If the Democratic Party is going to continue to grow and be strong for generations to come, it must include all New Mexicans. Sadly, its current leadership has forgotten that. That’s why I am asking my fellow JFK Democrats of New Mexico and all those who believe in bipartisanship for the betterment of our Hispanic community, the betterment of New Mexico and the betterment of the Democratic party – to rise and vote this election for candidates who will actually hear our voice, not the party that has pushed us away. – Former Democratic Governor Jerry Apodaca in an Albuquerque Journal op-ed on Sunday endorsing Republican Steve Pearce
The Crib Sheet is a collection of stories, events, and ideas that are shaping the conversation in New Mexico and D.C. politics.
[New Mexico]
- State District Judge Sarah Backus’ decision to release on bail the defendants arrested at the squalid compound on suspicion of training children for future school shootings has received a lot of backlash including death threats. It should be noted that her decision, while unpopular, is supposedly based on reformed bail laws that “raised the legal threshold for detaining suspects before trial” as approved by voters two years ago through a constitutional amendment. Michelle Lujan Grisham says those protections “may have been misapplied”.
- As expected Governor Gary Johnson jumped into the race for U.S. Senate. He spoke with reporters in Albuquerque earlier today.
- Land Commissioner Aubrey Dunn has turned down a proposal from the federal government to access state trust land. The government’s appraisal of the one mile stretch of land amounts to less than $9,000.
- Fallout from the Regional Coalition of LANL Communities organization’s ethical lapses continue to trickle. Andrea Romero, the group’s former executive director and current candidate for a seat in the House of Representatives, says she “absolutely demonstrated terrible judgment in suggesting reimbursement for any improper expenditure” and has since paid back thousands in improper reimbursements.
- The PRC is looking at ending fees that electrical customers in eastern New Mexico pay if they are owners of rooftop solar energy systems. Proponents of solar worry that if they fees are maintained other utilities like Public Service Company of New Mexico (my employer) and El Paso Electric would look to impose similar fees to their rooftop solar customers.
- Bernalillo County commissioners on Tuesday voted down a proposal called “Democracy Dollars” which calls for city voters and residents who are eligible to vote to “use $25 Democracy Dollars coupons to contribute to their choice of qualified candidates… to spend in support of their campaigns”. The ill-conceived idea would waste taxpayer money and do nothing to limit the amount of money spent in campaigns.
- New Mexico’s expansion United Soccer League franchise announced Tuesday that Troy Lesesne will serve as the club’s first head coach.
- Five companies based in New Mexico made Inc. 5000’s annual ranking of the fastest-growing private companies in the country.
[D.C.]
- If the Democrats are successful in flipping control of the House there are signs that Nancy Pelosi might not retake her position as Speaker.
- Mexican Economy Secretary Ildefonso Guajardo arrived in Washington yesterday amid renewed hope that President Trump “could be poised to make a deal with Mexico on NAFTA”.
- The Trump administration is set to unveil changes by the EPA that will ease “the planned limits on the pollution from power generators” such as coal power plants.
- The DNC is looking into allegations of domestic abuse by Congressman Keith Ellison, who serves as the group’s deputy chairman.
- Paul Manafort’s lawyers wrapped up Wednesday and the jury begins its deliberation today.
- The Washington Post has a captivating inside the Beltway profile of the Conways. What makes the piece so interesting is it provides an inside perspective into a household divided: Kellyanne Conway was Trump’s campaign manager and George Conway is a respected conservative lawyer and frequent Trump critic.
[Tech & Strategy]
- There is a fascinating long read in the New York Times about how Facebook and Google made their fortunes mining our personal data, and how successful “Big Tech” has been fighting those who wanted to stop them – until someone from “their own backyard” decided to speak out: “If people really knew what we had on them, the Google engineer said, they would flip out.”
- With the significant money and infrastructure Democrats have built up this cycle, why is so little of it dedicated to Hispanic outreach? The New Republic looks into why it seems Democrats are taking Hispanic voters for granted.
- The voter enthusiasm among Democratic voters is high enough that recent polls show it is “cutting into the GOP’s longstanding turnout advantage in midterm elections”.
[Culture]
- Scientists are looking into whether Native Americans in the New Mexico desert over 1,000 years ago bred scarlet macaws hundreds of miles from their native jungles. Details of their findings can be found in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
