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Few politicos comment on House rejection of bailout

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The proposed $700 billion bailout defeated in the U.S. House of Representatives on Monday appears to be a hot potato for many politicos who didn’t have to vote on it. U.S. Reps. Steve Pearce, Tom Udall and Heather Wilson all commented on the bill after Pearce and Udall voted against it and Wilson voted for it. Click here to read their comments. Beyond that, few of the top politicos and candidates for office in New Mexico chose to comment on Monday’s vote. Continue Reading

Another day, another new political TV ad

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Another independent group is running another ad attacking another political candidate in New Mexico. This time, Patriot Majority West is out with the new ad attacking Republican 1st Congressional District candidate Darren White over his stance on the Iraq war. Here’s the ad: This is the second ad the group has aired in New Mexico during this election cycle. In August, it ran a TV ad attacking Republican U.S. Senate candidate Steve Pearce. New Mexico’s airwaves are currently flooded with political advertising from candidates and independent groups focused on the state’s electoral votes in the presidential race and its one open Senate seat and three open House seats. Continue Reading

Romney visiting New Mexico today to help Pearce

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Former Massachusetts Gov. and presidential candidate Mitt Romney will be in Albuquerque today for a fundraiser for GOP U.S. Senate candidate Steve Pearce, but before that he’s appearing at a news conference with Pearce in Santa Fe. “Romney has been a strong supporter of the Pearce campaign, even appearing at a breakfast fundraiser for him during the GOP convention while Steve attended his father’s funeral last month,” a news release from the Pearce campaign states. “The former Massachusetts governor and businessman is known for turning deficits into surpluses and respects Steve Pearce for his dedication to the same kind of fiscal responsibility.” Romney praised Pearce in the news release. “America faces a new generation of challenges. At this critical time in our nation’s history, Steve Pearce is determined to fight for conservative policies that will strengthen America at home and around the world,” Romney said. Continue Reading

Dems need to condemn senator’s remarks about race

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By Dan Foley Fernando C. de Baca has resigned his post as chairman of the Republican Party of Bernalillo County. I want to state from the outset that his comments that prompted his departure were absolutely wrong, divisive and in fact historically incorrect. I want to get that point out of the way early in this article because I know those of you who are not particularly my fans will be presuming that I did not disagree with his comments. However, I did and I still do. I also want to say that Fernando C. de Baca has proven by stepping down that he has more integrity, courage and loyalty than any of the Democrats who couldn’t wait to get their pictures and comments in the media. Continue Reading

Udall, Pearce opposed bailout bill; Wilson supported it

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This article has been updated. They haven’t agreed on much during this campaign, but New Mexico’s two U.S. Senate candidates agreed today that the proposed $700 billion bailout bill was a bad idea. Their reasons might differ, but U.S. Reps. Steve Pearce, R-N.M. and Tom Udall, D-N.M., both voted against the bill. They were among 133 Republicans and 95 Democrats who joined forces to defeat the proposal. Continue Reading

House defeats $700 billion bailout proposal

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The U.S. House has just defeated the $700 billion bailout plan a bipartisan group of Washington politicians had hoped would stabilize an American economy in crisis. The move sent the financial markets tumbling. On a vote of 228-205, the House rejected the compromise plan that had been announced Sunday. Leaders from both parties spoke in favor of the bill before the vote, and after the tally was complete, they held the vote open for a few minutes to try to sway votes, but they were unable to secure the support needed to pass the bailout proposal. The Dow Jones industrials fell 705 points just before the vote on fears that the proposal might fail. Continue Reading

Note to KOAT and ABQJournal: Let Miller debate

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KOAT-TV and the Albuquerque Journal plan to hold a debate between the 3rd Congressional District candidates on Oct. 19, but they don’t plan to let one of the three candidates participate. Media organizations should know better. By excluding independent Carol Miller, they’re helping prop up the corrupt and morally bankrupt two-party system that dragged us into the current economic crisis and other problems. In justifying the decision to only allow Democrat Ben Ray Luján and Republican Dan East participate in the debate, KOAT New Director Sue Stephens told The Santa Fe New Mexican that she invited the two candidates “in the public’s eye,” saying Luján and East “lived through the primary. They have had exposure.” Of course they’ve had more exposure than Miller. Continue Reading

Trip reveals wide range of gas prices in NM

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I drove the length of the state this weekend, from Las Cruces all the way to Farmington and Kirtland, and I was shocked to see the wide range of gas prices. Gas as I left Las Cruces on Friday was selling for $3.49 per gallon at many stations, and that remains the price today. In Bernalillo on Friday, one station was selling gas for $3.20 per gallon, but most were selling it for $3.35 per gallon. That’s not abnormal. Bernalillo is usually a bit cheaper than Las Cruces. Continue Reading

Kansas guv to hold rally for Obama today in Mesilla

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Kansas Gov. Kathleen Sebelius will hold a “change we need” rally for Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama this afternoon on the Mesilla Plaza. At the rally, Sebelius will “discuss Barack’s plans to strengthen the economy and lift up New Mexico families,” an e-mail from the Obama campaign states. The rally begins at 4 p.m. Click here to RSVP. Sebellius will be joined after the rally at a fundraiser for Obama in Las Cruces by N.M. Gov. Bill Richardson and Arizona Gov. Janet Napolitano. The event begins at 5:30 p.m. for those who contribute at least $2,500 and at 6:30 p.m. for those who contribute $500 or more. Continue Reading

Most voters in poll pick Obama to handle crisis

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The majority of those who voted in last week’s non-scientific poll on this site said Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama is most capable of handling the nation’s economic crisis. Of 358 voters, 218, or 61 percent, picked Obama in the poll, while 114, or 32 percent, picked Republican John McCain. Independent Ralph Nader and Libertarian Bob Barr each received eight votes, or 2 percent; Constitutional Party candidate Chuck Baldwin received seven votes, or 2 percent; and Green Cynthia McKinney received three votes, or 1 percent. Don’t forget to vote in this week’s poll, located at the top of the right column on this page. Continue Reading

Why Obama needs Doña Ana County’s south valley

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By Jose Z. Garcia Last week Barack Obama was in Española, hoping to energize Hispanic voters there. A few numbers will make clear why. Rio Arriba County, where Española is located, has an estimated population of about 41,000, out of which nearly 30,000 (72.8 percent) are Hispanic. In 2004, Kerry’s margin of victory in Rio Arriba was 69 percent, 4,604 votes out of a total of 14,902 votes cast. In a tight race for New Mexico, that margin of victory could come in handy. Continue Reading

Heinrich internal poll has him leading

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The campaign of 1st Congressional District Democratic candidate Martin Heinrich is touting an internal poll that has him leading Republican opponent Darren White by 6 percentage points. Heinrich leads 48 percent to 42 percent in the Greenberg Quinlan Rosner Research poll that was conducted for the Heinrich campaign. The survey of 450 likely voters was conducted Monday and Tuesday and has a margin of error of 4.6 percentage points. After undecided voters are asked which candidate they are leaning toward, Heinrich’s lead drops to 5 points in the poll, 50 percent to 45 percent. The question that was asked: “Thinking about the election for U.S. Congress in November, if the election for U.S. Congress were held today and the candidates were Democrat Martin Heinrich and Republican Darren White — for whom would you vote, Democrat Martin Heinrich or Republican Darren White?” The most recent independent poll, a SurveyUSA poll conducted for the Washington publication Roll Call a month ago, had Heinrich leading by 5 points, 51 percent to 46 percent. Continue Reading

Pearce ad cites financial crisis in attacking Udall

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Republican U.S. Senate candidate Steve Pearce is out with a new TV ad that aims to use the current financial crisis to convince voters that Democratic opponent Tom Udall is “too liberal” and “too risky.” Here’s the 30-second ad: “Financial markets in crisis. Millions of jobs at risk. The greatest economic challenge of our lifetime,” the ad’s narrator states. “Tom Udall’s plan: higher taxes on families. Tom Udall voted to raise taxes 64 times, and his tax-increase plan would send our economy into a tailspin, destroy jobs, wipe out retirement savings, shatter dreams.” I’ve sought comment from the Udall campaign. Continue Reading

Pearce, Udall to take questions on YouTube

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New Mexico’s U.S. Senate candidates, Republican Steve Pearce and Democrat Tom Udall, have agreed to answer questions from YouTube users. You have until Monday to submit a question. Here’s YouTube’s invitation to participate: The top five questions submitted in response will be asked of both candidates, and their video answers will be posted on Oct. 7 at youtube.com/youchoose08. You don’t have to live in New Mexico to submit a question for consideration. Continue Reading

Pearce’s opposition helps keep bailout on hold

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On Thursday afternoon, the president and many congressional leaders sounded confident that they had a deal in place on a proposed bailout to stabilize the economy. But by Thursday evening, it was clear that no deal was in place, largely because a group of conservative Republicans are rejecting the plan. U.S. Rep. and Senate candidate Steve Pearce, R-N.M., is among the proposal’s detractors. Their unwillingness to support the bailout is keeping Washington and Wall Street on edge. Pearce says the bailout proposal isn’t a real solution to the financial crisis. Continue Reading