessing the 2nd District voter list. The Realtors group is intervening in the race through the FEC’s independent expenditure rule, which allows a PAC to spend an unlimited amount of money to advocate for the election or defeat of a candidate. Continue Reading

CD2 hopeful Teague loans campaign another $475K

By |

Democratic 2nd Congressional District candidate Harry Teague filed notice today that he has loaned his campaign another $475,000, bringing the total he’s contributed to his run to almost $700,000 and triggering the so-called Millionaires’ Amendment that triples contribution limits in the primary race. The notice Teague filed today indicates that he loaned his campaign $125,000 a week ago and another $350,000 today. He had previously loaned his campaign a little less than $210,000, and has now loaned his campaign a total of $684,572.92. Teague has been rapidly spending money on television ads for a couple of weeks and sent out a pricey, full-page, glossy mailer this weekend. The only publicly released polling of the Democratic primary showed his opponent Bill McCamley with a 21-point lead over Teague in mid-March. Continue Reading

Dems keep Gwaltney, Sanchez in leadership positions

By |

The Democratic national committeeman and committeewoman for New Mexico successfully fought off challenges to be re-elected at the party’s state central committee meeting this weekend. Mary Gail Gwaltney easily defeated State Rep. Mary Helen Garcia, D-Las Cruces, securing almost 90 percent of the vote. Former Speaker of the House Raymond Sanchez also won, securing a little more than 75 percent of the vote against Bruce Barnaby. Democrats in each state elect a national committeeman and national committeewoman to the DNC. In addition to being charged with representing the state’s issues to the national party and communicating national issues to the state’s Democrats, both are superdelegates to the Democratic National Convention in Denver in August. Continue Reading

Superdelegate Bingaman endorses Obama

By |

U.S. Sen. Jeff Bingaman, D-N.M. and a superdelegate, today endorsed Barack Obama in the Democratic presidential primary. It’s a big win for Obama in a race that’s close enough that every superdelegate’s support matters. Bingaman said he intends to vote for Obama at the Democratic National Convention in June. “Our nation faces a daunting number of critical challenges: reasserting America’s leadership in the world, meeting our needs for energy independence, addressing global warming, making health care accessible and affordable, positioning our economy to effectively compete globally and extricating ourselves from the war in Iraq, to name a few,” Bingaman said in a release from the Obama campaign. “To make progress, we must rise above the partisanship and the issues that divide us to find common ground. Continue Reading

McCamley challenges Teague to four debates

By |

Second Congressional District Democratic candidate Bill McCamley challenged his primary opponent this weekend to square off with him in four debates to be held during the month of May. McCamley made the challenge to Harry Teague in a letter he handed him at a forum both attended on Saturday in Silver City. “If democracy is really about representing the people, then we owe the voters the chance to talk with us together in an in-depth format about their issues and concerns,” McCamley wrote in the letter. “Today’s forum is a good start. However, we can do more. Continue Reading

High court keeps Vigil-Giron on CD1 ballot

By |

Rebecca Vigil-Giron will appear on the June primary ballot as a Democratic candidate for the 1st Congressional District seat in the U.S. House, the state Supreme Court ruled on Friday. Three supporters of Vigil-Giron primary opponent Michelle Lujan Grisham had challenged Vigil-Giron’s candidacy, alleging that she submitted more than 600 signatures that weren’t valid, which would have left her 100 short of the 1,214 needed to qualify for the ballot. A district judge in Santa Fe had already ruled in favor of Vigil-Giron, but the Grisham supporters appealed last week. “Our justice system does work and I am proof of it,” Vigil-Giron said following the high court’s ruling. Continue Reading

Most CD2 hopefuls giving big to their own campaigns

By |

Five of the seven candidates seeking southern New Mexico’s seat in the U.S. House of Representatives this year have given or loaned their own campaigns at least $100,000. It’s a situation that’s unique among the state’s congressional races in 2008, and one that a top New Mexico political analyst says is partly attributable to the unusual makeup of the district. While all but two candidates for the 2nd Congressional District seat have contributed $100,000 or more to their own campaigns, only one of the 14 Democratic and Republican candidates for the state’s other congressional seats – 3rd District Democratic candidate Don Wiviott – has done that, loaning his campaign $890,000. The top self-financing candidate in the 2nd District race is Republican Greg Sowards, who has loaned his campaign $325,000. Not far behind is Republican Aubrey Dunn Jr., who has loaned a little more than $302,000 to his campaign. Continue Reading

Heinrich wins non-scientific Democratic CD1 poll

By |

More voters in last week’s non-scientific poll on this site picked Martin Heinrich than any other candidate to win the Democratic First Congressional District primary. Of 237 voters, 109, or 46 percent, picked Heinrich to win. Meanwhile, 87 voters, or 37 percent, picked Michelle Lujan-Grisham; 36, or 15 percent, picked Rebecca Vigil-Giron; and five, or 2 percent, picked Robert Pidcock. Don’t forget to vote in this week’s poll, located at the top of the right column on this page. Continue Reading