SUPCO starts marriage equality hearings

Same-sex marriage will be at the forefront again in New Mexico as the state's supreme court takes on whether or not licenses should be legal statewide. 

Earlier in 2013, several county clerks came forward one by one deciding on their own whether or not to issue same-sex marriage licenses. A lot of clerks were ordered to do so because of lawsuits against them, claiming it was unconstitutional to deny same-sex couples the right to wed.

As of October 2013, Dona Ana, Taos, Santa Fe, San Miguel, Valencia and Bernalillo counties allowed licenses. 

Each of the counties had a firestorm of couples show up the first day they allowed licenses. Yet, many people still felt it was necessary for the supreme court to make a formal ruling for New Mexico as a whole. 

The supreme court agreed, and decided to have the first of several discussions today. 

SUPCO starts marriage equality hearings

Could United States use a ‘Silent Cal’ Coolidge now?

From Capitol Report New Mexico - By Rob Nikolewski │ New Mexico Watchdog -  He never had his image carved on Mount Rushmore and he was best-known as a man of few words but thanks to a surprising best-selling book, Calvin Coolidge is getting an historical makeover. And with the United States staggering under a $1- billion national debt, perhaps “Silent Cal” can offer some lessons for modern-day politicians.
     “We can’t imagine having a conservative hero like Coolidge who would cut the budget but that’s because our interest rates are so low,” said Amity Shlaes, the author of “Coolidge,” which landed for seven weeks on the New York Times best-seller list. “When the interest rate goes back 6 percent, you know what? Americans will be looking for someone with the authority to cut the deficit, (with) the confidence, the willingness to do the hard thing and people like Coolidge will be models.”
     It seems every politician — whether in Coolidge’s times or today — is afraid to say no to increased spending. But the man from New England who became president during “The Roaring ’20s” afterWarren G. Harding died and handily won election in the 1924 presidential campaign, didn’t seem to mind if people called him parsimonious, tight-fisted or cheap. In fact, he relished it.
     Slaes points out that Coolidge vetoed some 50 bills during his five years in office and as vice president and president managed to slash the national debt from its post-World War I level of $27 billion to $17.65 billion by the time he famously announced, “I do not choose to run” for re-election in 1928. “He was a silent New Englander,” said Slaes, who appeared in Albuquerque on Monday, signed books and spoke at a luncheon sponsored by the Rio Grande Foundation. “The main thing to know about Coolidge is that he cut the budget as president. He didn’t just reduce the growth, he actually cut it and (he did) this over a long period. He’s an unknown president from the 1920s, but he did that thing that we want to do (now).” More

Could United States use a ‘Silent Cal’ Coolidge now?

Goodbye OPEC, Hello Independence

Commentary by Marita Noon - www.energymakesamericagreat.org - October 17 was the fortieth anniversary of the oil embargo slapped on America by the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC). That action changed the entire geopolitical map—taking the power from the United States and giving it to the Middle East. As a result of the embargo, the price of gasoline quadrupled, gas stations had multi-hour long lines, and the stock market plummeted—kicking off a serious recession.
     My entire driving life has been impacted by OPEC’s actions. On October 17, 1973, I was 15—days away from turning 16. I got my driver’s license on my sixteenth birthday. It was a different world prior to the embargo. America was the dominant player in the energy market—supplying 63 percent of the world’s oil at the beginning of World War II—and had surplus supply. The surplus neutered OPEC’s previous embargo attempts in 1956 and 1967, as the U.S. was able to fill the demand gap OPEC created.
     It wasn't the embargo itself that changed the dynamic, but the timing of it. U.S. oil production peaked in 1970 and declined sharply in the subsequent years. When OPEC chose to use oil as a diplomatic weapon in 1973, America was no longer the swing producer with the ability to fill in the gaps. We’d become increasingly dependent on suppliers from the oil-rich Middle East. Scarcity was our reality.
     To punish the U.S. for supporting Israel in the Yom Kippur War, OPEC banned oil exports to the U.S. and, eventually, other countries. OPEC then reduced production by 5 percent per month until the embargo ended in March of 1974.
     While the social, political, and economic impacts of the embargo have been harsh, there’s also a silver lining: North American producers were forced to find new ways to explore for and produce hydrocarbons—and those technologies and techniques developed by individuals and industry have, once again, changed the geopolitical equation.
     The 1973 OPEC oil embargo revealed a serious weakness in America’s energy and national security. Read full column

Goodbye OPEC, Hello Independence

Train hauling cars crashes near Socorro

Photo: Kevin Cobble/Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Refuge.

From KRQE-TV.com - by Bill Diven - SOCORRO, N.M. (KRQE) - A freight train with new automobiles in its manifest derailed early Saturday scattering auto haulers along the main line south of Socorro. No injuries or hazardous materials were reported in the crash that happened on the BNSF Railway 18 miles south of Socorro around 5 a.m.
     New Mexico State Police reported early indications a broken rail may have caused the initial derailment with additional rail cars jackknifing against that wreckage. A railroad spokesman later said it's unclear if the rail broke before or because of the derailment.
     Photos from the scene show about 20 freight cars stacked up in the foothills above the Rio Grande floodplain and Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Preserve. Many of them are two- or three-deck auto haulers that can carry as many as two dozen smaller cars each.
     Battered Volkswagens were visible inside some of the cars.
      A refuge spokesperson said operations there were not directly affected although a section of State Road 1 leading from south of the visitors center to near Interstate 25 was closed.
     Refuge personnel also were working with railroad contractors to minimize environmental damage and any threats to wildlife from cleaning up the wreck and repairing the track.
     The train originated in El Paso on Saturday and was headed to the railroad's freight yard in Belen. More

Train hauling cars crashes near Socorro

Swickard: Not a single political argument left

© 2013 Michael Swickard, Ph.D. “If you can't answer a man's arguments, all is not lost; you can still call him vile names.”Elbert Hubbard - My last column pleased some readers while angering others. So I got lots of email. There was a commonality in the angry ones who always started by calling me a racist. Then they labeled me an extreme Republican Fox News wacko. Sorry, I am neither a Republican nor a Fox News viewer.
     Typical was: “You miserable misleading republican bigot racist moron.”  For some reason they make it personal. Some even slurred my dog Conrad. He did not mind and replied, “To know me is to love me, I must be a helleva dog…” Conrad stole that from a Mac Davis song. But it is true.
     And I am fine with personal attacks. Former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher noted, “I always cheer up immensely if an attack is particularly wounding because I think, well, if they attack one personally, it means they have not a single political argument left.”
     Very few of the angry ones did more than call me vile names. A couple of readers did mention the arguments in my column. For that I am grateful. I agreed with one that I should not call the president names. That does not mean I should not oppose his actions.
     Some who wrote were tickled I said what they had been thinking. Great! But others called me a poopy head. They shouted as loud as they could (in writing) but did not take on my concern that this president had been acting in a mean-spirited manner.
     What no one answered is why this president needs to make it harder on all Americans just because he is sore at the Republicans in Congress. They made him mad and if he wants to talk smack with them, be my guest. If he wants to make it hard on the Republicans in Congress, that is his prerogative.
But America has well over 300 million citizens. Of that number approximately 200 million Americans are eligible to vote. Around 50 million are Republicans and 70 million are Democrats. Obviously many Americans are not registered to vote. Hurt those Republicans and not 90 year old veterans.
     This president should not attempt to hurt all Americans just out of spite and anger at the Congressional Republicans. Leave the rest of us out of the punishment. Read full column

Swickard: Not a single political argument left

Teachers speak out for, against PED changes

From KOB-TV.com - By: Ryan Luby, KOB Eyewitness News 4 - For the first time, a few New Mexico teachers were willing to air their criticism and support of changes put in place by the state’s Public Education Department, or PED.
     Beginning this school year, PED implemented new teacher evaluation procedures that will complement new end of course exams for New Mexico students. There appears to be growing support for an attack against PED led by Albuquerque Public Schoolsboard member Kathy Korte. 4 On Your Side first reported on Korte’s efforts earlier this month.
     “Well, I think one alternative is to slow it down,” Albuquerque teacher Adam Amador said in an interview with KOB Eyewitness News 4. Amador supports Korte’s efforts. He agreed that New Mexico’s educational system needs improvement, but said the new testing and teacher evaluations fail to adequately address economic and cultural influences in the classroom.
     “Data and research shows that [students] don't do well on tests when they don't know where they're going to sleep, and where we don't know where they're coming from,” Amador said.
      Meanwhile, Lisa Todd, another Albuquerque teacher, voiced support for the PED changes. She said any change is long overdue. Todd is especially supportive of the new teacher evaluations. She said teachers, administrators, and parents need to give PED a chance to implement the changes. More

Teachers speak out for, against PED changes

Sen. Howie Morales joins race for NM governor

State Senator Howie Morales

From the Alamogordo Daily News - by Milan Simonich - State Sen. Howie Morales of Silver City entered the race for governor on Wednesday, meaning the Democratic primary election will be at least a three-way competition.
     Morales said he is taking a leave from his job as a hospital administrator so that he can campaign fulltime. He acknowledged that he was entering the race a bit late, but said the seven months between now and the primary election would be ample. At 40, Morales is among the younger state legislators, but he said his campaign for governor was not intended simply to become better known.
     Morales has a Ph.D. in education and spent the first part of his working life as a teacher. He also has been a baseball coach and a Grant County clerk. Morales has been a state senator since 2008, originally appointed to the seat by then-governor Bill Richardson.
     Two other Democrats have been in the governor's race for months. They are state Sen. Linda Lopez of Albuquerque and state Attorney General Gary King. Throughout summer, Morales positioned himself as an alternative for a party unexcited by Lopez or King.
     Morales said he received encouragement from people who could envision the Lopez or King providing tough competition for Martinez in next year's general election. More

Sen. Howie Morales joins race for NM governor

Film office says project permits have doubled

The popular "Breaking Bad" television series that was filmed in Albuquerque may be over, but interest in the city as a filming destination is on the rise. 

The Albuquerque film office says it processed 23 permits for various productions last week, more than double seen in a typical week. 

Mayor Richard Berry says the uptick in interest is evidence of the city's success in creating a film-friendly environment. The permits are used to enable filming in public areas while minimizing their impact on traffic, emergency services and neighborhoods. 

There are currently five large productions in Albuquerque and numerous smaller ones, the city says, including the thriller "Big Sky" starring Kyra Sedgwick, "La Vida Robot" with George Lopez and Jamie Lee Curtis and two network television series, "Night Shift" and "Killer Women."

Film office says project permits have doubled

Clements announces run for Senate

Clements

Dona Ana County Republican Party chairman David Clements has announced his candidacy for the U.S. Senate seat held by Democrat Tom Udall. 

Clements, an assistant district attorney in Las Cruces, said in a statement Tuesday that he will focus his candidacy on "advancing free market policies that allow small businesses to create jobs, balancing the federal budget and fighting to preserve the privacy rights of New Mexicans." 

He described himself as a "constitutional conservative and economics enthusiast." Clements said "career politicians" like Udall "have created a culture of dependency in New Mexico." 

Clements is the only declared GOP candidate running for the Senate seat that Udall won in 2008.

Clements announces run for Senate

Gov. and candidates release campaign reports

Gov. Martinez

Republican Gov. Susana Martinez's re-election campaign reports raising $2.1 million during the last six months. 

The campaign released a fundraising summary Tuesday that showed it with a cash balance of nearly $3.3 million as of Oct. 7. The campaign spent about $345,000 from April through earlier this month.

 Candidates for state office and political committees face a deadline Tuesday to submit campaign finance reports to the secretary of state's office. 

No fundraising reports were immediately available for the two Democrats who have announced plans to run for governor — Attorney General Gary King and state Sen. Linda Lopez of Albuquerque. 

Martinez spent almost $7 million in the 2010 primary and general elections. 

Information from the Associated Press. 

Gov. and candidates release campaign reports