Former NM House Speaker, Democrat Sheryl William Stapleton Reads Warrant Courtesy of KOB / Pinon Post

Corruption, New Mexico’s Recent History

When I moved to New Mexico in 1980, I was a Democrat. Within a few years, I switched parties because I was disgusted by reading in the Albuquerque Journal about Democrat Governor Tony Anaya’s “Pay to Play” schemes. In 1984, Bill Richardson was sworn in as New Mexico’s Governor. Richardson quickly made Anaya’s “Pay to Play” look like child’s play.

For veteran Republicans, Richardson’s corruption and ruthlessness are legendary and unforgettable. For younger Republicans, the name Richardson means little. Why? because Richardson was never prosecuted (Gov. Bill Richardson Won’t Face Criminal Charges In Federal Probe, AP Reports, NPR 8/27/2019) , and New Mexicans expect a certain amount of graft.

While New Mexico is stuck in quicksand

Sun Setting on New Mexico Photograph by Mick Rich 12.06.2022
I told Marion this past week that I feel the world is passing me by. While Donald Trump and Generation Z are in Washington, D.C., lifting the nation, I am in Albuquerque with New Mexico stuck at the bottom and Generation Z locked out.

America
The accomplishments of the Greatest Generation cannot be overstated. They won WW II by creating an industrial complex that provided ships, airplanes, and tanks to free countries across the globe while providing the men necessary to win battles on the seas, the air, and land. They ushered in the nuclear and space ages, culminating in mankind's landing on the moon. However, their successes left an environmental crisis.

Pardons were to right injustices not to escape justice   

In the 1930s, Lead Belly and the Golden Gate Quartet recorded “The Midnight Special”

The Power of the Presidential Pardon: A Legacy of Justice and Controversy

The Founding Fathers granted the President the power to issue pardons, likely envisioning it as a means to correct unjust verdicts and sentences. Historically, those most in need of this mercy were often hardworking individuals without the wealth or influence to challenge the system. The folk song Midnight Special, which emerged from Southern prisons in the early 1900s, encapsulated this hope: "Piece of paper in her hand. She come to see the gov’nor. She wants to free her man, lord."

A Personal Perspective on Pardons

Lessons Learned for the Reconstruction of Los Angeles County

The 2000 Cerro Grande Fire in Los Alamos County, New Mexico, offers critical insights for understanding and responding to the 2024 Palisades and Eaton Fires in Los Angeles County, California. Both events forced residents to flee their homes, presenting valuable lessons on disaster response and recovery.

The Cerro Grande Fire

The Cerro Grande Fire began at Bandelier National Monument due to a poorly managed controlled burn initiated by an inexperienced supervisor. Despite dry conditions, low humidity, and high winds—common in New Mexico's spring—the control burn proceeded, quickly spiraling out of control. Within ten days, the fire burned 43,000 acres and destroyed 235 homes.

When I heard someone say, "I can't believe we will have a convicted felon as President," I was prepared with a few simple questions: What do you know about Federal Election Commission regulations, business accounting, or legal settlements? Unsurprisingly, the response was silence."

The FEC does not recognize hush money as a campaign contribution.

While I am not an FEC attorney, I have signed enough FEC reports to understand that payments like those made to Stormy Daniels cannot be classified as campaign expenses.

In 2018, we purchased an off-highway recreational vehicle (OHRV) for backcountry travel and my U.S. Senate campaign. Because the OHRV wasn't solely for campaign use, its purchase cost couldn't be charged to the campaign. However, we did charge the campaign for mileage and daily use when it was used for the campaign. I reimbursed the campaign for the initial expense.

The 2024 State Central Committee
Republican Party of New Mexico
5150 San Francisco Rd. NE, Suite A
Albuquerque, NM 87109

 Subject:        State Central Committee Convention 12.07.2024   

Reference:   Election of Officers

Good afternoon:

First, thank you all for your hard work and dedication to the Republican Party of New Mexico and your efforts to turn our state red. Second, despite all your hard work, we went from once holding the Second Congressional District, Governor’s, Secretary of State’s, and Land Commissioner’s offices and a majority in the U.S. House in 2018, 2022, and 2024 to have the NM GOP completely shut out of Congress and the NM Executive Branch and relegated to minority party status in the NM legislature.

 New Mexico has been blessed with a temperate climate, blue skies, vast open spaces, beautiful landscapes, rich culture, one of the largest oil and gas reserves in the world and an absence of natural disasters. Yet,  WalletHub listed the 10 worst US states to live in based on five key metrics. It assessed each state's affordability, economy, education and health, quality of life, and safety. Louisiana was ranked the worst state to live in, followed by New Mexico.

Donald Trump, “I love Hispanics”

My observations of the Trump Rally began a mile north of Sunport Boulevard on I-25 until Donald J. Trump left the podium. It took a day to collect my thoughts and put them on paper.

My Observations of the Trump Rally

 APD Vehicle and damaged Trump rally-goer vehicle blocking an Intersection

It took me almost four hours to get to the Trump rally, and I expected it would be longer for most rally-goers. Why did it take so long to get to the venue in Albuquerque when it took a quarter of the time to get to the rally in Rio Rancho? Mayor Keller denied President Trump access to the Albuquerque Convention Center (which has excellent access and parking). Governor Lujan-Grisham's New Mexico State Police and Mayor Keller’s Albuquerque Police Department brought chaos from Albuquerque’s neighborhoods into every intersection on the road into the rally. Land Commissioner Garcia-Richards denied rally-goers access to the Isleta Amphitheater parking lot. Despite the delays, I only saw a few cars drive away.