Guv was in T or C while Obama officials were in ABQ

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“Previous commitments” kept Gov. Bill Richardson from attending an event with U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano and Attorney General Eric Holder held today in Albuquerque, Richardson’s office said. The governor’s office sent out a news release on Wednesday notifying the media that Richardson would be in Truth or Consequences today to “speak at the change of command ceremony for the US Customs and Border Protection in T or C” and “receive a briefing from the US Customs and Border Protection on the border status.” He also announced “the name of the State Parks employee receiving the Western States Officer of the Year Award by the National Association of State Boating Law Administrators” at a ceremony in T or C, according to the release. After those events, Richardson spent this afternoon, according to the news release, filming “a number of public service announcements for New Mexico State Parks and the Department of Tourism near Elephant Butte.” Napolitano and Holder were in Albuquerque to announce the Obama administration’s new counternarcotics strategy. It’s worth noting that at least one press report has suggested that the federal investigation into allegations of pay to play in the Richardson administration has now been handed off to officials at the Justice Department in Washington. Holder, who heads that agency, would not answer questions today about the investigation. Continue Reading

Journal reporter: Bring in guv to deal with N. Korea

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This week’s non-scientific poll on this site asks whether President Barack Obama should call on Gov. Bill Richardson to help resolve the current situation with North Korea. The Albuquerque Journal’s Leslie Linthicum, who has traveled to the rogue nation with the governor, says that’s exactly what the Obama administration needs to do. In a commentary published today in the newspaper, Linthicum notes that “where we are right now with North Korea is exactly where we’ve been… and been… and been before.” Except for one difference: “Our governor isn’t the face of the crisis. In fact, he’s been conspicuously absent…” Richardson hasn’t been as visible on the national stage since the ongoing pay-to-play probe forced him to withdraw his nomination to be commerce secretary in January, but he has done at least one TV interview on the current situation with North Korea and has said he is in touch with the Obama administration about the situation. It’s no secret that Richardson is an excellent negotiator. Continue Reading

Guess who the NMFA rents its office space from?

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Sonny Otero, who gave Richardson’s re-election campaign $50K in 2006 after his family made millions selling land to the state, also makes $26K a month from NMFA lease I wrote a couple of weeks ago about a land deal the feds should add to the list of things they’re investigating as part of their probe into allegations of pay to play in the Richardson administration. It’s a deal in which the state paid the family of Santa Fe contractor Sonny Otero millions for a parcel of land it apparently didn’t need. Then Richardson got a $50,000 campaign contribution from Otero for his 2006 re-election campaign. Now The Santa Fe New Mexican is reporting on another deal Otero has with a state agency. He’s currently making $26,000 a month as landlord for the New Mexico Finance Authority, an agency that is tied up in the investigation into allegations that CDR Financial Products received a state investment contract that paid almost $1.5 million in exchange for $110,000 in contributions to two Richardson political committees and his 2006 gubernatorial re-election campaign. Continue Reading

AG to take housing authority case before grand jury

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Attorney General Gary King will take his investigation into the housing authority scandal before a grand jury Friday with the intent of securing indictments, a source with knowledge of the situation confirmed. The source provided no other details about how long the grand jury will meet or who might be targeted by the AG. King’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment, but usually refuses to comment on or even acknowledge grand jury proceedings, which are secret. It’s the second time King has scheduled a grand jury in the drawn-out investigation of the scandal in the state’s affordable housing system. After subpoenaing multiple witnesses to appear before a grand jury in February, King called it off. Continue Reading

State investment officer fighting with IRS over $577K

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Did you catch that the Internal Revenue Service has filed a tax lien of more than $577,000 against State Investment Officer Gary Bland and his wife for not paying income taxes? Bland disputes the IRS’ claim that he has unpaid taxes. We’re talking about the man who is responsible for some $11 billion in state investments for an agency — the State Investment Council — that finds itself tied up in the nationwide investment scandal that has already led to criminal charges in New York. And now we learn, thanks to the Albuquerque Journal, about Bland’s personal battle with the IRS over hundreds of thousands of dollars. In addition, according to the Journal, “a California court has entered a judgment of $42,594 against Bland in a lawsuit brought by the Bank of Stockton for unpaid debt. Continue Reading

Weh to travel the state to meet with business leaders

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Potential 2010 Republican gubernatorial candidate Allen Weh announced today that he’s traveling the state in the next two weeks to talk with business leaders and small-business owners about the economy. “I want to hear about their struggles in keeping jobs, but I also want to hear about what they want done in the future,” he said in a news release. “For the last eight years, Bill Richardson and Diane Denish have shackled New Mexico businesses with taxes that are higher than our bordering states, as well as excessive, often irrational, regulations. All of this combined drives business away from New Mexico and costs our economy jobs. It’s time to think different.” Weh, who has formed an exploratory committee as he considers running for governor, will visit 26 New Mexico counties and travel 2,500 miles, according to the news release. Continue Reading

FEC dismisses complaint of illegal coordination in CD1

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This article has been updated.The Federal Election Commission has dismissed a complaint alleging illegal coordination of advertising efforts between former 1st Congressional District Republican candidate Darren White and the state GOP in last year’s election. In a May 29 letter, the FEC notified White’s attorney, Christopher Collins, that its investigation turned up no evidence that White or his campaign illegally coordinated with the Republican Campaign Committee of New Mexico (RCCNM). The Democratic Party of New Mexico filed the complaint, which cited White’s membership on the state GOP’s executive committee as its evidence, last year. The complaint alleged that the White campaign illegally coordinated with the RCCNM in the creation of a TV ad attacking White’s opponent, Democrat Martin Heinrich, who went on to win the race. “White denies any coordination between himself and RCCNM, and maintains he had no part in creating nor did he assent to the creation and airing of (the ad),” the FEC letter states. Continue Reading

Rep. Garcia acted properly by funding road project

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After that, however, she needed to back off and let others who live on Vista Montana Road resolve details to get it paved The Las Cruces Sun-News recently reported on state Rep. Mary Helen Garcia’s appropriating of $70,000 in taxpayer money to pave a road adjacent to her home and other property she and her family own. Since the article came out last week, several have suggested to me that this is an egregious conflict of interest. The state Republican Party even compared it in a news release to former state Sen. Leonard Lee Rawson’s appropriating money in 2003 for improvements to a road outside his district that improved access to a business he owns. I’ve been looking into the situation with Garcia’s Vista Montana Road appropriation, and I’ve found that it’s more complicated than the Rawson situation, but it appears to me that, for the most part, Garcia acted appropriately. The same can’t be said for Rawson. Continue Reading

What does Weh’s victory in non-scientific poll mean?

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Allen Weh narrowly won last week’s non-scientific poll on this site asking who should be the GOP nominee for governor next year. He’s trying to capitalize on that fact in a news release sent today. While pointing out that the poll isn’t scientific, the news release from the Weh campaign says the poll “on one of the state’s most popular political blogs” shows that Weh “is the preferred GOP nominee for governor in 2010.” “I’m thankful people took the time to participate,” Weh said in the release. “The results reveal that New Mexicans believe I’m the strongest candidate to take on Diane Denish in 2010. They’re tired of the corruption, and they’re tired of being ignored. Continue Reading

Sanchez’s Facebook message reveals new reality

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I raised questions yesterday about why Senate Majority Leader Michael Sanchez was bypassing the traditional media and announcing that he’s formed an exploratory committee for a potential 2010 gubernatorial run via Facebook. The Santa Fe New Mexican’s Kate Nash does a great job today of piecing together what Sanchez’s brief Facebook note resulted in, despite the fact that there was no accompanying effort to reach the traditional media. Check it out: “Sanchez or his campaign over the weekend posted a 13-word status update on his page on the popular social networking site announcing the committee, and the word was out.“Albuquerque radio reporter Peter St. Cyr noticed the post, and put in on his blog, then on his Twitter page.“Blogger Matthew Reichbach promptly retweeted — that is, he posted a Twitter update referencing St. Cyr’s tweet — on his own Twitter page. Continue Reading

Sanchez says he’s formed guv exploratory committee

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Senate Majority Leader Michael Sanchez may be moving closer to running for governor next year. The Democrat from Belen posted a note on his Facebook page over the weekend stating that he “has formed an exploratory committee and is still contemplating a run for governor.” That’s it. No details. So it actually raises more questions than it answers. If he’s serious, why no news release? Continue Reading

Cornelius intends to run for land commissioner

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GOP activist Bob Cornelius has formed an exploratory committee “with the intent to seek the Republican Party nomination for New Mexico’s Commissioner of Public Lands,” he announced Saturday in a news release. Cornelius is a former executive director of the Bernalillo County GOP. He briefly entered the 2nd Congressional District race in 2008 but ultimately didn’t file to run in the Republican primary. A native of Tatum in Lea County, he is currently working for the Public Regulation Commission in Santa Fe, assisting investigations of those who are suspected of committing fraud against New Mexicans. Growing up in southeastern New Mexico has given Cornelius a “unique perspective on the State Land Office and its vital role in our state government,” he said in the release. Continue Reading

Voters in poll split on 2010 GOP guv nomination

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There are apparently a wide variety of opinions about who the GOP should nominate for governor next year, according to last week’s non-scientific poll on this site. Of 438 voters, 123, or 28 percent, said the GOP should nominate Allen Weh, while 120, or 27 percent, said the party should pick Heather Wilson. Some 54 voters, or 12 percent, picked Janice Arnold-Jones, while 46, or 11 percent, picked Steve Pearce. Another 45, or 10 percent, picked Greg Zanetti, while 42, or 10 percent, said the GOP should nominate “someone else,” and eight, or 2 percent, 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

State agencies deny requests for subpoenas

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Like the New Mexico Finance Authority, investment agencies refuse to release subpoenas from the U.S. attorney’s office The State Investment Council (SIC) and Educational Retirement Board (ERB) denied today my requests under the state’s public records act for copies of any subpoenas related to investments that were sent to the agencies by the U.S. attorney’s office. In denying my request in a letter sent this afternoon, ERB General Counsel Christopher G. Schatzman cited the exemption to the state’s Inspection of Public Records Act that allows for denial “as otherwise provided by law,” and wrote in his letter that the federal public records law in some instances exempts records compiled for law enforcement purposes. While New Mexico courts have not addressed whether that federal exemption applies to state law, some other states’ courts have said it does apply there, according to Schatzman’s letter. The SIC’s letter, from Public Information Officer Charles Wollmann, says essentially the same thing in denying my request. The responses from the ERB and SIC are different from those I received recently from two other state agencies that have been subpoenaed in federal investigations. Continue Reading

Ortiz y Pino enters race for lieutenant governor

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The 2010 Democratic primary race for lieutenant governor got its third official candidate today when The Santa Fe New Mexican reported that state Sen. Gerald Ortiz y Pino is jumping into the race. Ortiz y Pino, D-Albuquerque, told the newspaper that, having been a senator only since 2005, it would take him years to gain influential legislative leadership positions. “I think if I’m going to have more of an impact, I should run for lieutenant governor,” Ortiz y Pino was quoted as saying. “I think it would be great to work with (Lt. Gov.) Diane Denish,” the newspaper quoted him as saying about the already announced 2010 gubernatorial candidate. “I have no ambitions beyond that. Continue Reading