(Updated) NM-03: A Tough Situation

5.21.08 UPDATE: I changed my mind about the campaign of Benny Shendo, Jr. See my later post.
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I'm gonna be honest. I have a hard time writing about the Dem primary race in NM-03 up north. I get many emails, phone calls, whispers and blog comments about the problems of the other candidates and the strengths of the one being pushed. I get fact sheets and complaints from the various candidates about the other candidates and how they are running their races. I just can't seem to make a firm decision to support one candidate to the detriment of some of the others and go at it with the passion of commitment.

Why? One reason is that I think we have more than one candidate with the qualities needed to be a top-notch member of Congress. Each of the top three contenders has strengths and weaknesses, of course, but I think the core values and talents of Don Wiviott, Ben R. Luján, Jr. and Benny Shendo, Jr. are all impressive. That's why I'm sad that the race seems to be heading irrevocably into negative-land in the final weeks of the campaign.

Negativity to the Forefront
You could say Wiviott's campaign started the negative trend with his new ad critical of Luján's experience and credentials, but negative stuff has been flying under the radar for many moons now, from all three of the campaigns. All three have had surrogates or campaign people out there ragging on the others for indiscretions real or imagined. There's some truth in any number of the criticisms leveled, but that's true with almost any candidate in any race. Most of them have screwed up in the past in some way. They're human. They aren't saints -- they're ambitious and complicated people even if they're new to politics.

So far, I don't see anything in any of the criticisms of Wiviott, Luján or Shendo that amounts to proof they wouldn't or couldn't do a good job in Washington representing NM-03 and Democratic values. If I consider each of them as individuals, I see mostly positives. Strong positives. So I don't feel like taking any potshots. That's my conundrum.

Wiviott
I've had an opportunity to interact with Don Wiviott since way back when he had the courage to run against Domenici for Senate when nobody else would. I've grown to like and respect him, and to admire his way of thinking about problem solving and bringing change. I like the passion, personal committment and, yes, personal dollars he's put on the line in this race. It's evident that he believes in a set of values that matches my own in many ways. And that he also sincerely believes he's the best person to represent them in Washington. He's not holding back. He's making some very personal sacrifices to run, and his positions have generally been strong and unspun, especially on the Iraq war. I think he's a can-do guy and he doesn't owe anything to special interest donors.

Luján
Ben Ray Luján has similar strengths. Yes, we all know he's Speaker Luján's son. Yes we all know that he's gotten help from his father's colleagues and friends. But by all accounts -- this from people whose judgment I truly trust -- he's done a fantastic job on the PRC and is one smart, hard-working, passionately committed Democrat with a deeply rooted, heart-felt love of New Mexico and New Mexicans. Almost everyone who's worked with him seems to have only good things to say, at least to me. He's the kind of politico that people seem to take to, and trust. He's warm and determined. He cares. He sees our future challenges much as I do. I think he'd work his heart out in the job.

Shendo
Then there's Shendo. Who wouldn't be excited about a progressive Dem from Jemez Pueblo running a person-to-person grassroots campaign? Shendo has strongly liberal views on most issues and isn't afraid to say so. He speaks his truth clearly, with confidence. Sure, he's an underdog in terms of political or financial clout, but he's making his mark in this race with a vengeance. I don't count him out and I'm excited about his prospects in the future. He can bring hope to many without a voice in government, and he seems dedicated to doing just that. I applaud him.

Why the Confession?
Why am I telling you all this? Because I just can't get down in the trenches on this one and repeat the latest mudslinging and the latest retorts. You can read that elsewhere and make up your own mind about what's important and what's not. Me, I'm gonna try to keep covering the race as fairly as I can without dipping into the negativity that's erupted and surely will continue until June 3rd. There's a part of me that's glad I don't really have to make a final choice and vote for one of them over the others.

All I can really do is hope that the folks up in the Third District vote with their brains and their hearts to the best of their abilities. One way or the other, I think we're gonna have a wonderful new Congressman in NM-03. And that's a very good thing.

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