Albuquerque Spends $16K to Patrol Protests
There Goes Another $43 Million
Beacon Power had received a federal loan guarantee to help build an energy storage plant in Stephentown, N.Y., that began operating in January. The Treasury Department’s Federal Financing Bank provided the loan. Beacon sought bankruptcy protection two days after the White House ordered an independent 60-day evaluation of the Energy Department's loan programs aimed at ensuring effective management and monitoring. The review, conducted by a former Treasury Department official, will include examination of how Beacon’s project is performing going forward, and whether there are additional steps that can be taken to protect taxpayers, according to the Obama administration. Read full story here: News New Mexico
Predictable Attacks on Cain Get Uglier as His Poll Numbers Become More Impressive
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| Herman Cain |
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| Anita Hill |
They Drove Off With it at the "Speed Limit"
New DOJ Rules Allow for More Intrusive Searches
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| Eric Holder |
Attention Occupiers: You Are The World's Top 1%
Investigative Report: Corrections Department is a Mess
Gary Johnson almost misses filing for NH primary UPDATE: Johnson on video says “we screwed up”
From Capitol Report New Mexico.com - Gary Johnson’s bid for the 2012 Republican presidential nomination has always been a longshot. But it almost became a “no shot at all” in New Hampshire when the candidate nearly missed filing for that state’s famous primary. From the Los Angeles Times Friday morning (Oct. 28): Friday is the final day of the two-week filing period for candidates to land on the New Hampshire primary ballot. The requirements are simple, and intentionally so: Just submit a one-page declaration of candidacy and the $1,000 filing fee. But as of Thursday evening, Johnson had not yet completed that task. State law says that the documents can be submitted by mail or by proxy. But if they are not received before the final day, the candidate must deliver them in person. Johnson was scheduled to start a three-day visit to Arizona beginning Thursday. But his campaign quickly changed plans when the embarrassing mixup was pointed out. “He’ll be filing in person,” Johnson’s New Hampshire coordinator, Brinck Slattery, said in an email. Read more
Texas Sues Obama Administration Over 'Unjustified' Deepwater Drilling Moratorium
From the Huffington Post - HOUSTON (Associated Press) — The Texas attorney general sued the Obama administration Wednesday over its new deep-water offshore drilling moratorium, claiming it is unjustified and federal officials did not contact the state before issuing the ban. Attorney General Greg Abbott filed the 18-page suit in federal court in Houston against Department of the Interior Secretary Ken Salazar. The ban halted the approval of any new permits for deep-water projects and shut down drilling at 33 exploratory ocean wells in the wake of the BP spill in the Gulf of Mexico. In his lawsuit, Abbott called the ban "an unjustified, arbitrary and capricious policy that will inflict harm upon coastal communities." Also, the suit said, federal officials did not coordinate with the state or consider the economic impacts before issuing the moratorium. Texas is one of the nation's most active oil refinery states. State figures show there were 86,900 jobs in oil and natural gas extraction in April and an additional 107,800 in support industries. Interior Department spokeswoman Kendra Barkoff defended the ban but declined to comment specifically on the Texas lawsuit. "The Deepwater Horizon/BP oil disaster has made it clear that we need better health, safety and environmental standards for drilling operations," Barkoff said in an e-mailed statement. "The temporary pause on deep-water drilling that Secretary Salazar has put in place is simply common sense, and we continue to stand behind it." The current moratorium replaced one that was blocked by the courts. The Interior Department says it's meant to give to give oil and gas companies time to implement adequate safety measures. The ban is in effect until Nov. 30, unless federal officials determine deep-water drilling operations have gotten safer. Read more
More State Fair Troubles
Doh ! ! - Data Creates Another Climate Change Heretic
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| Judith Curry |
Daily Mail - It was hailed as the scientific study that ended the global warming debate once and for all – the research that, in the words of its director, "proved you should not be a sceptic, at least not any longer." Professor Richard Muller, of Berkeley University in California, and his colleagues from the Berkeley Earth Surface Temperatures project team (BEST) claimed to have shown that the planet has warmed by almost a degree centigrade since 1950 and is warming continually. Published last week ahead of a major United Nations climate summit in Durban, South Africa, next month, their work was cited around the world as irrefutable evidence that only the most stringent measures to reduce carbon dioxide emissions can save civilisation as we know it. It was cited uncritically by, among others, reporters and commentators from the BBC, The Independent, The Guardian, The Economist and numerous media outlets in America. The Washington Post said the BEST study had "settled the climate change debate" and showed that anyone who remained a sceptic was committing a "cynical fraud."
But today The Mail on Sunday can reveal that a leading member of Prof Muller’s team has accused him of trying to mislead the public by hiding the fact that BEST’s research shows global warming has stopped. Prof Judith Curry, who chairs the Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences at America’s prestigious Georgia Institute of Technology, said that Prof Muller’s claim that he has proven global warming sceptics wrong was also a "huge mistake," with no scientific basis. Prof Curry is a distinguished climate researcher with more than 30 years experience and the second named co-author of the BEST project’s four research papers.
Read full story here: News New Mexico
NM Launches Pedestrian Safety Campaign
Religious Leaders See Immigration as "God's Call"
Climate Change Scientist to Face Federal Lie Detector Test Over Polar Bear Data
Wolves Raised Near NYC to be Released in NM
From ajc.com -The wolf center is a key component in the national effort to return endangered wolves to the wild. In partnership with the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, the 27-acre center is raising and breeding Mexican and red wolves in large enclosures, letting them eat roadkill and whatever they catch and limiting their contact with humans. The hope is that they or their progeny can one day be released into the wild in North Carolina or along the Arizona-New Mexico border and help save animals that were nearly wiped out by man through hunting, poisoning and loss of habitat. More News New Mexico
NM Stars Offer Terrell Owens a Contract
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| Terrell Owens |
Governor Increases Transparency
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| Susana Martinez |
SANTA FE – Yesterday, in an address to the New Mexico Press Association, Governor Susana Martinez announced upcoming changes to the official transparency website for state government, the New Mexico Sunshine Portal. The portal will list additional information not previously found, including the names, titles and salary rate of all state employees regardless of their classification. Currently, the Sunshine Portal only lists the names, titles and salary rates of “exempt” employees – those who serve at the pleasure of the governor. The portal will now include this information for classified employees, who work under the rules of the state’s version of a civil service system. These changes are intended to increase transparency throughout state government, and to demonstrate to the public exactly where tax dollars are spent. “I have promised since day one that state government will be more transparent, more accessible, and more accountable to all New Mexicans,” said Governor Martinez. “The Sunshine Portal has been an important tool that promotes open and honest government. These changes will ensure that taxpayers have an even greater idea of how their money is being spent.”
New Mexico’s Sunshine Portal is a website that displays wide-ranging data for state agency budgets, expenditures, employees, revenue, and purchases, along with a number of informational reports including state investment reports and annual fiscal summaries. This summer, the official version of the Sunshine Portal was unveiled after a 6-month beta mode trial, to include additional functions as developed by constituent feedback.
Obama's Destructive Energy Policies
Unfortunately, the President has approached energy policy just as he approaches most everything else – with the naïve assumption that as long as lots of government programs and mandates are established, the agenda will be accomplished and all will go well. Thus billions of our tax dollars have been handed-out in “loans” and “grants” to everything from solar panel manufacturers to electric car makers in Europe, while nearly all of the recipients have been “personal friends” of the President and people who are working for his re-election. Read full column here: News New Mexico
Bernalillo County Sued Over "Gender Discrimination"
Protestors Drive Off Business Customers
Post Office Closings Hurt Rural America
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| Jay Miller |
Use Taxpayer Dollars to Glorify Yourself
Capitol Report New Mexico - In the summer of 2010, Capitol Report New Mexico started its periodic look at “Monuments to Me,” the practice in which sitting legislators end up getting public buildings named after them. One of the first examples we noticed was how the African American Performing Arts Center in Albuquerque has a wing named after state House representative and Democratic whip Sheryl Williams Stapleton: 
Last night (Oct. 27), KRQE-TV’s Larry Barker delivered one of his trademark investigative reports, disclosing that for years, Stapleton did not take leave from her job as an administrator at the Albuquerque Public Schools system and received pay while attending legislative sessions. It seems that APS superintendent Winston Brooks is pretty cavalier about Stapleton’s breaking of the rules. At the very least, she should repay the $167,000 she earned when she violated APS policy. After all, taxpayer dollars fund the APS budget. Read full story and see videos here: News New Mexico
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| Sheryl Williams Stapleton |
Last night (Oct. 27), KRQE-TV’s Larry Barker delivered one of his trademark investigative reports, disclosing that for years, Stapleton did not take leave from her job as an administrator at the Albuquerque Public Schools system and received pay while attending legislative sessions. It seems that APS superintendent Winston Brooks is pretty cavalier about Stapleton’s breaking of the rules. At the very least, she should repay the $167,000 she earned when she violated APS policy. After all, taxpayer dollars fund the APS budget. Read full story and see videos here: News New Mexico
First Major October Snow in New York Since Civil War
Center for Biological Diversity Takes Shot at Noon
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| Marita Noon |
"Noon is notorious for whipping up hysteria at pro-industry rallies by chanting “smash the watermelons” after telling crowds that environmentalists are watermelons because they are green on the outside and red on the inside. Noon distributes “Smash the Watermelons” stickers at her anti-environmental rallies and has created a “Smash the Watermelons” Web page.
“Marita Noon’s vitriol pollutes civic discourse,” said Taylor McKinnon, public-lands campaigns director at the Center for Biological Diversity. “Inciting violence against your fellow citizens is unacceptable. She needs to stop now.” Read the entire release here: News New Mexico
NewsNM note (Spence) CBD's Jay Linninger has also appeared on the show and has an open invitation to return and make the case for silencing Noon.
It All Depends on "What Your Definition of Lobbyist Is"
But the individuals’ activities, the Times contends, fit the definition. Pfizer executive Sally Susman, for example, chairs the company’s political action committee and leads its “public affairs activities, including relations with governments,” according the Pfizer website. She has bundled more than $500,000 in donations for Obama so far. Comcast executive David Cohen, who oversees the media giant’s government affairs and public affairs, also bundled more than $500,000 and has hobnobbed with Obama on Martha’s Vineyard. And Michael Kempner, whose PR firm MWW Group touts to its clients its “important relationships with both the Democratic and Republican leadership,” has also bundled half a million dollars for Obama. His firm includes seven registered lobbyists, according to the Times. Read full story here: News New Mexico
Democratic Party Strategist, GOP Voters Like Cain "because he's a black man who knows his place."
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| Karen Finney |
Santa Fe Studios Continues to Ignore Press Inquiries
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| Lance Hool |
Santa Fe County is administering the $10 million grant that Santa Fe Studios LLC received from the state, and the county has kicked in another $3.6 million worth of infrastructure improvements for the project. It also is guaranteeing $6.5 million worth of a $10 million loan the studio's principals secured from Los Alamos National Bank. But county spokesman Kristine Mihelcic said in a written statement Tuesday that "Santa Fe County at this time has not received current information in relation to the opening date of the studio, scheduled projects, job opportunities or [the studio's] board of directors."  |
| Javier Gonzales |
Eric Holder's War on Border Patrol Continues
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| Jesus Diaz |
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| Eric Holder |
Though two separate oversight agencies conducted their own investigations and cleared Diaz of any criminal wrongdoing…U.S. Attorney Johnny Sutton brought charges against Diaz, and in September 2010, the case ended in a mistrial. However, the Obama Justice Department brought charges against Diaz again, and this time--they received a conviction. In this trial, the feds would not allow testimony introduced which showed that prosecution witnesses committed perjury in the first proceeding. Diaz faces up to ten years in federal prison when is sentenced in November. The drug smuggler, who was a minor at the time of his arrest, was given full immunity in exchange for his testimony against Agent Diaz. Agent Diaz has is an 8-year veteran of the Border Patrol, has four children with his wife, Diana who is a Field Operations Supervisor with the Border Patrol. Read full story here: News New Mexico
Egolf Pressures UNM to Continue to Accommodate Occupy Protestors at State Expense
Roundhouse Roundup - by Steve Terrell - State Rep. Brian Egolf, D-Santa Fe is asking University of New Mexico President David Schmidly to hold off on clearing UNM's campus in Albuquerque. The university announced a day ago that the school wouldn't renew (Un)Occuppy Albuquerque's permit, citing safety concerns. The school ordered protesters to leave Yale Park by 10 p.m. I realize that the presence of the protestors poses serious issues for campus management and security, but there are important and compelling First Amendment issues involved that bear serious consideration by you and your staff.
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| Brian Egolf |
As you know, the University occupies a special place in Albuquerque - both literally and figuratively. By forcing the protestors out, you are preventing them from making their views known to a large audience. I also believe that the University - as both a state-funded institution and as a place where debate and the exchange of ideas are encouraged - has a special role to play in the ongoing protests. Egolf was the only legislator I saw at the Occupy Santa Fe event I covered on Saturday. Read story here: News New Mexico
One More Thing to Blame on Global Warming
More Tourists for Less Money?
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| Jay Miller |
Inside the Capitol - SANTA FE – New Mexico can attract many more tourists without spending any more money. That was the message from state Tourism Department Secretary Monique Jacobson to the Legislative Finance Committee last week. Jacobson says we just have to work smarter and elevate our game. And that we can do without any increase in appropriation. The message, of course, was music to legislative ears. But will it work?
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| Monique Jacobson |
Our neighboring states spend many times New Mexico's $2.5 million advertising budget already. Jacobson says the secret lies in how we spend our money. New Mexico's measly $2.5 million will be switched from tourism services to tourism generating expenditures. "We've got to serve the traveler and not the destination," she explained. The New Mexico tourism industry has not appreciated the new secretary from the beginning. This will ice it. But frugal-minded lawmakers likely will be willing to give Jacobson's austerity program a chance. Read full column here: News New Mexico
Group: Red light cameras are 'cash cows' for Redflex
From KOB-TV.com - By: Eddie Garcia, - It could be the final nail in the coffin for the red light cameras. In a 50 page report, The New Mexico Public Interest Research Group (NMPIRG) said the red light cameras are cash cows for its operator Redflex. The report adds fuel to the argument that the cameras should be removed from intersections across the city. It's no secret Albuquerque City Councilor Dan Lewis wants the cameras out. In early November he said he will introduce a measure to get rid of the cameras for good. Mayor Richard Berry said his administration cut lots of fat from the system and made the red light program more streamlined. However, on October 3 Albuquerque voters rejected the city’s use of the red light cameras. The city council is going to vote November 7 on whether to get rid of the cameras. If it passes, it will still take more than a month to terminate the contract with Redflex. After all that, the company will pick up their equipment and leave. Read more
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