Whole sides of mountains in Northern New Mexico are yellow and rust, and the days are getting shorter. Election season is at its height. With the exception of the debates, I have pretty much turned off the TV news, ever since the glow of the spectacular Chilean rescue began to fade. The Democrats are taking an on-air beating at the hands of special interests now unleashed by the Supreme Court ruling earlier in the year called Citizens United. The ruling allows corporations to spend freely without naming their sources, and we are seeing a surge this year of half-truths and irrelevant issues. So, in a step away from sound bytes, here are my top 2010 election picks based on my personal experience with each candidate.
First, Diane Denish. The stakes are too high in the Gov’s race to risk someone without experience or the ability to navigate through perilous waters. As a State Senator, I have seen Diane at work, presiding over the Senate, creating a Children’s Cabinet, fighting for early childhood education, and fostering public-private partnerships to tackle some of New Mexico’s worst problems- poverty, the lack of economic opportunity and access to health care.
I am especially proud to have worked with Diane to expand access to quality health care in our state. Together, we fought to expand coverage to every child in New Mexico, make it easier for small businesses to provide coverage for their employees and to allow adult children in their 20s to stay on their parents policies. And all this-- before the new federal health care bill.
Diane is tenacious and trustworthy. During the session, she displays a kind of “grace under fire”-- no matter whether the fire comes from payday lenders, the opponents of her many ethics proposals, or even the Governor himself. She knows how to fight for working families and small businesses, and she sticks to her guns.
Martin Heinrich has become an effective, energetic, and responsive
Representative. I am proud of him and how he stands up to the half-truths about health care reform, and takes on the economic myths that his opponent is spreading about the need to reduce taxes on the super-rich, and the failure of the stimulus to create any jobs. I am going to work hard for Martin during these last days, and I hope you will too.
Ray Powell for Commissioner of Public Lands. This office has been under an ethical cloud, with controversial land sales—and worse. Ray is just the person to clean up the situation, focus on preserving state land, and (as he did for years before) bring in big bucks for our schools through savvy (but not unethical) land swaps and leasing policies. He is being vastly outspent and he needs our votes
Michelle Lujan Grisham and Maggie Hart Stebbins will take the Bernalillo County Commission in a new competent, ethical direction that is long overdue and Karen Montoya has displayed courage as the Assessor that should be rewarded at the polls.
I’m defaulting to the Democratic judge candidates at all levels this year, with this important caveat; three sitting Metro Court Judges (Rachel Walker Al-Yasi, Linda Rogers and Christina Jaramillo) were not recommended for retention by the NM Judicial Performance Evaluation Commission. This is a highly unusual. Check it out at http://www.nmjpec.org.
There is only one state representative race within District 13—and in it I strongly endorse Rep. Bill O’Neil. You won’t find a harder working, more sincere, dedicated person than Bill. He’s an advocate for improvements within our criminal justice system and has worked hard on health care issues for his constituents. He is also the victim of a nasty smear campaign launched by his Republican opponent.
I am supporting all the bond issues, and the constitutional amendments, with the exception of 2 and 4. For more detail about the candidates and issues go to the League of Women Voters 2010 Voters Guide On Line at http://www.lwvnm.org/VGuide2010/index.html.
That’s it. Don’t forget to vote. Early voting stations are open from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Mondays through Saturdays from now to the election. Those nearest to Senate District 13 include:
The County Clerk’s Annex, 620 Lomas NW
Los Ranchos Villa, 6601 Fourth St. NW, Suite A, B, C
Coors Plaza (near Ladera) 3200 Coors Blvd. NW
Recent Comments