{"id":29502,"date":"2011-05-24T12:28:56","date_gmt":"2011-05-24T18:28:56","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.nmpolitics.net\/index\/?p=29502"},"modified":"2011-05-25T11:24:48","modified_gmt":"2011-05-25T17:24:48","slug":"sanchez-pledges-to-do-what%e2%80%99s-right","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nmpolitics.net\/index\/2011\/05\/sanchez-pledges-to-do-what%e2%80%99s-right\/","title":{"rendered":"Sanchez pledges to do what\u2019s right"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"<\/a>

Lt. Gov. John Sanchez<\/p><\/div>\n

Republican U.S. Senate candidate John Sanchez<\/a> says he\u2019ll do what he believes is right in Washington regardless of the effect it could have on his political future.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ll do what\u2019s right, and not worry about the fallout,\u201d Sanchez said today in an interview with NMPolitics.net.<\/p>\n

He said his focus in Washington would be on creating jobs and getting the nation\u2019s finances in order through tackling out-of-control spending and pushing for business-friendly policies.<\/p>\n

Sanchez filed his statement of candidacy last week<\/a> and formally announced his campaign today with a 60-second video<\/a> distributed online and through a small TV ad buy.<\/p>\n

The video focuses on Sanchez\u2019s background as \u201cthe youngest of eight children raised by a single mother\u201d and someone who \u201cworked his way out of poverty\u201d to build a successful business and become the state\u2019s lieutenant governor.<\/p>\n

\u201cI know what it is to create jobs, to put Americans back to work. That\u2019s the answer to our problems today,\u201d Sanchez says in the video. \u201cIt\u2019s immoral to think that we\u2019re spending money that we don\u2019t have.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sanchez joins former U.S. Rep. Heather Wilson<\/a> and two lesser-known Republicans \u2013\u00a0Greg Sowards<\/a> and\u00a0William S. English<\/a> \u2013 in the GOP Senate primary. On the Democratic side, U.S. Rep.\u00a0Martin Heinrich<\/a> and State Auditor\u00a0Hector Balderas<\/a> have entered the Senate race, as has little-known community activist\u00a0Andres Valdez<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Sanchez took an obvious shot at Wilson in his video, saying, \u201cWe don\u2019t want to return people back to Washington, D.C. who got us into this mess in the first place. It\u2019s time for a new voice. I can be one of those leaders who will stand up for principled, conservative values.\u201d<\/p>\n

But he told NMPolitics.net the statement wasn\u2019t just a shot at Wilson.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s for anybody who\u2019s been in Washington, D.C.,\u201d he said. \u201cNew Mexicans have told me as I\u2019ve traveled around the state\u2026 that they want a new voice, they want to be able to make sure that whoever is going to represent New Mexico in the U.S. Senate has the political courage to stand up and make tough decisions, that we\u2019re not obligated and committed to any one special-interest group, that we will be accountable to the voters.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThey\u2019re saying we need to send commonsense conservatives\u201d to Washington who are \u201cnot so concerned with re-election in six years,\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s one thing for somebody to do what\u2019s easy, but the most important thing is to do what is right, and I\u2019ve always lived that way.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sanchez will provide \u2018seed money\u2019 for campaign<\/h3>\n

Sanchez enters the race at a financial disadvantage \u2013 Wilson\u00a0raised more than $300,000<\/a> in the first quarter of the year and Sowards\u00a0loaned his campaign $150,000<\/a> \u2013 but Sanchez could gain ground quickly if he opts for self-financing. He loaned his lieutenant governor campaign\u00a0almost $274,000<\/a> last year.<\/p>\n

He said he will provide \u201cseed money\u201d to let potential donors know that \u201cwe\u2019ve got skin in the game,\u201d but he didn\u2019t say how much. He added that he\u2019s confident in his ability to raise money to compete in the race.<\/p>\n

Sowards was quick to take a shot at Sanchez, saying in a news release that he\u2019s \u201canother moderate Republican\u201d who \u201cwill try to deny their roots and engage in an extreme candidate makeover to seem conservative.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sowards has also called Wilson a moderate as he seeks to paint himself as the true conservative in the race.<\/p>\n

Sanchez says he stands by his record and looks forward, over the next 12 months, to talking about that and his vision with Republican primary voters, and beyond that will all New Mexicans.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re confident that at the end of the day people are going to have a very clear and easy decision on who they want to send to Washington, D.C.,\u201d Sanchez said. \u201cI think it\u2019s abundantly clear that I have a proven track record of being a good, conservative Republican.\u201d<\/p>\n

Martinez won\u2019t give Sanchez additional responsibilities<\/h3>\n

Meanwhile, Gov. Susana Martinez<\/a> announced that she won\u2019t endorse in the Senate primary \u201cat this time,\u201d but she said Sanchez won\u2019t play a big role in her administration while she works to \u201ckeep my word to the people of New Mexico by pursuing the reform agenda I promised and delivering the results they deserve.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cTo prevent this race from becoming a distraction, Lt. Gov. Sanchez will not be given responsibilities in my administration beyond the select few provided for in the state Constitution,\u201d Martinez said. \u201cI promised New Mexicans that I would work hard every day to turn our state around, and that work will remain my focus.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sanchez said he will fulfill his constitutional duties as lieutenant governor \u2013 most notably presiding over the New Mexican Senate when it\u2019s in session \u2013 while still waging \u201can effective\u201d campaign. He spoke highly of Martinez and her agenda.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf I happen to become successful at becoming the next U.S. senator from New Mexico, I look forward to working with Gov. Martinez,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Update, 4:25 p.m.<\/h3>\n

From Heather Wade, Wilson\u2019s deputy finance director:<\/p>\n

\u201cWe welcome Lt. Gov. Sanchez into the race and look forward to contrasting Heather Wilson\u2019s conservative record with his invented one. On issue after issue, John Sanchez is not who he says he is, and Republican voters will be quick to figure that out.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

From Javier Gonzales, chairman of the Democratic Party of New Mexico:<\/p>\n

\u201cJohn Sanchez\u2019s entry into this field is a weak and desperate attempt by the\u00a0Republican Party\u00a0to placate the tea party\u2019s extreme right wing agenda. The biggest question now is which one will be the first to support\u00a0Paul Ryan\u00a0and Speaker\u00a0John Boehner\u2019s plan to end Medicare for New Mexico\u2019s senior citizens and balance the budget on the backs of working class New Mexicans.\u00a0\u2026 The race to the right between Heather Wilson and John Sanchez\u00a0has begun\u00a0and New Mexicans will have none of it.\u00a0 When the time comes,\u00a0New Mexico\u00a0will overwhelmingly reject a\u00a0tea party\u00a0senator.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

And from Kent Cravens, who ran unsuccessfully against Sanchez in the GOP lieutenant governor primary last year:<\/p>\n

\u201cI have had the privilege of speaking with folks from all over the state regarding the duties and obligations of the office of lieutenant governor, both statutory and implied.\u00a0The most important of these duties is for the lieutenant governor to promote healthy dialogue between the Governor\u2019s Office (the executive branch) and the Legislature, all for the benefit of our constituents.\u00a0As a senator, I am disappointed that this critical communication link has been severed by our lieutenant governor seeking another office after so short a time in his current office.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Update, 5:15 p.m.<\/h3>\n

State Sen. Clint Harden, D-Clovis, had this to say:<\/p>\n

\u201cIn the previous eight years, the executive branch was always running for something else.\u00a0New Mexico\u00a0needs leaders who stay home and take care of business for a change.\u00a0The lieutenant governor\u2019s role is important, especially as we do redistricting,\u00a0and we have some big problems in the state that need real focus.\u00a0I think if\u00a0Lt. Gov. John\u00a0Sanchez wants to run for the U.S. Senate, he should resign.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

UPDATED: Republican U.S. Senate candidate John Sanchez says he\u2019ll do what he believes is right in Washington regardless of the effect it could have on his political future.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[156,118,107,116],"class_list":["post-29502","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news-and-analysis","tag-2012-election","tag-economy","tag-roundhouse","tag-washington"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/nmpolitics.net\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29502","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/nmpolitics.net\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/nmpolitics.net\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nmpolitics.net\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nmpolitics.net\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=29502"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/nmpolitics.net\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29502\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/nmpolitics.net\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=29502"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nmpolitics.net\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=29502"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nmpolitics.net\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=29502"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}