Richardson coming to Las Cruces on Thursday

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Gov. Bill Richardson will make three public appearances in Las Cruces on Thursday. The first is a news conference at which Richardson will announce a “new college-readiness program” for students in Doña Ana County, according to a news release from his office. That event will be held at 10 a.m. in the atrium in O’Donnell Hall on the New Mexico State University campus. While at NMSU, Richardson will deliver a speech on the new G.I. Bill. That event will be held at 11 a.m. at the Foreman Engineering Complex on campus. Continue Reading

Susana Martinez hires ‘GOP’s Ambassador of Ill Will’

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Republican gubernatorial candidate Susana Martinez has hired one of the most well-known GOP public relations professionals in the business to run her campaign’s communications operation, a source close to the campaign confirmed. Danny Diaz was communications director for the Republican National Committee last year. Before that, he served as deputy communications director for John McCain’s 2008 presidential campaign. Diaz spent a lot of time in New Mexico in 2003 and 2004 as the southwest regional press secretary for the Bush/Cheney 2004 re-election campaign. He was once dubbed by TIME Magazine as the “GOP’s Ambassador of Ill Will.” In its December 21, 2007 article, the magazine wrote that Diaz described his job as an “ongoing and daily effort to ensure that both sides of the story are told.” From the article: “When it’s pointed out that at least 99% of the e-mails he sends to reporters are highlighting stories unflattering to Democrats, he laughs and says, with mock solicitousness: ‘I can certainly package and send you information we put on the web about the President’s speeches.’ It is the job of the RNC communications team, he admits, to ‘provide information to further a story line that is detrimental to our opposition.’ Of course, the Democratic National Committee has someone doing the exact same thing; what distinguishes Diaz is the obvious pleasure he takes in a job that is largely about spreading ill will. Continue Reading

Favela convicted; is another voter fraud case coming?

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Is there another voter fraud case brewing in Doña Ana County? After a jury found former Sunland Park Municipal Judge Horacio Favela guilty on Friday of fraudulently voting and registering as a candidate for judge, ABC-7 in El Paso quoted District Attorney Susana Martinez as saying her office will “vigorously” investigate allegations that Favela’s wife also committed voter fraud. After two hours of deliberating, a jury convicted Favela of falsely declaring himself a resident of Sunland Park in 2008 so he could run for judge, falsifying a document that declared him a qualified voter, and voting twice in the 2004 general election — once in El Paso, Texas and once in Doña Ana County. Favela faces a maximum of 4.5 years in prison and a $15,000 fine, according to the Las Cruces Sun-News. He will be sentenced at a later date. Continue Reading

Herrera narrowly wins approval in non-scientific poll

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By a narrow margin, more votes cast in last week’s non-scientific poll on this site came from people who approve of the job Secretary of State Mary Herrera is doing than from people who don’t approve. Of 648 votes, 316, or 49 percent, came from people who approve of the job Herrera is doing, while 308, or 48 percent, came from people who don’t, and 24, or 3 percent, came from people who said they don’t know. Don’t forget to vote in this week’s poll, located at the top of the right column on this page. Continue Reading

Krekula says he won’t run for guv in 2010 after all

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Nathan Krekula, a faculty member at a Christian university in Hobbs, says he won’t run for governor next year after all, but he plans to run sometime in the future, possibly as soon as 2014. “I did some soul searching, and I think I’m really wanting to enjoy my family right now,” Krekula, 36, said Thursday in a phone interview. I first wrote on Monday about his Web site that declares his 2010 candidacy. Krekula, a Republican, said he plans to spend the next few years building relationships in the Republican Party and becoming more familiar with New Mexico issues. He’s lived in the state for five years. Continue Reading

Rove’s testimony contradicts Wilson’s claim

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Former White House aide says Wilson complained about ‘the timing of the courthouse construction indictment’ before the election; Wilson says that’s not true Former White House aide Karl Rove told a House Judiciary Committee investigator that former U.S. Rep. Heather Wilson raised concerns with him about “the timing of the courthouse construction indictment” before the 2006 election. Wilson says that’s not true. The question of whether Wilson was complaining about the timing of indictments in the metro court case before the 2006 election is important because former U.S. Attorney David Iglesias alleges that Wilson and former Sen. Pete Domenici pressured him to speed indictments in the case involving a high-ranking Democrat in an attempt to help Wilson win re-election in 2006.It’s a charge both former members of Congress deny, but it’s now under investigation by a special prosecutor because Iglesias is one of several U.S. attorneys who were fired days after the election. The contradiction between the Rove and Wilson statements is examined today by The Politico: “Rove says Wilson pushed the White House to fire New Mexico’s then-U.S. attorney, David Iglesias, before the Nov. 2006 election because he wasn’t moving fast enough on a corruption case involving New Mexico Democrats. Continue Reading

Ron Paul’s army also marching for Kokesh

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The Washington Independent had an interesting article today about how two Ron Paul-backed GOP candidates — one of them Paul’s son — are causing headaches for mainstream Republican operatives who favor other candidates in what promise to be important Senate races next year. That’s because the Ron Paul army injects energy, cash and support into any campaign Paul backs, creating credible candidates out of people who might otherwise have little ability to gain any traction. Their candidacies mean Republicans are likely to spend a great deal of money on primary battles in those two Senate races next year before they can focus on Democratic opponents. Left out of the article by the Washington Independent, which is a sister site to the New Mexico Independent (a site I write for), is any mention of the third federal candidate Paul’s army has been mobilized behind — Republican Adam Kokesh, who is running for the seat held by U.S. Rep. Ben Ray Luján, D-N.M. Certainly, Kokesh is running in a less high-profile race. He hasn’t received as much media attention. Continue Reading

Did the FBI probe Madrid pay-to-play controversy?

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Wilson, Iglesias disagree about whether FBI inquiry happened Former U.S. Rep. Heather Wilson says there was an FBI inquiry into ties between her 2006 opponent, Patricia Madrid, and a political action committee as the two duked it out in one of the hottest congressional races in the nation. David Iglesias, who was U.S. attorney at the time, says no such probe existed. It’s not clear who’s right, but the answer to that question could help shed light on whether e-mails released Tuesday indicate that Iglesias was fired for improper political reasons, as he claims. The alleged FBI inquiry into then-Attorney General Madrid’s ties to the political action committee would have come at a time when Madrid was caught up in a pay-to-play controversy surrounding financial contributions to that PAC. The controversy hinged on a proposed off-reservation Indian casino in southern New Mexico. Not wanting competition for his own racino, Sunland Park Racetrack and Casino owner Stan Fulton had been working in 2004 and 2005 to kill a proposal by Santa Fe art dealer Gerald Peters and the Jemez Pueblo to build a casino in nearby Anthony. Continue Reading

DuBois will once again seek PRC seat in 2010

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Democrat Stephanie DuBois has announced that she will once again run for a seat on the state Public Regulation Commission next year. DuBois, who ran unsuccessfully against Republican incumbent David King in 2006, wrote in an e-mail that she will once again apply for public financing of her campaign. She said she will formally announce her candidacy for the District 2 PRC seat at the Doña Ana County Democratic Party’s annual Labor Day breakfast on Sept. 7. King is term-limited from seeking re-election next year. Continue Reading

Richardson wants to avoid job losses, keep tax cuts

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Gov. Bill Richardson wants to avoid job losses and keep tax cuts intact when state lawmakers convene in October to address another massive budget shortfall. Richardson announced plans for the special session on Tuesday, and said he wants to limit it to one day. He wants a bipartisan compromise on a budget fix before lawmakers convene. “Because our budget deficit is directly related to the national recession, I want to make sure that we don’t take any action that might cost jobs or adversely affect the state economy,” Richardson said in a news release. Estimates place the budget shortfall at anywhere between $300 million and $500 million. Continue Reading

Bush staffer asked why Iglesias didn’t go after Madrid

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E-mail questioning why Iglesias was ‘shy about doing his job on Madrid’ was about an FBI probe of Madrid, not the 2006 election, Wilson says E-mails released today may appear to indicate that someone in the White House had the race between former U.S. Rep. Heather Wilson, R-N.M., and Democratic challenger Patricia Madrid in mind when discussing former U.S. Attorney David Iglesias’ job performance in the weeks before he was fired. But if Wilson is to be believed, the FBI was investigating Madrid at the time, and a reference to Madrid in the e-mails had to do with that probe, not the election. The e-mail in question was sent from White House staffer Scott Jennings to White House Political Director Karl Rove on Oct. 15, 2006. “… The US Attorney in PA has no trouble going after (former Rep. Curt) Weldon, so why should the US Attorney in New Mexico be shy about doing his job on Madrid,” it states. Continue Reading

New documents on U.S. attorney firings released

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The U.S. House Judiciary Committee today released transcripts of its interviews with Karl Rove and Harriet Miers and other documents related to the firings of several U.S. attorneys, including New Mexico’s David Iglesias, in 2006. It’s been known for some time that Rove was involved in the chain of events that preceded Iglesias’ firing. But I’m told that the transcripts, which add up to some 700 pages, in addition to more than 5,400 pages of other Bush administration documents released today, include information about the firing of Iglesias that has never before been revealed publicly. According to a news release, one of the most interesting points is that former White House staffer Scott Jennings, in an e-mail sent weeks before Iglesias was fired, complained to Rove that Iglesias had been “shy about doing his job on Madrid.” You may recall that former U.S. Sen. Pete Domenici and former U.S. Rep. Heather Wilson, both Republicans, called Iglesias in October 2006 to discuss an ongoing criminal investigation involving Democrats weeks before the November 2006 election, in which Wilson was facing a tough re-election battle against Democrat Patricia Madrid that she ended up narrowly winning. Iglesias alleges that Domenici and Wilson pressured him to speed indictments to sway voters, a charge both deny. Continue Reading

Las Cruces may restrict cell phone use while driving

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Las Cruces Mayor Ken Miyagishima says the city council will consider banning the use of cell phones without hands-free sets and sending text messages while driving. The issue will be discussed at the council’s Sept. 14 work session, Miyagishima wrote today in an e-mail to constituents. Miyagishima wrote that he does not support a complete ban on cell-phone use while driving but believes hands-free sets should be required. He said the meeting comes “in response to public concerns as well as recent reports about the dangers of ‘Texting while Driving.’” Albuquerque, Santa Fe and Española already require those who talk on cell phones while driving to use hands-free sets. Continue Reading

Meet Doña Ana County’s new elections supervisor

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After going seven months without one, Doña Ana County has a new elections supervisor. Bob L. Bartlesmeyer was recently hired for the job, the county announced this morning in a news release. The position has been vacant since County Clerk Lynn Ellins took office in January. Bartelsmeyer has more than 25 years of experience in elections management, including 22 years as the county clerk in Lawrence County, Missouri — a position to which he was elected at age 21 and then held for six consecutive terms. Most recently, he served as absentee ballot coordinator in Palm Beach County, Fla., according to a news release from the county. He has attended Oral Roberts University and Missouri State University. Continue Reading

Christian university professor running for governor

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A faculty member at a Christian university in Hobbs is joining the race for governor. Republican Nathan Krekula writes on his campaign Web site that he supports the development of new energy technologies and protecting natural resources along with support for the oil and gas industry. He also writes on his Web site about the importance of education, religion and free enterprise. Krekula is an assistant professor of biology at University of the Southwest, which according to its Web site is a “a Christ-centered educational community dedicated to developing men and women for a lifetime of servant leadership by emphasizing individual faith, responsibility, and initiative.” He was in the U.S. Army for 12 years and worked in the health-care industry for 15, according to his Web site. He has a doctorate degree in epidemiology from Walden University. Continue Reading