Lincoln County Democratic Party
RELEASE: Democrats Focused On Protecting Right To Vote; GOP Skips Meetings and Hits the Golf Course
Santa Fe, NM - Democrats in the state House and Senate are working morning, noon, nights and weekends to protect every New Mexican's right to vote. But Republican legislators have been Absent Without Leave, skipping committee hearings and going golfing in the middle of the afternoon. Every ten years, every state legislature in the United States is obligated to redraw boundaries based on where population has grown. In New Mexico, Democrats are focused on the job at hand: collaborating by region, studying and debating maps, and working tirelessly to defend voting rights. Meanwhile on the Republican side: · State Rep. Nate Gentry (R-Albuquerque), is complaining that Democrats aren’t working, while he skips critical meetings of the House Voters & Elections Committee charged with overseeing redistricting and he and his colleagues introduce and vote for resolutions like HR 1, calling on the Legislature to do more work. · Paul Bandy (R-Aztec), Zachary Cook (R-Ruidoso), Anna Crook (R-Curry), Vernon Asbill (R-Carlsbad) and the top House Republican, Tom Taylor (R-Farmington) all took time off mid-day last week to hit the links for a round of golf instead of sticking around and participating in the debate. Missing committee meetings and golfing on the taxpayer’s dime is bad enough. But to do so after introducing and voting for a resolution (HR 1) complaining that not enough work is being done at the session is to perfect the art of hypocrisy. Below is a statement from DPNM Executive Director Scott Forrester: "It’s incredibly hypocritical of the Republican legislators to say one thing on camera to score political points, but then turn around and act in a totally different way. The people of New Mexico are paying almost $200 a day directly to each one of these legislators, and they deserve to get their money’s worth. They need to take their own advice and get to work. We hope to see them in their chairs come committee time. " #####
September 19, 2011 505-934-5681
RELEASE: Democrats Focused On Protecting Right To Vote;
GOP Skips Meetings and Hits the Golf Course
Click here to watch Speaker Lujan speak about Democrats diligently working while the GOP plays golf
SPECIAL SESSION UPDATE: Democrats Re-Introduce Stack of Job Creation Bills that Susana and GOP Killed Last Session
SPECIAL SESSION UPDATE: Democrats Re-Introduce Stack of Job Creation Bills that Susana and GOP Killed Last Session
GOP Whines About Workload and Hits the Links
Last session, Democrats passed bill after bill to create jobs and turn the economy around, only to see them vetoed and filibustered by a politically-minded Governor and Republican legislators upset that they wouldn’t be able to take enough credit for any economic turnaround.
Now, two weeks into the Special Session, it is once again Democrats – and only Democrats – doing the work of job creation:
·Senator Phil Griego is carrying a bill to create a tax credit for high-wage job creation.
·Senator Tim Keller has re-introduced his bill to give New Mexico companies a competitive advantage in creating jobs. This was introduced, passed overwhelmingly, and sent to the Governor way back in April, but she vetoed it.
·Representative Mimi Stewart and Senator John Arthur Smith have both introduced legislation that would guarantee that New Mexico’s Unemployment Insurance Fund – often the only lifeline for our unemployed neighbors and family members looking for work – does not run dry.
·And Senator Carlos Cisneros has introduced capital outlay legislation that would put construction workers back on the job completing projects of vital importance. This is the same legislation that would have gone into effect back in March, and could have been creating jobs for almost 6 months now, but the Governor organized a last minute Senate filibuster to block it.
Republicans have grandstanded at every opportunity about the pace of work being done, demanding that Democrats move more quickly. But despite themselves, Republicans have only introduced one idea for job creation. They love to complain when the cameras are rolling, but they are much more interested in hitting the links for mid-day rounds of golf than they are in job creation.
Taxpayers pay each legislator a daily stipend of $171, and it isn’t to subsidize Republican golf outings. They expect the GOP to actually put forward ideas, as Democrats have, to turn around our economy and put our people back to work.
Anyone who complains as much as the Republicans do should have at least taken the time to introduce a bill or put together some sort of plan before they hit the golf course. So far, Susana and the GOP have fallen far short of their own plan that they can take credit for on economic recovery.
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Democrats Focused on Protecting Every New Mexican’s Right to Vote
Democrats Focused on Protecting Every New Mexican’s
Right to Vote
For Immediate Release Contact: Scott Forrester
September 13, 2011 505-934-5681
Albuquerque, NM – The right to vote is sacred - protected in the Constitution and fiercely defended by every generation. And Redistricting is the Constitutionally mandated process we use to guarantee that every New Mexican has fair representation in their Federal, State and local governments.
So why are Republicans using a Special Session - with a special agenda that is supposed to be focused solely on protecting that sacred right - to push political wedge issues and distractions, while leaving your voting power and rights hanging in the balance?
Every day, Democratic Legislators are holding hearings in the Voters & Elections committee, poring over changes in population data, drawing and submitting maps for consideration, meeting with constituents and communities of interest in their districts and in Santa Fe, and hammering out the best way to guarantee fair voting rights for every New Mexican.
Republicans, on the other hand, are seemingly trying to tackle every issue in the book except your right to vote. They’re focused on anything they can use to waste time and money, all while ignoring the critical work to be done - work they are just not interested in doing.
The following is a statement from Scott Forrester, Executive Director of the Democratic Party of New Mexico:
“This is the height of hypocrisy. Republicans are so busy pushing wedge issues and distractions that they’ve forgotten to do their jobs, and nothing less than your right to vote is at stake. I think that’s unacceptable.
This Special Session is about protecting your Voting Rights, plain and simple, and if your Governor and Republican Legislators don’t take that seriously then they have no business representing the people of New Mexico.”
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Patrick Davis Guest Blog: Governor's New "Job Agenda" Looks a Lot Like Democrats' First Job Agenda
This is a guest blog by Patrick Davis, an active Albuquerque Democrat. The special session is officially underway and in addition to the one thing lawmakers have to address, redistricting, the governor has also added 11 more items to the call because she thinks they don't have enough to do. Tuesday morning, the Greater Albuquerque Chamber of Commerce blasted an email to its members encouraging them to sign a petition to support what they call the governor's new "jobs agenda." Conveniently for the governor, lawmakers addressed most of the items on the agenda the last time they met, and had it not been for the governor's campaign-style “my way or nothing” agenda, most of those items would have passed in March and more New Mexicans would be working today. How do we know? Because Democrats proposed most of the governor's new "jobs agenda" items in the regular session and the governor's office blocked them with shady legislative tactics, misleading messaging and just plain vetoes. Take the "5% New Mexico business advantage when bidding on contracts with state and local governments." Sound familiar? It should. It was SB19, sponsored by Sen. Tim Keller (D-Bernalillo). It passed the Senate 35-1 and the House 58-0. So why isn’t such an overwhelmingly popular bill on the books helping New Mexico businesses work for our state? The governor vetoed it. How about that capital outlay bill which the governor's office says will put more New Mexicans to work building and repairing schools, water treatment facilities and roads? In the regular session a $240 million capital outlay bill was held hostage by Senate Republicans who refused to pass it unless the governor's social promotion bill passed first. It didn't, and thousands of New Mexicans have sat at home waiting on the construction projects that the outlay bill would have provided. Need one more? The governor says the Unemployment Trust Fund is in danger of running out of funds in the next year, but she wants the legislature to continue current contributions to the fund at the same rate so that she and her "industry experts" can study the problem and propose another solution down the road. Some estimates have suggested that the fund will go dry in early 2012. This governor has had eight months to study the unemployment problem in New Mexico, and holding potential rate increases over the heads of small business owners for another year doesn't provide the stability and predictability businesses need to budget for salaries and capital spending. HB59, sponsored by Rep. Mimi Stewart (D-Bernalillo), passed both houses and provided a predictable and temporary fix to shore up the fund. The governor's partial veto wiped away the certainty that fix provided and as a result, New Mexico businesses are scared to invest in new employees if rates they pay today will double or triple down the road when the problem is much worse. Susana Martinez Chose Politics Over Economic Stability The governor is right: New Mexico needs a jobs agenda. Legislators brought her one and she refused to pass it. She bet on the economy getting worse and it did. Now she wants to claim those same ideas as her own and pretend to take the lead on job creation. Governor, we are not fooled. These bills reflect a Democratic agenda the Republican governor can sign. It is a bipartisan approach to putting New Mexicans to work. It is time New Mexicans told her to stop the campaign and start the job. This special session shouldn’t be an extension of the regular one, with all of its infighting and political maneuvering. Pass these bills and put New Mexicans to work.
This governor's new "jobs agenda" is the same one Democrats have pushed since Day 1 of her administration. But, instead of passing good bills to put New Mexicans to work, she chose to play politics with the economic stability of our state. These bills the governor says will create jobs now could have created jobs in March and New Mexico could already be on the way back to recovery. Instead, the governor wants more time to study problems and consult her experts (read political hacks).
RELEASE: GOP’s Support of Tea Party Budget Plan Would Cost 9.5 Million American Jobs, And More than 73,972 in New Mexico
GOP’s Support of Tea Party Budget Plan Would Cost 9.5 Million American Jobs, And More than 73,972 in New Mexico For Immediate Release Contact: Scott Forrester September 7, 2011 505-934-5681 Albuquerque, NM – In advance of tonight’s GOP Presidential debate in California, Democratic Party of New Mexico Chair Javier Gonzales, based on a new analysis conducted by the Democratic National Committee, released an estimate of the number of jobs which would be lost in New Mexico as a result of the Republican Party’s presidential candidates support for extreme economic policies, including a balanced budget amendment to the Constitution like that which is included in the Tea Party budget plan passed by the U.S. House of Representatives this summer. The DNC’s analysis found that just the balanced budget amendment called for in the plan, if in place in 2012, would result in the loss of 9.5 million American jobs and 73,972 jobs right here in New Mexico. The loss of so many jobs could sink the U.S. into a depression the likes of which the country hasn’t experienced since the Great Depression. This new analysis looked at the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office’s (CBO) August deficit projections for 2012 ( $991 billion deficit with CBO options for Iraq drawdown, extension of all tax provisions and Alternative Minimum Tax indexing and accounting for the so-called “Doc” fix), and using the conservative Romer-Bernstein rule of thumb that 1 percent of GDP equates to 1 million jobs, concluded that if the plan were fully phased in in 2012 and nearly a trillion dollars in federal spending was slashed, the balanced budget amendment would cost 9.5 million jobs nationwide. Because of the balanced budget amendment’s strict requirements for deep cuts, hard spending caps and a two-thirds majority to raise revenue, Congress would be virtually helpless to reverse the negative effects of these Tea Party Republican policies. Despite these negative consequences, every Republican presidential candidate, courting the extreme Tea Party vote, has come out in favor of a balanced budget amendment to the constitution or the Tea Party plan which contains one. Prior to the Republican debate, DPNM Chair Javier Gonzales released the following statement on the report: “9.5 million American jobs and 73,972 jobs here in New Mexico. Possibly a second Great Depression and devastation for the middle class, small businesses, students and seniors. Ending Medicare and slashing Social Security. That’s the price Mitt Romney, Rick Perry, Michele Bachmann, Ron Paul are willing to pay to appeal to the most extreme and narrow elements of the Tea Party. There’s not a Democrat or Republican in this country who doesn’t think we need to get our fiscal house in order, but what this crop of Tea Party-loving Republicans has signed on to would lay ruin to our country and is beyond irresponsible. “The drastic cuts to education, health care, infrastructure, research and development, higher education, Social Security, Medicare and job training supported by Republicans would cost us millions of jobs if the plan were fully implemented in 2012 and would ensure that we aren’t making the very types of investments we need to create jobs and be globally competitive in the 21st Century. The Republican approach is like setting dynamite to your home to fix a leaky faucet – and these wrongheaded policy choices are the result of a Republican Party which has turned over an increasing amount of power to its Tea Party fringe. “Americans want real solutions to the problems we face and they want a plan to create jobs in the short term and lay a foundation for long term economic prosperity. What Republicans are proposing falls devastatingly flat on all fronts.” ###
RELEASE: DPNM Chairman Gonzales Statement on Labor Day
September 5, 2011 Contact: Scott Forrester
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 505-934-5681
(Albuquerque, NM) -- Democratic Party of New Mexico Chairman, Javier M. Gonzales, released the following statement to mark the celebration of Labor Day:
"From its humble beginnings in New York in 1882 to its designation as a federal holiday in 1894, this year's celebration of Labor Day marks 129 years to the day that Americans have recognized organized Labor as the foundation of our modern democracy. It is upon the worker's back that many of today's freedoms rest and the DPNM pays honor to their service and sacrifice."
"Labor Day was founded to showcase the strength and spirit of the labor movement in the United States, and like no other time in our history, Labor is threatened by Washington special interests and those who do not believe in the basic right to organize."
"Let us take a moment amidst our celebrations and reflect on the contributions of Labor pioneers to our modern country, recognize the thousands of hard-working New Mexicans and thank those union members who carry on the legacy of Labor."
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Gov. Martinez re-certifies for concealed-carry license yet completely misses target on Jobs
For Immediate Release Contact: Scott Forrester
August 29, 2011 505-934-5681
Albuquerque, NM - Governor Martinez and her political consultant Jay McCleskey spent the day yesterday promoting the Governors' new YouTube video showing her recertifying for a concealed-carry permit. It may help her raise her national VP prospects, but it doesn't do anything to get the economy back on track in New Mexico.
So why would the Governor focus so much on this video when New Mexicans are suffering and in need of jobs? She's had over 8 months in office, but Gov. Martinez has not pushed one jobs bill or plan.
Below is a statement from Scott Forrester of the Democratic Party of New Mexico on the Governor's latest missed target: Jobs.
"While the Governor is showing off her shooting skills for the press like Annie Oakley at an Old West Show, New Mexico's Families continue to wait for any sign of leadership on getting investment flowing into Main Street America, helping raise wages, providing necessary capital for our small businesses, health care for our less fortunate citizens, support for primary education, an improved economic environment, or really any of the wide range of issues she is so far just ignoring.
"It's too bad she wasn't shooting this straight on the campaign trail when she promised New Mexicans she'd focus on jobs and the economy if elected.”
“After the smoke settles and the applause from her audience dies down, we invite her to join us at the table where real work is being done for a conversation about what exactly she was elected to do. I don't recall being Armed & Dangerous as one of the qualifications for higher office.”
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ICYMI: Our View: Redistricting tough enough for lawmakers
In the coming weeks, this year's state Legislature will attempt what past year's legislatures have failed miserably at — redrawing congressional and statewide political boundaries in a way that fairly adjusts for population changes without disadvantaging the minority party or any minority groups.
And that's not all. Gov. Susana Martinez also plans to ask lawmakers to repeal driver's licenses for illegal immigrants, pass bills giving advantage to New Mexico businesses in state procurement, statewide capital outlay projects, a high-wage tax credit, spay and neuter funding, a fireworks ban and dealing with employer contributions to the unemployment fund. That's probably too much, given both the importance and the difficulty of the primary task at hand.
The state's history of redistricting, as retold by the Legislative Council Service, is one filled with lawsuits and political maneuvering, and it has never been quick or easy.
In 1949, state Senate seats were doled out one per county, except for the smallest counties. The House was increased from 49 to 55 seats, with the additional six seats going to Bernalillo County.
The first lawsuit came in 1962, challenging the House format. Two years later, another lawsuit challenged the makeup of the Senate. Both challenges won, and the Legislature spent the early part of the 1960s coming up with the current 70-member House and 42-member Senate.
The effort in the 1970s took several years, with a state court striking down proposed changes to the number of seats. The new lines drawn in the 1980s were found unconstitutional because they were based on the number of votes cast, not the census population numbers. It took a third special session to get the plan finalized, and that was found by the federal court to include "racially motivated gerrymandering." A special primary was held in 1984 for those districts redrawn by the court.
It took a second special session in 1992 to come up with a plan acceptable to the Department of Justice. But it was the first time in more than 30 years that the process was concluded without litigation. That streak would not last, as then-Gov. Gary Johnson rejected the Legislature's plans in 2001. The first lawsuit was filed while the special session was still taking place. All told, the litigation cost the state more than $3.5 million, according to the LCS report.
While we agree with many of the proposals Martinez is considering, we expect that the special session will be divisive, contentious and difficult enough with just the single issue of redistricting. Anything that distracts from that process is probably a mistake.
Would Heather Wilson and John Sanchez take the 10 to 1 deal?
For Immediate Release
August 12, 2011
Contact: Matt Canter, (202) 485-3129
Would Heather Wilson and John Sanchez take the 10 to 1 deal?
VIDEO – Do Heather Wilson and John Sanchez Pledge Allegiance to Tea Party Just Like GOP Presidential Candidates?
During last night’s Republican Presidential Debate in Ames, Iowa, the candidates were asked to raise their hand if they would walk away from any budget deal that would cut $10 in wasteful spending just to protect every dollar of giveaways to the wealthy, multi-national corporations and other special interests. Every single Republican candidate for President raised their hand, refusing a balanced approach and pledging allegiance to the extreme Tea Party ideology that protects the rich and special interests.
Do Heather Wilson and John Sanchez agree with their party standard bearers? VIDEO
“As candidates, Heather Wilson and John Sanchez have both pandered to the Tea Party,” said Matt Canter, spokesman for the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee. “Last night every single Republican Presidential candidate pledged allegiance to the Tea Party and promised to refuse any balanced approach to solve the nation’s debt problems. They even pledged to walk away from any budget deal that would cut $10 in wasteful spending just to protect every single dime of tax giveaways for the wealthy, multi-national corporations and other special interests. Do Heather Wilson and John Sanchez agree with their party’s Tea Party Presidential candidates?”
Background: WILSON Wilson Signed Cut, Cap, and Kill Medicare Pledge; Plan Will Force Deep Cuts to Social Security and Medicare. Wilson signed a radical Cut, Cap, and Kill Medicare budget pledge. “The measure does not cut Social Security or Medicare in 2012. And it does not subject them to automatic cuts if its global spending caps are missed. It is inconceivable, however, that policymakers would meet the bill’s severe annual spending caps through automatic across-the board cuts year after year; if they did, key government functions would be crippled. Policymakers would have little alternative but to institute deep cuts in specific programs. […] Reaching and maintaining a balanced budget in the decade ahead while barring any tax increases would necessitate deep cuts in Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid.” [Cut Cap Balance Act.com signers, accessed 7/19/2011; Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, 7/16/11] Wilson: “I Don’t Agree With Everything In The Ryan Plan, But I Give Him A Lot Of Credit For Trying To Have A Serious Debate About Saving Medicare.” In May 2011, the Santa Fe New Mexican reported, when asked about Paul Ryan’s plan to overhaul Medicare, Wilson responded, “The greatest threat to seniors is to do nothing to save it, which is the Democratic plan. ... I don’t agree with everything in the Ryan plan, but I give him a lot of credit for trying to have a serious debate about saving Medicare. Democrats have not offered one single idea to save Medicare.” [Santa Fe New Mexican, 5/30/11] Wilson Opposed Bipartisan Plan to Prevent Default. In August 2011, Wilson announced that she opposed the final debt ceiling bill considered to be a bipartisan compromise. She said that the government “still spends far more money than it takes in, and this bill does very little to change that.” [Heather Wilson for Senate Facebook page, 8/2/11] SANCHEZ Sanchez Signed Cut, Cap, and Kill Medicare Pledge; Plan Will Force Deep Cuts to Social Security and Medicare. Sanchez signed a radical Cut, Cap, and Kill Medicare budget pledge. “The measure does not cut Social Security or Medicare in 2012. And it does not subject them to automatic cuts if its global spending caps are missed. It is inconceivable, however, that policymakers would meet the bill’s severe annual spending caps through automatic across-the board cuts year after year; if they did, key government functions would be crippled. Policymakers would have little alternative but to institute deep cuts in specific programs. […] Reaching and maintaining a balanced budget in the decade ahead while barring any tax increases would necessitate deep cuts in Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid.” [Cut Cap Balance Act.com signers, accessed 7/19/2011; Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, 7/16/11] June 2011: Spokesman Said Sanchez Would Have Voted For Paul Ryan’s 2007 Amendment “Similar” To His FY 2012 Budget Proposal. In June 2011, nmpolitics.net reported that Sanchez spokesman Corbin Casteel said if Sanchez was in the House at the time, he would have voted for Paul Ryan’s 2007 budget amendment which Sanchez labeled “similar” to Ryan’s fiscal year 2012 budget proposal. [nmpolitics.net, 6/10/11] Sanchez Opposed Bipartisan Plan to Prevent Default. In August 2011, Sanchez announced that he opposed the final debt ceiling bill considered to be a bipartisan compromise. He said, “The lack of a concrete balanced budget amendment while adding to our current $14 trillion debt is not the answer to our country’s economic problems.” [Albuquerque Journal, 8/3/11]
ICYMI: "Softie Susana" and Her Partisan, Divisive Agenda
In Case You Missed It…Washington insiders and Susana's political spinsters are trying their hardest to paint a rosy picture of the Gov’s first term. But we know better, and so do local NM reporters Joe Monahan and Steve Terrell, who set the record straight on Susana's true agenda: divisive, unfiltered partisanship... This one speaks for itself, and you can see his blog below: "Softie Susana?" Political reporter Steve Terrell wonders how the national press can do a long piece on the "softer touch" of Governor Martinez and not once mention that one of Martinez's premier public issues has been repealing driver's licenses for illegal immigrants. That debate has been nasty, divisive and anything but "soft." There was also no mention of the round-up of 10,000 randomly selected immigrants to prove that they still live in the state. That's pretty good work by Susana's spin machine on two veteran national reporters. Martinez is polling at 52% approval. Not bad in comparison to other GOP Governors who have gone overboard with hard-right rhetoric and programs. But Martinez preserved her polling honeymoon because of what she did not do, not because of what she has done. This paragraph of praise from reporters Ben Smith and Byron Tau just plain befuddles: And as far as winning a "crucial legislative fight," well, it didn't happen. There was no fight. In fact, outside of the frenzy over driver's licenses which Martinez lost, the session was dismissed by political analysts on both sides of the aisle as one of the most uneventful in decades. The Susana spin doctors may have the presiders of the Potomac in their pocket, but in the Alligator infested waters around here, you gotta play some hands to win. Bluffing doesn't count. NEVADA PUSH BACK Nevada GOP Governor Brian Sandoval was also given a fuzzy bear hug in that same national write-up, but like here it was met with push back. With lines like this, no wonder: Sandoval and Martinez have fought to keep their heads down and the ideological stakes low. In a nation clamoring for compromise and political civility, theirs is a model to watch. A model to watch? Hello, Washington? Martinez activated her political arm only days after taking office to launch robocall atacks into the districts of legislators who fought her on illegal driver's licenses. She used it as a wedge issue because, as she never tires of saying, a poll shows 72% of the public in favor of the repeal. The attacks during a session were quite unprecedented and led not to compromise and civility but rancor and legislative failure. Well, guess you had to be here. And that's why we do what we do. DATELINE CLOVIS Speaking of those driver's licenses for illegals, Susana was pounding it again in Clovis this week: Martinez spent Wednesday in Clovis, meeting with leaders at Cannon Air Force Base and area communities and to address her push to change the state’s driver’s license law. The governor spoke to about 70 people in a press conference at the Clovis Civic Center about the issue. Dems point out that Martinez could have advanced a bill in the last session of the Legislature that severely restricted the licenses and given her much of what else she wanted, but she wants the whole enchilada or nothing--a complete repeal and a complete political victory. She will try again in the special redistricting session that insiders expect to be called for Sept. 6. Will she prevail this time? The Guv thinks the overwhelming public support for repeal will eventually wear out the Dems, but it could also wear out the public if the redistricting session degenerates into another divisive spectacle at a cost of $50,000 a day. Why doesn't the Governor simply wait until the 30 day session of the Legislature in January and try again there? Is the matter really that urgent or are we trying to make political hay here? You don't need a Ph.D in poly sci to figure that one out... So what about the other stuff Susana is planning on adding to the special session agenda? Can't all of it wait until January? We'd say yes--with one exception. The $150 million capital outlay bill that will kick-start construction jobs is needed now. Martinez will find bipartisan support for the measure which was delayed in the last session. If Martinez stuck to redistricting and the capital outlay bill for the special session, it would spotlight that "softer touch" she was described as having, but this is a Governor who enjoys a good fight. That's what she liked as a district attorney and that's what she still likes. And that's what we're going to get come September. In other words, don't look for the nickname "Softie Susana" to pop up anytime soon.
Thursday, August 04, 2011
Guv's New Nickname: "Softie Susana?"
...Soon after her election, she made a point of building relationships with the Democrats who controlled the Legislature in a series of private meetings and outreach sessions...Martinez won her crucial legislative fight, a budget with no new taxes.
What Democrats were those? Surely not the Senate Majority Leader, the Senate president Pro Tem, the House Speaker or the House Majority Leader who barely know her and rarely meet with her. The last we looked they were among those who "controlled" the Legislature.
“New Mexico has become a magnet for people seeking valid U.S. IDs and for people who traffic humans,” she said during the press conference.