City election candidate forum to be held Tuesday

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The Greater Las Cruces Chamber of Commerce will hold a forum on Tuesday for candidates running in the Las Cruces municipal election. The forum will be held at the offices of the Las Cruces Homebuilders Association, 2825 N. Main St., beginning at 6:30 p.m. If you can’t attend this forum, the League of Women Voters of Greater Las Cruces will hold a televised forum on Oct. 9 from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. in the council chambers at City Hall. It will be broadcast live on Comcast cable channel 20, the city’s government access channel, and on the Internet. Video and audio will be broadcast at www.clctv.com, while an audio-only feed will be available at www.las-cruces.org. Continue Reading

Transportation commissioners tied to tainted projects

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The number of suspicious circumstances surrounding two Department of Transportation building projects keeps growing. The Albuquerque Journal reported this weekend on another tie between one of the defendants in the Bernalillo County Metro Court scandal and the DOT projects – this one involving two governor appointees to the state Transportation Commission. Apparently, two commissioners – Johnny Cope of Hobbs and Jim Franken of Las Vegas – had the department call in a consultant to work on the redevelopment of its statewide headquarters in Santa Fe and another project, the redevelopment of a district office also located in Santa Fe. That consultant was Michael Murphy, one of five defendants in the Metro Court case. Murphy acted as a right-hand man for former Court Administrator Toby Martinez, prosecutors allege. Continue Reading

Guv raises $5.2 million in third quarter

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Gov. Bill Richardson raised $5.2 million for his presidential campaign during the fundraising quarter that ended Sunday – a drop from the $7 million he raised from April to June, but an amount that keeps him on the heels of John Edwards. The Washington Post reported that Edwards was expected to raise about $7 million, but the campaign did not release a fundraising total on Sunday. Richardson’s was the only campaign in either party to release a fundraising total. Richardson and Edwards were locked in a battle last week over who would raise $1 million in the final days of the fundraising quarter. Both campaigns said this morning they had reached the goal – but it took Edwards 10 days to do it while Richardson did it in seven. Continue Reading

Voters in poll say treasurer would not win re-election

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The majority of those who voted in last week’s non-scientific poll on this site think Doña Ana County Treasurer Jim Schoonover has a tough re-election battle ahead, should he choose to run again. Schoonover, a Republican, has not announced whether he will seek re-election next year, but former county Auditor Jill Johnson, a Democrat, is running for his seat. Of 101 voters in last week’s poll, 66, or 65 percent, said Johnson would win a race between the two, while 35, or 35 percent, said Schoonover would win. Don’t forget to vote in this week’s poll, located at the top of the right column on this page. Continue Reading

Rail Runner tax snafu could hamper spaceport funding

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The newest snafu over whether to raise local taxes to pay for operation of the Rail Runner could harm the state’s ability to secure approval in Sierra and Otero counties for a similar tax to help fund Spaceport America. In addition, the question of how to come up with millions each year to operate the commuter train when federal money runs out in 2009 threatens to further strain the state’s finances as it tries to complete the two massive projects and come up with some $500 million for needed road construction and maintenance. State Transportation Secretary Rhonda Faught publicly proposed earlier this week implementation of a local gross receipts tax in Bernalillo, Santa Fe, Sandoval and Valencia counties to come up with $25 million a year to pay for the train’s operating costs. The state has provided some $400 million for acquisition and construction of tracks and trains, but the federal government agreed to pay for the first three years of operations. In this election season, the presidential candidate and Gov. Bill Richardson quickly put out a news release saying there will be no tax increase. Continue Reading

Affordable housing committee to meet in Las Cruces

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The legislative committee that oversees the state’s affordable housing system will meet Monday in Las Cruces. The Legislative Mortgage Finance Authority Act Oversight Committee will hear updates from the two regional housing authorities still operating after the rest of the system crumbled amid scandal last year, and will also learn about and tour affordable housing projects in Doña Ana County, according to the agenda. The meeting begins at 10 a.m. in the Barbara Hubbard Room at the Pan American Center on the New Mexico State University campus. It is open to the public. “During this meeting we will be continuing our review of the challenges and opportunities our state faces in the area of affordable housing, and this includes a review of the performance of our regional housing authorities,” said Sen. Nancy Rodriguez, D-Santa Fe and chair of the committee. Continue Reading

A look at the Richardson/Edwards contest

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Gov. Bill Richardson ended the second quarter of the year statistically tied with John Edwards in New Hampshire polls and having raised $7 million to Edwards’ $9 million. Three months later, there are signs that some things have changed. Edwards has climbed a bit in the polls, but there are signs that the governor might raise more money during the fundraising quarter that ends Sunday. While both candidates were averaging about 9 percent in New Hampshire polls at the end of June, the newest poll, conducted by the University of New Hampshire for CNN, had Richardson at 6 percent and Edwards at 12 percent. For Richardson, that’s a drop of five points from the UNH July poll. Continue Reading

Court wants to suspend judge tied to housing scandal

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The New Mexico Supreme Court has rejected a petition for discipline of a judge tied to the state housing authority scandal because the requested punishment wasn’t harsh enough. In an order issued today, the high court rejected the Judicial Standards Commission’s petition for discipline, which sought a reprimand for Bernalillo County Metropolitan Court Judge Theresa Gomez and a requirement that she pay $17,000 in back rent to the Albuquerque-based Region III Housing Authority. The court suggested that Gomez be required to pay the back rent and be suspended for two weeks, but sent the matter to the commission for further consideration. The commission made the request earlier this month because Gomez lived rent-free, for 20 months, in a home owned by the housing authority, an organization whose mission is providing housing for low-income people. At the time, Gomez was making $93,000 per year. Continue Reading

Listen to The Morning Show podcast

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Today on The Morning Show with Alan Riehl, I discussed Gov. Bill Richardson’s performance at Wednesday’s debate, the upcoming Las Cruces municipal election, U.S. Sen. Pete Domenici’s falling poll numbers and the allegations against U.S. Rep. Steve Pearce. You can listen to the 38-minute podcast by clicking here. Continue Reading

Activist to run against Sen. Grubesic in June primary

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An activist for the gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender community has announced her candidacy for the New Mexico Senate seat currently held by Democrat John Grubesic of Santa Fe. Mekah Gordon, a Democrat, will be running against the senator in the June 2008 primary. Gordon wrote in a recent e-mail to supporters that, as the District 25 senator, she wants to work toward the establishment of a “harassment free, diverse and humanistic educational school system” and will also push for visual and performing arts education in all schools, civil rights and equality, low- and middle-income tax breaks and better health care for the elderly and veterans. “I have consistently maintained a well documented platform of sensitivity, diversity understanding, civil rights, compassion and mutual respect,” she wrote. “Believing in and supporting my candidacy for New Mexico state senator will reestablish honesty and truth in a political arena seemingly void of such characteristics.” Gordon is an artist who designs and crafts jewelry and is also a photographer and sculptor. Continue Reading

Edwards, Obama call guv’s claims dishonest at debate

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Gov. Bill Richardson’s performance at Wednesday’s Democratic presidential candidate debate was overshadowed by the assertions of others that some of his claims were unrealistic and disingenuous. To top it off, it was John Edwards, not Richardson, who most convincingly set himself apart from the frontrunners on the issue of troop withdrawal from Iraq. The night started off well for Richardson because the moderator of the MSNBC debate, Tim Russert, asked the frontrunners whether they would promise that, if they were elected, there would be no American troops in Iraq by the end of their first term in January 2013. The question appeared to be driven by Richardson’s recent attacks on the frontrunners for rejecting his plan for the withdrawal of all American troops, including residual troops, in a matter of months. Richardson has repeatedly said Edwards, Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton aren’t being honest with the American people when they say they would end the war but also plan to leave some troops in Iraq. Continue Reading

Richardson insists he won’t run against Domenici

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The day after a new poll showed U.S. Sen. Pete Domenici’s approval rating falling to 41 percent, Bill Richardson’s presidential campaign made its strongest statement yet that the governor isn’t interested in running against the state’s senior senator next year. “The governor is running to be the next president of the U.S.,” spokesman Pahl Shipley wrote today in an e-mail. “With Congress, been there, done that. Not interested.” Richardson spent 14 years in the U.S. House of Representatives. Shipley’s comments come the day after the new SurveyUSA poll had the GOP senator’s support dropping 11 points since August and below 50 percent for the first time in the history of the poll that began in May 2005. Continue Reading

Guv could make Supreme Court pick by mid-October

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Gov. Bill Richardson could make an appointment to the New Mexico Supreme Court as early as mid-October, a spokesman said today. By law, the governor has to make the appointment within 30 days of being notified of the recommendations of the judicial nominating commission that met Monday. The notification was probably not made until Tuesday, which would give the governor until Oct. 24 to make the appointment. “The governor will be carefully considering all the nominees and has 30 days to make the appointment per the Constitution,” spokesman Gilbert Gallegos said, adding that the appointment could come in mid-October. Continue Reading

Domenici’s approval rating falls to 41 percent

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U.S. Sen. Pete Domenici’s approval rating has fallen 11 points in the last month, and it’s now below the 50-percent mark for the first time. The newest SurveyUSA poll, released today, is bad news for a GOP senator who keeps ending up on lists of endangered incumbents even though he hasn’t yet drawn a high-profile Democratic challenger. Domenici’s support is at 41 percent, down from 52 percent in August, and he’s increasingly looking vulnerable. “The people of New Mexico are clearly unhappy that Pete Domenici is more loyal to George Bush and his failed policies than to the families of New Mexico,” state Democratic Party Chairman Brian S. Colón said in a news release. “This poll confirms that Domenici is in serious danger of losing his job when New Mexicans go to the polls next year.” It’s also an indication that national groups that have attacked Domenici for failing to support an immediate withdrawal from Iraq and new renewable energy standards are having an effect. Continue Reading

14 file to run in Las Cruces municipal election

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With the exception of one surprise I reported earlier today, all who filed to run in the Nov. 6 Las Cruces municipal election had previously announced their candidacies. Those who filed to run for mayor are incumbent Bill Mattiace, political newcomer Jon J. Mercurio and District 6 Councilor Ken Miyagishima. Those who filed to run for City Council District 1 are incumbent José V. Frietze, political newcomer Conrado M. Guerra, activist Ron M. Gurley and former Doña Ana County Commissioner Miguel G. Silva. Guerra had not previously announced his candidacy. Continue Reading