LCPS board promotes Rounds, may skip new search

By |

Stan Rounds is no longer the interim superintendent of the Las Cruces Public Schools. That’s because on Tuesday night the school board voted 4-1 to remove “interim” from his title. It’s a move that could eventually mean the board decides against conducting a search it previously planned for a superintendent to replace Rounds. When board members hired Rounds in February, they planned to keep him as interim superintendent for at least a year to allow the district time to stabilize after years of turmoil, then begin the search for a permanent superintendent. Since coming on, Rounds has impressed many, and the board has been pleased with his work. Continue Reading

McCamley wants commission to support drilling delay

By |

Doña Ana County Commissioner Bill McCamley wants his peers to approve a resolution supporting the postponement of oil and gas drilling on the Otero Mesa until a study of the water underneath it is complete. The delay has the support of three of New Mexico’s elected officials in Washington – Democratic Sen. Jeff Bingaman and Rep. Tom Udall and Republican Sen. Pete Domenici – who have all asked the Bush Administration to put off leasing the land. U.S. Rep. and Hobbs oilman Steve Pearce, R-N.M., whose district includes the Otero Mesa, has thus far been silent on the issue. McCamley, a Democrat, is vying for the right to take on Pearce next year, but so is Al Kissling. McCamley said the resolution, which commissioners will consider on Tuesday, is not politically motivated. Continue Reading

Richardson to visit five Western states in seven days

By |

Gov. Bill Richardson will raise money and attend campaign events in at least five Western states, including New Mexico, in the next week. Richardson is in the San Antonio area of Texas today attending fundraisers, according to a news release from his campaign. He’ll be in Dallas and Houston on Wednesday to raise money. He then heads to Nevada. Wednesday evening, he’ll give a speech to a Democratic group there. Continue Reading

County will likely return to detailed meeting minutes

By |

The Doña Ana County Board of Commissioners appears ready to take another step toward more open government. For years, the county provided detailed minutes of commission meetings. That caused many problems, because the clerk’s office didn’t have enough resources to handle the work load. In recent years, the clerk’s office struggled with completing minutes in the time required by the New Mexico Open Meetings Act, leading to repeated violations of the act. After the 2004 special audit of the county found dozens of violations in 2003 alone, the county hired outside help so the clerk’s office could catch up. Continue Reading

Southern New Mexico trying to draw film industry

By |

Since Gov. Bill Richardson took office, the state has invested tens of millions of dollars to attract the film industry. Northern New Mexico has repeatedly reaped the benefits with the filming of a number of pictures in the area. In addition, a number of companies have relocated employees and opened new offices in the Albuquerque area, making that region a real threat to Hollywood, the Los Angeles Times reported recently. Though the state has invested millions to develop the Creative Media Institute at New Mexico State University, that hasn’t drawn films to Southern New Mexico. The university, in partnership with the City of Las Cruces and Doña Ana County, hopes to change that. Continue Reading

GOP presidential candidates square off tonight

By |

Though I’ve been covering the Democratic presidential primary more than the GOP’s because of Gov. Bill Richardson’s candidacy, I wanted to let you know that CNN is hosting the third debate of Republican candidates tonight. Hopefully, the network learned from Sunday’s Democratic debate and will treat the lesser-known GOP candidates better than it did Richardson and other second-tier Democratic candidates. The debate begins at 5 p.m. You can read CNN’s preview by clicking here. Watch the debate by clicking here. Continue Reading

Denish makes trip to Las Cruces today

By |

Lt. Gov. Diane Denish is in Las Cruces today for some official business and an event for her 2010 gubernatorial campaign. Denish began the day at 8 a.m. at a “Danish with Diane” event at Roberto’s restaurant hosted by the Democratic Party of Doña Ana County and, according to the invitation, “local labor unions.” I asked Denish’s campaign spokesman Steve Fitzer if that meant the unions were endorsing Denish’s 2010 gubernatorial campaign more than three years before the election. “It’s not an endorsement, but they were happy to help us,” he said, adding that the election is so far away that the campaign wouldn’t seek labor endorsements this early. Denish is also scheduled to attend the official launch of the V-me Spanish-language television network at KRWG-TV’s studio in Las Cruces at 11 a.m. V-me is a public, Spanish-language network that has been around for years but is coming to Southern New Mexico for the first time. Denish also met today with a farming group and toured a pecan orchard. Continue Reading

CNN continues disservice to second-tier candidates

By |

In what is apparently a continued attempt to prop up the three frontrunners in the race to be the Democratic Party’s 2008 presidential nominee, CNN co-hosted a forum yesterday on faith that only involved Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama and John Edwards. The others were interviewed later on another CNN show, but they weren’t given as much time or attention. You can read about the CNN/Sojourners forum by clicking here. You can read a transcript of Paula Zahn now, where the others got to speak, by clicking here. The move came the day after CNN held a Democratic candidate debate designed to center around the Big Three, who got more time to speak, were asked more questions and took up more camera time even when they weren’t speaking. Continue Reading

House Democrats won’t keep promise of openness

By |

Since Democrats took control of Congress in January, the news has continued to be bad for the Bush Administration and GOP. The pendulum is bound to swing eventually, and the past few days have been bad ones for the Democrats. Remember Rep. Tom Udall, D-N.M., touting his vote in January for new ethics rules designed to “make this Congress the most ethical Congress in history?” One of those new rules required the clear identification of earmarks – requests by lawmakers for funding for projects in their districts – in time for lawmakers to debate their merits. Such earmarks are negotiating tools that many say lead to corruption. A lawmaker will often vote for a bill he opposes if funding for a project in his district is slipped into it. Continue Reading

AG King to talk about ethics in Las Cruces

By |

Attorney General Gary King will talk about ethics in government at Southern New Mexico Common Cause’s annual luncheon in Las Cruces next week. Last year, Gov. Bill Richardson announced the creation of his ethics task force during the group’s annual event. King will speak about ethics in state and local government, according to a news release from Common Cause. The event will be held June 14 from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Best Western Mesilla Valley Inn. Tickets for the lunch are $15 each. Continue Reading

Developer says he isn’t helping pay Theus and Martin

By |

Las Cruces developer Philip Philippou isn’t giving any money to the New Mexico State University Foundation to help pay basketball Coach Reggie Theus or President Michael Martin. Philippou contacted me this weekend to make that clear. His comments came in response to an article I ran Friday questioning whether the foundation’s donor list should be public. The university recently gave Theus and Martin significant raises in compensation that are paid by the private sector. The money is funneled through the foundation, a non-profit that keeps its donor lists secret. Continue Reading

Richardson’s campaign declares debate a success

By |

Gov. Bill Richardson’s campaign was pleased with his showing in Sunday’s Democratic candidate debate. Richardson “firmly established himself as the candidate with the strongest positions on the key challenges facing this country and showed that he is the most qualified to be the next president of the United States,” the campaign declared in a news release after the debate. “The other candidates have policy positions, and Bill Richardson has real-world experience dealing with those challenges,” said David Contarino, Richardson’s campaign manager. “Tonight, he separated himself from the other candidates and showed voters in New Hampshire and across the country that he will be a strong and effective president that can bring this country together and restore America’s standing in the world.” Reactions from political pundits were mixed. The Albuquerque Journal spoke with three political observers. Continue Reading

Udall gets approval in non-scientific poll

By |

The majority of those who voted in last week’s non-scientific poll on this site said they approve of the job being done by U.S. Rep. Tom Udall, D-N.M. Of 102 voters, 55, or 54 percent, said they approve, while 34, or 33 percent, said they disapprove, and 13, or 13 percent, said they’re not sure. Don’t forget to vote in this week’s poll, located at the top of the right column on this page. Continue Reading

Richardson holds his own in second debate

By |

Gov. Bill Richardson followed a poor showing in the first Democratic presidential candidate debate in April with a better performance tonight. Though he held his own, the format of the debate wasn’t conducive to helping second-tier candidates, and he did have a few poor moments. Barack Obama and John Edwards rose to the top in the debate, with Hillary Clinton not far behind. Joe Biden stood out among second-tier candidates, and was followed by Chris Dodd and Richardson. No candidate had a poor showing. Continue Reading

Richardson unveils new ad highlighting energy plan

By |

Gov. Bill Richardson has unveiled a new television advertisement that highlights his energy plan. Richardson is continuing his focus on Iowa and New Hampshire by running the new commercial there. It comes on the heels of his humorous and popular job-interview ads and significant gains in polls in both states. The job-interview ads will continue to run in those states alongside the new commercial. The ad touts New Mexico as a state that has done the most to “promote renewable energy and fight global warming.” “We’ve made New Mexico the clean energy state,” Richardson says at the end of the commercial. Continue Reading