More Veep Chatter for Susana

The latest national look at Gov. Susana Martinez is in Newsweek, via The Daily Beast.


Most of it is the biographical stuff most New Mexicans already know, plus the usual rundown of what makes her attractive as a vice presidential candidate. (She's a woman. She's Hispanic. And Republicans aren't polling very well in those categories.)

But here's some interesting talk about immigration reform, and actual mocking of one of likely GOP presidential nominee Mitt Romney's suggestions in that area:

... what comes next is surprising: a battle plan that contradicts nearly everything the GOP has been doing and saying since 2007, Romney’s “self-deportation” strategy included. “‘Self-deport?’ What the heck does that mean?” Martinez snaps. “I have no doubt Hispanics have been alienated during this campaign. But now there’s an opportunity for Gov. Romney to have a sincere conversation about what we can do and why.”


Naturally, Martinez has some suggestions. First, Republicans should remind Latinos that Obama pledged to pass comprehensive immigration reform by the end of his initial year in office, but “didn’t even have the courage to try.” Next, the GOP should outflank the president--on the left--by proposing its own comprehensive plan. “I absolutely advocate for comprehensive immigration reform,” Martinez says, , sipping a caramel macchiato. “Republicans want to be tough and say, ‘Illegals, you’re gone.’ But the answer is a lot more complex than that.” Martinez envisions an approach “with multiple levels”: increased border security; deportation for criminals; a guest-worker program for people who want “to go freely back and forth across the border to work”; a DREAM Act-style pathway to citizenship, through the military or college, for children brought here illegally by their parents; and a visa (coupled with a “penalty” or a “tagback”) that allows rest of the illegal population to remain in the U.S. while they follow standard naturalization procedures.


Martinez’s point is not that Republicans should peddle so-called “amnesty.” In New Mexico, she’s taken a lot of heat from Latinos for repeatedly pushing to repeal a state law that allows illegal immigrants to obtain driver’s licenses; she also opposes a standalone DREAM Act, arguing that politicians can’t “fix [immigration] by saying, ‘Here’s the DREAM Act and we’re done. It has to be part of a larger plan.” She simply believes that a more pragmatic approach will help Republicans in the long run ...

Read the whole article HERE

Kokesh Says Assassinating Romney Has Crossed His Mind -- But It's a Bad Idea

In his video program called Adam vs. The Man this week former New Mexico Congressional candidate Adam Kokesh read a letter from an unnamed  young man from Mississippi who brings up the idea of assassinating Republican front-runner Mitt Romney to help Ron Paul get the presidential nomination and to stop what he says is an inevitable war with Iran.

Kokesh in the video stresses that he's not endorsing the idea , but says, "I cannot deny that the thought hasn't crossed my mind as well as so many other libertarians and Ron Paul supporters of late."

He then proceeds into a lengthy monologue in which he justifies his conclusion that violence against Romney wouldn't be a good thing.

He ends the video saying, "Whatever you do, please, please, please, don't forward this video to the Secret Service."

Kokesh, an Iraq War veteran,  founded a group called Veterans for Ron Paul. Paul endorsed Kokesh when he ran for the Republican nomination for the Third Congressional District in 2010 (Kokesh lost to Tom Mullins of Farmington)

But Jesse Benton, a spokesman for a Paul political organization told the website Buzzfeed that the Texas Congressman has nothing to do with Kokesh these days.

"Mr. Kokesh is a deeply troubled individual with whom we cut off contact a long time ago," said Benton when told of Kokesh's video. "We have a very cordial and respectful relationship with Gov. Romney and his campaign and reject anyone who would think or talk this way. I hope the Secret Service investigates and takes all appropriate action they find necessary."

The Secret Service told Buzzfeed they are aware of the video and are conducting "the appropriate follow up."

More Signs NM is No Longer Swingin'?

CNN is reporting that the Obama campaign has purchased TV time for several Spanish language ads in "three battleground states with lots of Spanish speaking voters that both Democrats and Republicans are likely to heavily court ahead of November's presidential election."

 Those states: Colorado, Nevada and Florida.

Not New Mexico.

But will Republicans take advantage of the Democrats ignoring the state? Can't say yet.

In March the Karl Rove-associated super PAC Crossroads GPS spent $650,000 in three media markets -- Columbus, Ohio, Las Vegas, Nevada and Albuquerque. All were cities where Obama was pitching his energy plan.

But last month the PAC announced it spent $1.2 million on "issues" ads targeting "reckless Senate spending, Obamacare, and tax increases" in "five key states."

Those are Nevada, Virginia, Missouri, Montana and North Dakota.

Wait a minute ... Montana and North Dakota are more "key" than New Mexico? Granted, both states have hotly contested Senate races.

But I thought New Mexico did too.

Roundhouse Roundup: Peeps and Chirps

A version of this was published in The Santa Fe New Mexican 
May 6, 2012

It always starts with pleasant little peeps and chirps. But within a few short months — maybe not even that long — it’ll gradually turn into monstrous shrieks and howls.

I’m talking, of course, about campaign advertising on television. And in recent days, we’ve begun hearing the peeps and chirps of the three major U.S. Senate candidates, Democrats Hector Balderas and Martin Heinrich and Republican Heather Wilson.

The ads for the three candidates are remarkably similar. Each deals mainly with the candidate’s biography. Balderas grew up poor in Wagon Mound. (“Most senators don’t come from places like this,” a woman’s voice informs us at the start of the ad.) Heinrich bused tables, washed dishes and sacked groceries. Wilson joined the Air Force, like her father and grandfather before her.

And each of the three learned valuable lessons from humble origins that would guide the candidate in the Senate.

Balderas’ background — becoming the first person from Wagon Mound to graduate from law school — taught him the importance of education.

Bagging those groceries and watching his parents work hard taught Heinrich the “dignity of work” and made “fighting for people’s jobs” personal.

Wilson says that the things she learned in the military — “leadership, responsibility and integrity” to be exact, are qualities that Washington needs today.

Some pundits noticed that Wilson, who spent a decade in the U.S. House of Representatives, never mentions her congressional service in her initial ad.

“If you want an idea of how unpopular Congress is right now, check out the first ad from ... Wilson,” wrote Rachel Weiner in The Washington Post blog The Fix. “No surprise, given that the most recent polling puts Congress’ approval rating around 13 percent.”

In fairness, Heinrich’s ad doesn’t directly mention the fact he’s been a House member for nearly four years. He says he’s proud of extending unemployment benefits, a reference to votes in Congress he’s made.

Last week, Heinrich assured me he’s not trying to hide the fact that he’s a member of Congress and said that future campaign ads will focus on specific issues he’s pushed in Congress. (I suspect the same is true of Wilson.)

Balderas also didn’t talk about his time in Congress — because he’s never been a congressman. His ad did, however, mention his current job as state auditor. (“As auditor, Balderas stopped corrupt officials who stole from schools.”)

So it’s all positive now — and both Balderas and Heinrich have told me that they will not go negative on each other in the primary. But after that, it’ll get a lot louder and a lot meaner.

And by the time it’s over, I wonder if anyone will remember all this wistful talk of busing tables, the streets of Wagon Mound and military honor.

(I'd already blogged about this first round of Senate ads. For Heinrich and Wilson CLICK HERE. For Balderas CLICK HERE)

Richardson advises Romney: It’s not in an official capacity, but in an interview in National Journal, former Gov. Bill Richardson offered some free advice to probable Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney on choosing a running mate. His suggestion is go with Sen. Rob Portman, a choice that’s popular with Washington insiders, though he’s not well known outside of political junkydom and his home state of Ohio.

Richardson said picking Portman, who served for a year as U.S. trade representative under President George W. Bush, “could reduce Romney’s foreign-policy vulnerability.”

The former governor, who was considered as a possible running mate by President Barack Obama in 2008, said Romney should avoid a couple of other frequently mentioned possible veeps. “If he picks [Marco] Rubio or he picks [Chris] Christie, they’re totally without foreign-policy experience,” he said. “In a close race, that could make a difference.”

UPDATE 10:08 am I just got this column posted and I learn Heinrich has a new ad up on Facebook. In it, he admits that he's a member of Congress, but says he doesn't hang out with those guys and clears out of DC every chance he gets.

State GOP Files Fed Complaint Against Independent Source PAC

The state Republican Party has formally complained to the Federal Election Commission about Independent Source PAC, an Albuquerque-based political organization that has produced ads and reports critical of Gov. Susana Martinez.

According to a news release emailed this afternoon:

* ISPAC is committing fraud by stating to the FEC that it is making independent expenditures to promote President Obama, when the clear purpose of its expenditures and commercials is to smear Republican elected officials and candidates at the state and local level, and on issues that have nothing to do with the Presidential campaign, such as the law to repeal driver's licenses for illegal immigrants.

* ISPAC committed the fraud in order to avoid New Mexico state laws, which places limits on PACs engaged in these activities at the state level.

* ISPAC has illegally failed to file numerous required disclosure reports with the Federal Elections Commission.

* ISPAC's commercials break federal law by failing to make proper disclosures to the public.

 The complaint, as well as the press release can be found HERE,  

Independent Source PAC is headed by Michael Corwin, a private investigator who has worked for former Gov. Bill Richardson and other Democrats. According to filings with the FEC, it is funded entirely by the Communications Workers of America.

I've asked Corwin for comment and will post that when I receive it.

UPDATE: 5:40 pm I still haven't heard from Corwin, but I should add that in addition to being registered as a federal PAC, the group also is registered with the state. Last month the PAC reported to the Secretary of State that it collected just over $11,000 between October and March from several contributors. The PAC reported spending $3,275 on radio advertising in October.

According to the most recent FEC report, the PAC spent nearly $129,000 on cable TV advertising. The report says it was for President Obama, which the state GOP says is false.

Another UPDATE 9:15 pm.  Here's what Corwin told me earlier tonight:

He said that the ads that ran this year criticizing Martinez were for the purpose of helping Obama. The governor, he said, has been touted as a potential GOP vice presidential candidate and also was being groomed to be a key Republican spokeswoman to try to lure Hispanic votes away from Obama.

Corwin contended that his PAC’s ads — especially one claiming the administration improperly awarded a state fair horse racing contract to political supporters — ensured Martinez would not play a major role in the presidential campaign.

He also argued that federal courts have ruled that independent groups like his aren’t bound by such caps.

Johnson's Looking Good to Win Libertarian Nomination

I had a telephone chat yesterday with former New Mexico Gov. Gary Johnson, who most believe is about to come out on top this weekend at the Libertarian Party convention in Las Vegas, Nev.

My story is HERE.

As I say in the story, even though getting the nomination might not be that difficult, the rest of Johnson's road to November will be rocky. Johnson knows that if he has any chance of seriously competing with President Obama and Mitt Romney, he'll have to get a spot in the presidential debates, which begin Oct. 3 in Denver.

And he also has to overcome the institutional obstacles any third party faces, which historically have caused even the most robust third party efforts to dwindle before election day.

One interesting thing Johnson told me about his running mate, retired Judge Jim Gray of Orange County, Calif., is that even though Gray has been a long time critic of the war on drugs, when he first met Johnson around the turn of the century, he chided Johnson for "going too far" on the issue.

"He was for harm reduction and treatment instead of incarceration, which are all good things," Johnson said. "But at that point he was not for legalizing marijuana."

Gray has since come around to that viewpoint, Johnson said.

The Best Letter Written by a State Senator I've Read Lately

When I first began reading this letter from state Sen. Lisa Curtis, D-Albuquerque, concerning the embattled Bernalillo County Commissioner Michael Wiener, my first thought was that Curtis was leaving the legal profession and becoming a noir novelist.


The fat guy smoking Pall Malls, he says he almost married one of those girls. Honest. He met her in a bar one of the last times he was in the Philippines and fell in love, almost bought her a ring and took her home.

I also thought, "Weiner's not that fat ..."

The letter goes on like that for four paragraphs, before a reader realizes that Curtis is quoting from an article about sex clubs in the Philippines by writer Sean Flynn, published in 2007 in GQ.

If you haven't been following the Wiener controversy, the commissioner caused a stir when this and other photos of him in a red light district in the Philippines emerged.

Curtis joins a long list of officials including Gov. Susana Martinez and Albuquerque Mayor Richard Berry in calling for Wiener to go. The commissioner has refused, leaving it up to voters this year.

Curtis Letter