{"id":443,"date":"2006-08-08T07:51:00","date_gmt":"2006-08-08T13:51:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.nmpolitics.net\/index\/2006\/08\/democratic-party-chair-others-need-to-stop-politicizing-county-elections-task-forces-work\/"},"modified":"2006-08-08T07:51:00","modified_gmt":"2006-08-08T13:51:00","slug":"democratic-party-chair-others-need-to-stop-politicizing-county-elections-task-forces-work","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nmpolitics.net\/index\/2006\/08\/democratic-party-chair-others-need-to-stop-politicizing-county-elections-task-forces-work\/","title":{"rendered":"Democratic Party chair, others need to stop politicizing county elections task force’s work"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>Some Democrats and Republicans in Do\u00f1a<\/st1:placename> Ana<\/st1:placename> County<\/st1:placename><\/st1:place> are trying to politicize the elections task force, but Democratic Party Chair Melinda Whitley, a member of the task force, takes the cake thus far. <\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

The county commission created the task force to examine past problems with our elections, with the goal of recommending changes that would help improve the system.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

Before the first public meeting of the task force in July, the county<\/st1:placetype> Republican Party<\/st1:placename><\/st1:place> sent an e-mail to its members stating that \u201cWe need those who have experienced irregularities and or fraud. \u2026 We need the room filled with those interested in cleaning up Do\u00f1a<\/st1:placename> Ana<\/st1:placename> County<\/st1:placename><\/st1:place>\u2019s election process mess.\u201d It urged that people who have experienced problems prepare brief statements to give to the task force.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

That\u2019s reasonable enough. That\u2019s what the task force sought.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>The e-mail ended with this note: \u201cThe best way for evil, malfeasance, corruption, incompetence to prosper is for good men and women to do nothing.\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

That was probably unnecessary, especially since Sid Goddard, Republican Party chair, is also a member of the task force. Because of that, some will say he was the first to politicize the task force.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

In response to Goddard\u2019s e-mail, the first meeting of the task force in July was flooded by Republicans with harsh words about the elections bureau and Torres. One member of the county<\/st1:placetype> Republican Party<\/st1:placename><\/st1:place>\u2019s central committee directed an inappropriate tirade at the clerk.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

I don\u2019t disagree with the criticism of Torres. I\u2019ve written that she is incompetent and may need to resign. (You can read that posting by clicking here<\/a>.) But that\u2019s beyond the scope of the task force\u2019s work or authority. Republicans and Democrats alike need to focus on how to improve the policies and procedures in the elections bureau.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

After many Republicans and only one Democrat spoke at the first meeting, Whitley sent an e-mail to Democrats urging them to attend the next meeting, held Saturday.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

\u201cWe need to have a big Democratic presence,\u201d Whitley wrote. \u201c\u2026 The Republicans are working very hard to totally discredit our clerk through attacking the bureau of elections. We need support from you, our loyal Democrats, to point out the good things the bureau of elections has done and to speak favorably about Rita Torres \u2013 otherwise the county commissioners are going to hear only comments intended to discredit the clerk\u2019s office.\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

Then it gets really bad.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

\u201cThe Republicans want control of the county clerk\u2019s office very, very badly. They can\u2019t win it through an honest election, so they are trying to get hold of it by these means. We cannot allow this to happen,\u201d Whitley wrote. \u201cAt this moment, Republicans control the district attorney\u2019s office and the sheriff\u2019s department, which means that they can reveal or suppress, investigate or not investigate, any type of incident they choose \u2013 which obviously is why we read these constant attacks against Democratic elected officials in our Republican-controlled newspapers. Just imagine what would happen if they also controlled the county clerk\u2019s office\u2026 So please, my friends \u2013 pack the public meeting halls. Let everyone know that we Democrats stand together, we are still in control, and we intend to stay that way.\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

There\u2019s lots to dissect here, but let\u2019s start with what\u2019s true in Whitley\u2019s e-mail. Of course the Republicans want to control the county clerk\u2019s office. Of course some Republicans want to politicize this task force to discredit Torres.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

What\u2019s wrong is Whitley\u2019s blanket statement that the district attorney, sheriff and local newspapers are all Republican hacks, and that is why elected Democrats are in the news for misconduct.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

First off, I was the author, when I was a reporter at the Las Cruces Sun-News, of many of the articles about which Whitley is referring. I\u2019m not a Republican hack. Goddard can tell Whitley all about the times I\u2019ve infuriated him with articles I\u2019ve written.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

Second, Sheriff Todd Garrison is a moderate Republican who was appointed by a commission with a Democratic majority. Third, the Republican Party is none too happy with District Attorney Susana Martinez these days, since she announced that she\u2019s supporting Democrat incumbent Gary Perez in the assessor race this year because she believes the Republican candidate is incompetent.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

If she were really in on some Republican conspiracy to take over the clerk\u2019s office, as Whitley seems to infer, why hasn\u2019t Martinez prosecuted Torres, whose office has almost certainly committed elections violations since she\u2019s been in office?<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

The facts don\u2019t back up Whitley\u2019s claims.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

Several Democratic elected officials have been in trouble in recent years because they misbehaved. Is Whitley really going blame Republicans for the departure of former Magistrate Judge Reuben Galvan, who admitted to conduct that violated judicial ethics? Is she really going to blame Republicans for the fact that former Deputy Treasurer Rocio Gamboa was arrested for having a multitude of unpaid parking tickets, a publicized event that cost her the treasurer election?<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

What Whitley fails to mention is that Commissioners Bill McCamley and Dolores Salda\u00f1a-Caviness, two of three Democrats on the commission, are both fed up, like Republicans, with the problems that have plagued county elections for years. Their anger was apparent on their faces and in their voices when they discussed the creation of this task force during two commission meetings in June. Both made strong statements about what they called unacceptable problems in the elections bureau.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

There are problems. It\u2019s reality. Defending Torres isn\u2019t going to help fix them.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

Whitley isn\u2019t the only one attempting to politicize the task force, and she might believe she was only responding to the Republican turnout at the first meeting. But the Republicans who have attempted to politicize the issue aren\u2019t members of the task force. By agreeing to serve on the committee, Whitley was agreeing to put politics aside, examine problems, and come up with suggestions for real solutions.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

Commissioners worked hard to create a task force that would not be political. All who are politicizing the task force need to stop.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

Here is the text of Whitley\u2019s e-mail:<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

From: The Democratic Party of Do\u00f1a Ana County, democrats@zianet.com<\/p>\n

Organization: the Democratic Party of Do\u00f1a<\/st1:placename> Ana<\/st1:placename> County<\/st1:placename><\/st1:place><\/p>\n

Date: Fri, 4 Aug 2006 14:31:26 -0600<\/p>\n

Subject: URGETN! Everyone Please ATTEND these meetings if you can!<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

Dear Fellow Democrats:<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

There will be a public meeting conducted by the panel selected by the Do\u00f1a Ana County Commission to investigate election procedures on Saturday, August 5, at 10 a.m. in the Gadsden Independent School District Board Room. (Take Artcraft exit from I-10, turn west. At the third light turn south onto McNutt Rd. GAC is about 3\/4 of a mile from the first light on McNutt, intersection of Country Club and entrance to Santa Teresa. GAC is on the left-hand side, across from Peak<\/st1:placetype> Behavioral<\/st1:placename> Hospital<\/st1:placetype><\/st1:place>). If you have any comments regarding poll worker training\/service, problems encountered or good experiences at polling places, etc., please come and tell us about them. At the first public meeting here in Las Cruces<\/st1:place><\/st1:city>, we heard from only one Democrat. We need more Democratic input, and if you have good things to say about our Democratic County Clerk, the election process, and the Clerk’s Office, we really need to hear those things. Speakers will be asked to sign a sheet when they arrive and will be heard in the order in which they sign up, so please come early so that you will be sure to be heard. Even if you don’t wish to speak, PLEASE ATTEND – WE NEED TO HAVE A BIG DEMOCRATIC PRESENCE.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

The next public meeting after that will be at the Hatch<\/st1:placename> Community Center<\/st1:placetype><\/st1:place> on Saturday, 8\/12, at 10 a.m. I am asking the same things of our good Democrats in the northern part of the County. <\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

The Republicans are working very hard to totally discredit our Clerk through attacking the Bureau of Elections. We need support from you, our loyal Democrats, to point out the good things the Bureau of Elections has done and to speak favorably about Rita <\/p>\n

Torres-otherwise the County<\/st1:placetype> Commissioners<\/st1:placename><\/st1:place> are going to hear only comments intended to discredit the Clerk’s Office. <\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

The Republicans want control of the County<\/st1:placetype> Clerk<\/st1:placename><\/st1:place>‘s Office very, very badly. They can’t win it through an honest election, so they are trying to get hold of it by these means. WE CANNOT ALLOW THIS TO HAPPEN. At this moment the Republicans control the District Attorney’s Office and the Sheriff’s Department, which means that they can reveal or suppress, investigate or not investigate, any type of incident they choose – which obviously is why we read these constant attacks against Democratic elected officials in our Republican-controlled newspapers. Just imagine what would happen if they also controlled the County<\/st1:placetype> Clerk<\/st1:placename>‘s Office-take a look at what happened during the last two Presidential elections in Florida<\/st1:state> and Ohio<\/st1:place><\/st1:state>, to mention just two troubled states, to say nothing of the disgraceful and disastrous policies of the current national Republican administration. <\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

So please, my friends-pack the public meeting halls. Let everyone know that WE DEMOCRATS STAND TOGETHER, WE ARE STILL IN CONTROL, AND WE INTEND TO STAY THAT WAY. The last public meeting of the election panel will be on Tuesday, 8\/22, at 6 p.m. in the County Commission Chambers in Las Cruces<\/st1:place><\/st1:city>. Please be there; and when the report of the panel is presented to the County Commission (you will be advised of the date and time), PLEASE BE THERE. <\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

I thank you with all my heart for your faithfulness and support. Continue to hold your head high and be proud to be a Democrat. You can always contact me by leaving a message at Headquarters (524-4444) or calling me at home (phone number redacted). <\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

Your Do\u00f1a<\/st1:placename> Ana<\/st1:placename> County<\/st1:placename><\/st1:place> Chair,<\/p>\n

Melinda Whitley<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

Here is the text of the Republican Party\u2019s e-mail:<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

From: darpoffice@darp.org<\/p>\n

Sent: Tuesday, July 18, 2006 12:19 PM<\/p>\n

Subject: Public Meeting – Voter irregularities\/fraud <\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

The task force assigned to investigate 2006 Primary Election problems in Dona<\/st1:placename> Ana<\/st1:placename> County<\/st1:placename><\/st1:place> is holding a public meeting\/hearing<\/p>\n

Saturday, July 22, 2006<\/p>\n

New County<\/st1:placetype> Building<\/st1:placetype><\/st1:place><\/p>\n

845 N. Motel Blvd<\/st1:address><\/st1:street><\/p>\n

10:00 AM <\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

Please come<\/p>\n

We need those who have experienced irregularities and or fraud<\/p>\n

We need the room filled with those interested in cleaning up Dona<\/st1:placename> Ana<\/st1:placename> County<\/st1:placename><\/st1:place>‘s Election process mess. <\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

If you have an issue, please prepare a statement that can be read briefly or a statement you can hand into the task force <\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

Your input and support is important <\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

The best way for evil, malfeasance, corruption, incompetence to prosper is for good men and women to do nothing.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Some Democrats and Republicans in Do\u00f1a Ana County are trying to politicize the elections task force, but Democratic Party Chair Melinda Whitley, a member of the task force, takes the cake thus far. The county commission created the task force to examine past problems with our elections, with the goal of recommending changes that would […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-443","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/nmpolitics.net\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/443","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=443"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/nmpolitics.net\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/443\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/nmpolitics.net\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=443"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nmpolitics.net\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=443"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nmpolitics.net\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=443"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}