Avoiding Liability is Job # 1

SANTA FE – Governor Susana Martinez issued the following statement following Senator Harrison Schmitt’s decision to withdraw his nomination to serve as the State’s Secretary of Energy, Minerals and Natural Resources: “Senator Schmitt is a former NASA astronaut who underwent a complete background check by the Department of Public Safety as part of his nomination process. “Senator Schmitt was willing to allow a private investigator access to his personal information, but he was not willing to waive that investigator’s liability for any improper actions or use of that information.

While one can understand Senator Schmitt’s concerns, complying with the Legislature’s request is necessary to restore public confidence in state government. That’s why I am requiring all of my cabinet secretary designees to comply with that request and this has led to Senator Schmitt withdrawing his nomination. “I wish Senator Schmitt the best in his future endeavors and I will work swiftly to find a qualified replacement to lead New Mexico’s Energy, Minerals and Natural Resources Department.”

Avoiding Liability is Job # 1

Senator Lopez: Opposes Man Who Walked on the Moon

Linda Lopez

The following is a press release by State Senator Linda Lopez: "Three days ago, at his request, I met with the Secretary Designate of the Energy, Minerals and Natural Resources Department, Harrison Schmitt. Mr. Schmitt's reason for requesting the meeting was to inform me of his refusal to allow a Senate conferee background check, which is a check all designated cabinet secretaries and high level appointed officials undergo as part of the Senate's confirmation process. First, I sympathize with Mr. Schmitt's and all conferees' discomfort when it comes to the background check process. It is an extensive review that includes a search for any prior criminal convictions and of the Federal Civil Court Records; verification of appointees' assertions related to financial circumstances or improprieties such as bankruptcies, tax liens, and outstanding loans; and a review of disclosure statements related to potential conflicts of interest and ownership in business entities.

Harrison Schmitt

However, the New Mexico State Senate is constitutionally charged with confirming top state government officials because of the tremendous influence and authority and power provided to those individuals in their official government capacity.
The forty or so individuals we confirm to these top positions are responsible for expenditures in the billions of dollars, investing the state's multi-billion dollar pension funds, and promulgating regulations that impact citizens across the entire state of New Mexico.The New Mexico Senate adopted background checks in 2007. They are part of a procedure that all high-level appointees must undergo as they put themselves forward into positions of public service and public trust. The review process is in place to protect the public and to provide the citizens of our state with an increased sense of confidence in their government. As such, there can be no exceptions to the background review process. At the Senate Rules Committee hearing on Monday, February 14, we will discuss Mr. Schmitt's refusal to adhere to the confirmation process. This will not be a hearing of Mr. Schmitt's qualifications for service, nor to receive public input related to his appointment.  At this time, Mr. Schmitt's refusal to comply with the background check process has left me with no choice but to oppose his confirmation."

Senator Lopez: Opposes Man Who Walked on the Moon

Nowata We Gonna Do? Record Cold in Oklahoma

Oklahoma was hit with the coldest readings ever measured this morning according to the Oklahoma Climatological Survey. In the town of Nowata the temperature was measured at -31 degrees Fahrenheit. That temperature is below the prior record of -27 set in Vinita, Oklahoma in February 1905 and Watts, Oklahoma in January 1930. Also on Thursday, the Bartlesville and Pryor’s Oklahoma Mesonet temperature gauges measured -28, which would have also been state records.

Sand Springs measured -11 degrees this morning, according to the National Weather Service. Those temperatures tie a record low of 15 years ago. What should policy makers do? In New Mexico, the leadership on the House Energy Committee feels strongly that it is time to support new EIB rules that will shut down a few more coal fired power plants and also drive more energy production across state lines. Also we must stop energy exploration and production at Otero Mesa no matter what the cost. There is no need to recognize there is zero evidence of any increase in global teperatures since 1997. The committee is preaching global warming "crisis." Apparently we must continue to understand that CO2 is causing global temperatures to rise to catastrophic levels. We must get rid of energy exploration - production jobs, drive our living standards down, and we must do it quickly before we all die.

Nowata We Gonna Do? Record Cold in Oklahoma

NM Congressman Pearce Introduces "Healthy" Vet Bill

NM Congressman Steve Pearce

 Las Cruces, NM (February 10, 2011) Yesterday, Congressman Steve Pearce reintroduced H.R. 575, a bill that will improve healthcare access for veterans across New Mexico and nationwide. This legislation, entitled the Help Establish Access to Local Timely Healthcare for Your (HEALTHY) Vets Act, will allow veterans access to local healthcare facilities, saving them time, money, and physical strain. Currently, the federal government requires veterans to drive to VA hospitals for treatment. This is a major roadblock to healthcare for veterans in New Mexico, who may have to drive hundreds of miles to Albuquerque for medical attention. Congressman Pearce’s legislation would allow veterans to use local health providers in their own hometowns in Southern New Mexico. This saves both medical and travel expenses for veterans, allows them the convenience and comfort they deserve, and provides for quicker, less stressful treatment. Under the legislation, the VA Secretary will contract with local hospitals and doctors on a case-by-case basis to provide medical services, including primary care, for those veterans who live far away from VA medical facilities. Pearce, a Vietnam veteran, has made veterans a priority throughout his more than six years in Congress. 

NM Congressman Pearce Introduces "Healthy" Vet Bill

How Should We Interpret the Constitution?

From americanthinker.com -The Constitution is plainly written. It was intended to be easy to understand. The Constitution is also short. Why do we need a process for interpreting the Constitution? If we have such a process for divining the meaning of the Constitution, why should that process be secret deliberations of nine judges who are effectively unaccountable to the people? The issue, after ObamaCare, has become more than academic. Idaho has passed a resolution of nullification, which removes from the federal bench ultimate power to reject congressional actions as unconstitutional. The Idaho Attorney General Lawrence Wasden advises that nullification is unconstitutional, but he has no power to prevent the Idaho Legislature from passing its resolution. What happens if a number of states pass similar resolutions? More here

How Should We Interpret the Constitution?

Record Low Temps Shattered in Wichita and Elsewhere

Energypublisher - The images and news reports from Chihuahua, New Mexico and Texas were gripping. Last week's sub-zero temperatures grew sheets of ice on the walls of unheated homes. Water lines froze and burst, wells clammed up, natural gas shortages left towns without heat and the normal functioning of schools, business and factory production was thrown into chaos. On both sides of the US-Mexico border, governors issued disaster declarations and troops were called out to assist with emergency relief. "We can call this historic", said Dave Novlan, meterologist for the National Weather Service in the border town of Santa Teresa, New Mexico. In neighboring Ciudad Juarez, a city already battered to the bone by extreme criminal violence and economic crisis, 90,000 families were reported without water the first weekend of February. Next door, in El Paso, Texas, the city water utility took the extreme step of ordering residents not to shower, wash cars and clothes and otherwise restrict water usage until further notice. In Aldama, Chihuahua, nearly three dozen animals-parrots, snakes, crocodiles and a monkey, froze to death at a private zoo, while the epic freeze was suspected in the death of a $30,000 giraffe at a zoo in Clovis, New Mexico. Read full story here:

Record Low Temps Shattered in Wichita and Elsewhere

Elder: Reagan 100 Year Old Racist?

Larry Elder

Townhall - Ronald Reagan "tortured" blacks. Tavis Smiley, the PBS television host, once said this about the former president. NBC's Bryant Gumbel and New York Times columnist Paul Krugman, among many others, consider Reagan a racist. "There they go again," as Reagan might have said. The economic lot for blacks and Hispanics improved far more than it did for whites after Reagan's steep tax cuts.

In late 1982, Reagan's second year in office, the unemployment rate for blacks was 20.4 percent. By 1989, his last year, the black unemployment rate had fallen to 11.4 percent -- a 9 percent drop. In late 1982, the unemployment rate for Hispanics was 15.3 percent. By 1989, it had fallen to 8 percent -- a drop of over 7 percentage points. White unemployment, by contrast, fell "only" 4 percentage points. What about black-owned businesses? In 1982, according to the Census Bureau, there were 308,000 black-owned businesses. By 1987, the number had increased to 424,000, up 38 percent. The number of all U.S. businesses was up "only" 14 percent. Receipts for black-owned businesses went from less than $10 billion to nearly $20 billion -- a 100 percent increase. Read full story here:

Elder: Reagan 100 Year Old Racist?

Saudis Can't Pump Enough Oil to Keep Lid on Oil Prices

From guardian.co.uk -The US fears that Saudi Arabia, the world's largest crude oil exporter, may not have enough reserves to prevent oil prices escalating, confidential cables from its embassy in Riyadh show. The cables, released by WikiLeaks, urge Washington to take seriously a warning from a senior Saudi government oil executive that the kingdom's crude oil reserves may have been overstated by as much as 300bn barrels – nearly 40%. The revelation comes as the oil price has soared in recent weeks to more than $100 a barrel on global demand and tensions in the Middle East. Many analysts expect that the Saudis and their Opec cartel partners would pump more oil if rising prices threatened to choke off demand. More here

Saudis Can't Pump Enough Oil to Keep Lid on Oil Prices

AOL Stock Sheds $315 Million Since Huffington Deal

From nypost.com -You pay for what you get. Arianna Huffington and Ken Lerer, co-founders of the Huffington Post, are said to be walking away with a combined $80 million to $100 million from an original $2 million per person investment -- but so far AOL stockholders aren't seeing that kind of return. Since Feb. 1, the price of AOL shares has dropped from $23.85 to $20.89 at yesterday's close. With 106.7 million shares outstanding, that means AOL has shed $315 million in value over the last five trading days -- which happens to be exactly the same price AOL agreed to pay to acquire HuffPo. More here

AOL Stock Sheds $315 Million Since Huffington Deal

Poll Shows Bingaman is a Lock for Re-election

From newmexicoindependent.com -Sen. Jeff Bingaman, who has not yet announced his decision on whether to run for re-election, leads major potential Republican candidates in a poll released by the Democratic polling firm Public Policy Polling. PPP showed that Bingaman had an extremely high approval rating: 56 percent approved of his job performance while just 27 percent disapproved, the fourth highest among senators polled in the last year by PPP. The poll shows that Bingaman would lead former Gov. Gary Johnson 51 percent to 40 percent, U.S. Rep. Steve Pearce 54 percent to 37 percent and former U.S. Rep. Heather Wilson 56 percent to 37 percent. The poll showed that Democratic U.S. Reps. Ben Ray Luján and Martin Heinrich would be in strong positions against Pearce and Wilson though would narrowly be behind Johnson in such a race. “Jeff Bingaman is a near lock for reelection,” said Dean Debnam, President of Public Policy Polling. “Gary Johnson could be competitive in an open seat situation but whether some of his unorthodox views would allow him to get the Republican nomination is a different question.” More here

Poll Shows Bingaman is a Lock for Re-election