Rail Runner Getting "New" Scrutiny

Santa Fe New Mexican - Could commuter train service become a thing of the past in New Mexico? Or might there be a different operating schedule — under a private company — now that Susana Martinez is governor? Martinez has said she's taking a hard look at the heavily subsidized and increasingly less-used trains. Some lawmakers set to gather today in Santa Fe also question whether the service is worth it. Before they shut down the trains between metropolitan Albuquerque and Santa Fe and sell the cars on eBay, however, leaders say they want more information about what could be done with the hefty investment the state has already made. "I don't think we can dump those (train cars) off without making an attempt to get the ridership up and the cost to the taxpayers down," said Rep. Larry Larrañaga, an Albuquerque Republican and former state transportation secretary. "I think the first attempt ought to be to see if we can find a better way to run this train." Larrañaga wants a study of what the train's true costs are, and ways the state might be able to improve services and cut costs. Martinez has said she is looking into the train's fares and schedule, among other things. Read full story here:

Rail Runner Getting "New" Scrutiny

Heath's Take on Cervantes Interview

Heath Haussamen

Rep. Joseph Cervantes, D-Las Cruces, says the “culture of corruption” in Santa Fe is real and has existed for decades. He says his unsuccessful attempt to become speaker was motivated by his desire to change the culture in Santa Fe. Cervantes’ comments about corruption, which came during an interview on the radio program News New Mexico, were among the strongest I’ve heard him make publicly. “It’s horrible,” Cervantes said. “… There’s a great deal of pay to play. You’ve got to be plain deaf, dumb and blind not to see it,” he added. “… It’s a culture of corruption that has existed for decades.” Cervantes said he believes “most Democrats reject corruption… unethical conduct, play to play,” and the reason Susana Martinez won last year’s gubernatorial race is because she “so soundly rejected those things.” Read full story here:

Heath's Take on Cervantes Interview

Analysis of the Canning of Keith Olbermann

Keith Olbermann

Washington Post - So Keith Olbermann is out. As best as I can tell, none of the news accounts about his departure have gotten to the bottom of what happened here. But Olbermann himself offered enough clues in his final broadcast for us to reasonably speculate that he abruptly got the ax, perhaps even as late as last night. A "knowledgeable official" at MSNBC told Howard Kurtz that the separation was "mutual." But it's hard to see how that squares with this, from Olbermann's last words on Countdown last night: "I think the same fantasy has popped into the head of everybody in my business who has ever been told what I have been told, that this is going to be the last edition of your show. You go directly to the scene from the movie 'Network,' complete with the pajamas, and the raincoat, and you go off on an existential, otherworldly journey of profundity and vision... "When I resigned from ESPN 13 and a half years ago, I was literally given 30 seconds to say goodbye at the very end of my last edition of "Sports Center." As God is my witness, in the commercial break just before the emotional moment, the producer got into my earpiece and he said, `uh, can you cut it down to 15 seconds, so we can get in this tennis result from Stuttgart? So I'm grateful that I have a little more time to sign off here." Read full column here:

Analysis of the Canning of Keith Olbermann

A Month After START Treaty Signed Russia Renews Opposition to Unilateral Sanctions on Iran

From gatewaypundit.com -US and Russia presidents Barack Obama and Dimitry Medvedev agree over the phone to sign the new SMART treaty. One month after Obama and democrats rammed through the START Nuclear Treaty with Russia, Moscow today renewed its opposition to unilateral sanctions on Iran.Fars News reported: Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov underlined his country’s strong opposition to unilateral sanctions against Iran.“We have never supported unilateral sanctions, which will only serve as a spoiler for Iran,” Lavrov said after talks with his Turkish counterpart Ahmet Davutoglu in Istanbul on Thursday. Lavrov also expressed hope that the sanctions are lifted in the talks between Tehran and major world powers. Lavrov added that his country has always been very clear at pointing out its concerns. Pointing to the talks between Iran and the Group 5+1 (the five permanent UN Security Council members plus Germany) in Istanbul, the Russian minister said that an agreement between the two sides on a perspective for future steps would mean the talks were a success, noting the negotiations would not be limited to the West’s standoff with Iran, but would also focus on solutions to regional problems. Senior negotiators from Iran and the Group 5+1 (the five permanent UN Security Council members plus Germany) ended their first round of talks in Istanbul, Turkey minutes ago.

A Month After START Treaty Signed Russia Renews Opposition to Unilateral Sanctions on Iran

Obama to Deploy Executive Powers Against GOP Hill

From washingtonexaminer.com -President Obama challenged congressional Republicans to embrace the "shared responsibility" of governance even as the White House appears ready to use unilateral executive powers to battle Capitol Hill. With Republicans taking over the House and increasing their number in the Senate, Obama faces the possibility of having his agenda stalled with limited room to maneuver -- making for tough sledding in the two years leading up to his 2012 re-election bid. In response, Obama is expected to make more frequent use of executive orders, vetoes, signing statements and policy initiatives that originate within the federal agencies to maneuver around congressional Republicans who are threatening to derail initiatives he has already put in place, including health care reforms, and to launch serial investigations into his administration's spending. "There is going to be an effort on the president's part to use [executive powers] to satisfy his base and institutionalize what he can," said John Kenneth White, professor of politics at the Catholic University of America.  More here

Obama to Deploy Executive Powers Against GOP Hill

Newt Announces his Run for President

Newt Gingrich

From hotair.com - In the last 24 hours, former U.S. House speaker Newt Gingrich has touched base with several prominent Republicans in his former home state, telling them that he intends to make a run for president in 2012 using Georgia as his base – and that he already has his eye on office space in Buckhead for a campaign headquarters…The visits and conversations – some face-to-face, others on the phone — appear to be an attempt by Gingrich to revive his old campaign network and lock down as much support as possible in a state won by Republican Mike Huckabee in the 2008 presidential primary.  More here

Newt Announces his Run for President

Hawaii: First State to Ban Daily Prayer in Senate

From mercurynews.com -Fearing a possible court challenge, Hawaii's state Senate has voted to silence the daily prayer offered before each session began—making it the first state legislative body in the nation to halt the practice. A citizen's complaint had prompted the American Civil Liberties Union last summer to send the Senate a letter noting that its invocations often referenced Jesus Christ, contravening the separation of church and state. That prompted the state attorney general's office to advise the Senate that their handling of prayers—by inviting speakers from various religions to preach before every session—wouldn't survive a likely court challenge, said Democratic Majority Leader Brickwood Galuteria.  "Above all, our responsibility is to adhere to the Constitution," Galuteria said after Thursday's vote to halt the daily blessings. A three-member Senate committee formed to evaluate the issue recommended allowing nonsectarian, nonpolitical invocations that avoided references to deities, but the legislative body decided to do away with prayers altogether rather than constrain them. More here

Hawaii: First State to Ban Daily Prayer in Senate

Bingaman and Udall with Reid and Pelosi on Obamacare

Jeff Bingaman

With the vote to repeal Obamacare passing overwhelmingly in the U.S. House of Representatives without the support of New Mexico House members Martin Heinrich or Ben Ray Lujan, attention shifts to the U.S. Senate and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid. For his part, Reid has said he will never allow the legislation to see the light of day in the chamber he controls. And apparently he has the full support of both New Mexico Senators in blocking efforts to repeal and replace the controversial law.

Tom Udall

Last spring Jeff Bingaman and Tom Udall both voted with Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid when Obamacare passed through both houses of Congress. Bingaman was particularly supportive of Obamacare characterizing the two thousand page law as one of the most “carefully crafted pieces of legislation” he had come across in all his years on Capitol Hill. Time will tell in the days and weeks ahead if Senate Minority leader Mitch McConnell’s prediction that eventually the repeal bill would come up for a simple up or down vote in the Senate will hold true.

Bingaman and Udall with Reid and Pelosi on Obamacare

Chavez: Civility NOT Censorship

Linda Chavez

Townhall - Civility in public discourse is important, but it should not be used as an excuse to stifle legitimate debate or denude our language of color, passion, or good metaphor. Unfortunately, some in the media don't seem to understand the difference. CNN's John King, for example, apologized on air this week for a guest's use of the phrase "in the cross hairs" in reference to the Chicago mayoral race. Others have suggested that words like "target" shouldn't be used as either a verb or noun when discussing political campaigns. In the wake of the horrific murders of six people in Tucson and the maiming of Rep. Gabrielle Giffords and more than a dozen others, reluctance to engage in shooting metaphors might be understandable. But it's foolish to think using such words had anything to do with what happened -- and curbing such metaphors lends credence to that theory. Read full column here:

Chavez: Civility NOT Censorship

Andy Nunez thinks about switching parties

From Capitol Report New Mexico - Rep. Andy Nuñez (D-Hatch) fresh from failing in a bid to oust Speaker of the House Ben Luján and then losing his chairmanship of a key committee says he’s considering switching from the Democratic to the Republican Party. “I’m really debating it,” Nuñez said while talking on his cellphone on his way back to his home in Hatch Thursday afternoon. “I’m going to let the dust settle a little for a week or so. Whatever I decide [Lujan]‘s not going to have much of my support on the floor for anything.” Should Nuñez decide to jump to the GOP, the Democrats’ advantage in the House of Representatives would slip from its current 37-33 margin to just 36-34. Would the Republicans welcome Nuñez? “Oh absolutely,” Rep. Don Bratton (R-Hobbs) said before leaving his office Thursday. “We’ve worked with Andy over the years and he’s always worked well with us … He comes from a district [District 36 in Doña Ana County] where he could make that switch … Hopefully, he could convince one more of his colleagues to come over and we could be tied.” Nuñez often spoke about how much he enjoyed chairing the House Agriculture and Water Resources Committee but after leading the failed effort to replace Luján with Rep. Joe Cervantes (D-Las Cruces) and then voting “present” instead of joining the rest of the Democratic bloc in re-electing Luján, many wondered if Andy’s days as chairman were numbered. Read more

Andy Nunez thinks about switching parties