BREAKING NEWS: Governor secures release of American journalist

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Gov. Bill Richardson successfully secured the release today of Pulitzer-Prize winning journalist Paul Salopek and two colleagues following a meeting with Sudanese President Lt. General Umar Hassan Ahmad Al-Bashir. “I am pleased to report that our negotiations were successful, and Paul Salopek will return home to New Mexico with me,” Richardson said in a news release. “I want to thank the Sudanese President Lt. General Umar Hassan Ahmad Al-Bashir, who was receptive to my request to release Paul Salopek and his colleagues based on humanitarian grounds.” “The successful end to this unfortunate episode is a victory for journalism and a free press,” Richardson said. “Most important, these three men will return home safely to be with their families, friends and colleagues who were relentless in their appeals to have them freed.” Richardson traveled with Calvin Humphrey, his foreign policy advisor, to Khartoum, Sudan on Friday, where he met with the Sudanese President Lt. General Umar Hassan Ahmad Al-Bashir. He also took with him Salopek’s wife and the editor of the Chicago Tribune. Continue Reading

State Rep. candidate has Web site

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I’ve never told you about Isaac Chavez’s Web site. He’s the Republican candidate attempting to unseat Rep. Andy Nuñez, D-Hatch. His Web site can be found at http://www.isaacechavez.com. If you know of any other Web sites for Democratic or Republican candidates that I haven’t posted, let me know. You can e-mail me at heath@haussamen.com. Continue Reading

Democrats place huge bets on beating Armijo

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The Democratic Party leaders fighting Jeff Armijo’s attempt to remain on the ballot are gambling with their political futures. Those four are Gov. Bill Richardson, Secretary of State Rebecca Vigil-Giron, Attorney General Patricia Madrid and Democratic Party Chair John Wertheim. They’re all on board with the decision to take Democrat Armijo’s name off the ballot in the state auditor race, which has resulted in one of the biggest political messes we’ve seen around here in a long time. Though they have a legal argument to back up Vigil-Giron’s decision, there’s no certainty it will hold up in court when Armijo files a lawsuit, which will likely happen today. Many sources in the Democratic and Republican parties have told me they believe Armijo will prevail in court. Continue Reading

Bibb rally with McCain cancelled

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A Saturday rally on the Mesilla Plaza for Jim Bibb, the Republican Party’s candidate for attorney general, has been cancelled. Bibb and U.S. Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., were scheduled to attend. Bibb’s campaign manager, Alexis Valdez, gave no reason for the cancellation, but said in an e-mail that McCain will be holding other events for Bibb in New Mexico that will be “closed to the public.” McCain will also hold two events in Albuquerque tomorrow for U.S. Rep. Heather Wilson, R-N.M., who is in a tough battle for re-election. There will be a public, free event at 1:30 p.m. at VFW Post 401 in Albuquerque, in addition to an expensive, private fundraiser. Continue Reading

BREAKING NEWS: Armijo to sue in attempt to stay in auditor race

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Jeff Armijo will sue in an attempt to remain the Democrat’s nominee for state auditor. Armijo’s attorney, Paul Kienzle, sent out a news release late Thursday announcing that he will attempt to “pursue in state court his right to appear on the general election ballot.” Depending on how that goes, Kienzle said, several registered voters are prepared to file suit in federal court “to contest the loss of their vote and disenfranchisement.” Allegations that Armijo made unwanted sexual advances toward a campaign volunteer, which are being reviewed by prosecutors in Albuquerque, were first made public in late August. On Aug. 29, following a closed-door meeting with the governor, Armijo announced in a news release that he would “leave the race for state auditor” for the good of the party. The Democrats set a meeting for this Saturday to select a candidate to replace Armijo on the ballot. Continue Reading

Richardson should heed his criticism of Dendahl

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I try to avoid quoting unabashedly liberal or conservative bloggers, but sometimes there are exceptions. Conservative blogger Mario Burgos made a great point in a posting on his blog today. Recall the text from this commercial Gov. Bill Richardson’s re-election campaign aired on radio stations across the state in June: “A secret meeting… The order is delivered… And the political candidate quietly goes away… Is this the Third World? The Middle East? Eastern Europe? Continue Reading

My mistake was amplified by others

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I made a mistake in a blog posting earlier this week that has gotten way out of control. In the article I wrote Monday about the death of District Judge Silvia Cano-Garcia, I mistakenly reported that she had been appointed to the position in 2003 by former Gov. Gary Johnson. The truth is that she was elected to the district judge position, narrowly beating Doug Driggers for the seat in November 2002. She had been appointed by Johnson in 2001 to a magistrate judge position. The mistake was amplified when the Las Cruces Sun-News repeated it. Continue Reading

McCain to take part in Mesilla rally for Republican AG candidate Jim Bibb

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U.S. Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., will take part in a rally for Jim Bibb, the party’s candidate for New Mexico attorney general, Saturday in Mesilla. At the rally, Bibb will discuss “serious problems that need to be addressed” and his plan “to ensure consumer protection and fight meth, public corruption” and drunken driving, according to the Republican Party’s Web site. The rally comes a week after an Albuquerque Journal poll showed Bibb with 27 percent of the vote, compared to 47 percent for his opponent, Democrat Gary King. Twenty-six percent were undecided. McCain is considered by many to be the frontrunner for the Republican Party’s 2008 presidential nomination. Continue Reading

Vigil jury makeup reveals lack of state government and politics awareness in Las Cruces area

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Half of jurors picked Wednesday in the retrial of former state Treasurer Robert Vigil are from Doña Ana County. The group of 12 jurors and four alternates includes six members from Las Cruces, one from Anthony and another from the county, according to an article from the Associated Press that you can read via the Albuquerque Journal. The news is not surprising. It’s no secret that residents of the state’s second-largest city are among the most uneducated about state government and politics. That doesn’t mean people here don’t know about the scandal involving the state treasurer’s office, but they probably know less on average than other residents around the state. Continue Reading

Result of Vigil retrial will impact congressional race

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The race between U.S. Rep. Heather Wilson, R-N.M., and Democratic challenger Patricia Madrid could be decided by the retrial of former state Treasurer Robert Vigil. Wilson and the Republican Party have been relentless in their attacks on Madrid, New Mexico’s attorney general, over allegations that she failed to investigate the scandal in the treasurer’s office years ago. Vigil’s first trial on federal charges of extortion, racketeering and racketeering conspiracy ended with a hung jury in May. In June, Madrid announced indictments on state charges against four who testified against Vigil, based on their testimony in the first trial. Republicans said the indictments were politically motivated and might end up hurting the federal case against Vigil. Continue Reading

Richardson orders flags at half-staff for Cano-Garcia

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Gov. Bill Richardson has ordered flags to fly at half-staff in honor of former District Judge Silvia Cano-Garcia, who died Monday following a long battle with cancer. Flags have been flying at half-staff outside the district courthouse in Las Cruces all week. Richardson has ordered that flags be flown at half-staff Thursday and Friday. Here’s the text of Richardson’s order: EXECUTIVE ORDER 2006-056 FLAGS FLOWN AT HALF STAFF IN HONOR OF THE HONORABLE SILVIA CANO-GARCIA WHEREAS, The Honorable Silvia Cano-Garcia, age 44, passed away on Monday, September 4, 2006, after a hard-fought battle with cancer; WHEREAS, State District Court Judge Cano-Garcia was born and raised in Mesilla, New Mexico; WHEREAS, Judge Cano-Garcia graduated from Las Cruces High School and went on to earn a Bachelor’s degree from New Mexico State University in 1982 and a law degree from American University in Washington, D.C. in 1987. She was a Fulbright scholar who studied international relations in Germany from 1982 to 1983. Continue Reading

Richardson heading to Sudan to seek journalist’s release from prison

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Gov. Bill Richardson will travel to Sudan on Thursday to meet with Sudanese President Lt. General Umar Hassan Ahmad Al-Bashir and urge him to release journalist Paul Salopek and two colleagues on humanitarian grounds. The three were arrested a month ago and charged with espionage, passing information illegally, and writing false news. Salopek, a two-time winner of the Pulitzer Prize, is on leave from his job as foreign correspondent for the Chicago Tribune and was on a freelance assignment for National Geographic magazine when he was arrested. Salopek lives in Columbus, N.M., with his wife, Linda Lynch, who will accompany Richardson on the trip. “Paul Salopek is clearly not a spy. Continue Reading

Armijo creates quandary for Democratic Party

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For about an hour beginning at 5 p.m. Tuesday, the political powers-that-be in New Mexico’s Democratic Party were silent. Jeff Armijo had decided to play hardball and just announced he would not withdraw from the state auditor’s race. The secretary of state’s office had told both me and the Albuquerque Journal earlier in the day that Armijo would have to file a signed, notarized letter to withdraw from the race. Then the Democratic Party chair and governor put out statements taking the position that no such letter was required. They said Armijo’s prior public statements and news release were enough. Continue Reading

State officials say Armijo is off the ballot, but a lawsuit could be the next step

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Democrat Jeff Armijo recanted today an earlier pledge to withdraw from the race for state auditor, but state officials say it’s too late. Secretary of State Rebecca Vigil-Giron announced late Tuesday that, though Armijo refused to file a formal letter announcing his withdrawal, she considered a news release he put out on Aug. 29 announcing his departure an official notice, according to the Associated Press. “I accepted that withdrawal and the Democratic Party central committee has already been notified they will be meeting to select a candidate,” Vigil-Giron told the Associated Press. “He is not on the ballot.” We’ll see. Continue Reading