Democracy for New Mexico

NM-Sen: Tom Udall to Speak Next Wednesday at Dem Convention

The DNC reports that Rep. Tom Udall will be speaking at the Dem Convention in Denver next Wednesday. Udall will join New York Sen. Chuck Schumer, who heads the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee (DSCC), and Maine Rep. Tom Allen, former New Hampshire Gov. Jeanne Shaheen and Oregon state House Speaker Jeff Merkley on the third night of the convention, which has a national security theme. The headline speech that evening will come from Obama's running mate, whoever that may be.

"As a proud Westerner and candidate for United States Senate, it is my honor to take part in this historic Convention for change," said Udall. "In my home state of New Mexico and around the nation, it's clear that voters will have a choice between leaders who will fight for our middle class and do what's right no matter what, or those who choose to stand for the same failed policies of the past."

All four Dems who'll be joining Schumer on stage are running for Senate seats this cycle -- in four of the premier Senate races in the nation. Jeanne Shaheen is challenging Sen. John Sununu in New Hampshire. Tom Allen is trying to unseat Sen. Susan Collins in Maine. Jeff Merkley, ironically enough, is challenging Sen. Gordon Smith -- a cousin of Tom Udall -- in Oregon. And, of course, Tom Udall is going up against Repub Steve Pearce to capture the Senate seat in New Mexico that's being vacated by Pete Domenici.

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McCain: All Black and White and Dishonest in Las Cruces

I was offered press credentials for today's town hall meeting with McCain in Las Cruces but decided it wasn't worth the gas money to hear the gas bag insist, once again, that he's not who he really is. Awe shucks, McCain would like us to think he's just one of the people and moderate to boot. But let's face it, McCain is a pandering rich guy who's grown long in the tooth in the dark heart of Washington. He's surrounded by syncophants and lobbyists for corporations and foreign powers. He owns, what it is, six houses? He can't quite grasp that the surge hasn't "worked" because the stated goal of the surge has not been met -- political reconcilation in Iraq and its government.

The vast majority of McCain's positions are to the extreme right -- not in line with the mainstream of the nation. He voted in favor of Bush policies more than 90% of the time. And yet he has the nerve to claim he's an independent, a moderate, a maverick. If by maverick you mean a stubborn old bull that runs wild trampling truth, then he's a maverick. Get this quote by Johnny about Obama rightly accusing him of questioning his patriotism:

“Let me be very clear: I am not questioning his patriotism. I am questioning his judgment. Senator Obama has made it clear he values withdrawal from Iraq above victory in Iraq,” McCain said. “He has made these decisions not because he doesn’t love America but because he doesn’t think it matters whether America wins or loses.”

Earth to McCain: America has lost and there is no "victory" to be had. There is only getting out in a manner that mitigates further damage, as much as possible, to all involved. I know complexities and ambiguities like that don't jibe with the game-day rah rah mentality of black and white thinkers like McCain, but the days of America winning anything by invading and occupying Iraq for years -- at a cost of $2-3 BILLION a week -- is long past, if it ever existed.

This isn't a football game. The situation in the region isn't cut and dried or uni-dimensional, so the only reasonable way out seems beyond McCain's ability to comprehend. You either win or you lose in McCain's world. He sees foreign policy like a body-contact sport, where grunting willfulness can win the day. Except that this is at least a three dimensional chess game.

McCain likes brute force, not nuanced strategies and diplomacy. He doesn't get the big picture -- only the scrimmage in front of him. It's one of his biggest weaknesses. An ability to focus only on what's directly in from of you can be a big help to a person in a prison cell -- but it certainly isn't what we need in a leader at a time like this. This is an era when swirling complexities mean that fine lines and artful analysis may well make all the difference. Those aren't McCain's strong suits, in any way, shape or form. He reads his note cards. He mouths the buzz words. He blusters and winks. He panders and smirks. But he doesn't really know jack about what's going on in the world today, what it means or how to fix it.

NM-02: Teague Up First With TV Ad

"Values"

Harry Teague, our Dem candidate for Congress in NM-02 down South, has the first TV ad up (see above) in the general election cycle in the race against the GOP's Ed Tinsley. I think Harry does a great job in the ad directly addressing viewers in an honest, genuine way. The ad is part of a campaign that will highlight Harry's compelling life story and long record of accomplishments. The advertising will be on district-wide broadcast and cable TV, as well as English and Spanish language radio stations. 

"To tell the voters where I want to take our country, first I need to tell them where I came from," said Teague. "I started working for $1.50 an hour at the age of 17 to support my family when my father became ill and he had no health insurance. From that beginning, I created a company that employs over 250 people. I know what it is like to go without health care and no one should have to experience that – that's why I give my employees health care, free college tuition and good wages. These things I've done as a businessman are the same things I want to do for middle class families in New Mexico."

To can also view the TV ad (titled "Values") at Teague's campaign website. The full transcript of the TV ad is below.

"Values" 60 Second Script:

HARRY TEAGUE:  At 17 I went to work in the oil fields to help support my family and the values that I learned then ...

V/O: Harry Teague

HARRY TEAGUE: You're part of a team…and that we're all in this together…are still helping me today.

V/O: Looking back, Harry Teague understands the values he brings to the work place and to family started right here in Southern New Mexico making ends meet.

That's why he provides health care for co-workers and their families and scholarships for them and their children to keep opportunity here in New Mexico.

All his life Harry Teague has worked to bring people together…to get things done.

HARRY TEAGUE: Our professional politicians have their values upside down…its time to change that…this is our New Mexico.

V/O: Harry Teague will listen to us and go to Washington and put New Mexico first.  Not just a change in direction, a change in values.

Harry Teague ... Standing up for New Mexico.

HARRY TEAGUE: I'm Harry Teague, I approve this message because I believe in old fashion family values…hard work and giving back to my community.

End Script.

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NM-03: Democracy for America Endorses Lujan

Jim Dean and Ben Ray Luján at recent DFA Campaign Training in ABQ

Congratulations, Ben Ray -- Our Next Congressman from New Mexico's Third District!

From Democracy for America: BURLINGTON, VT – DemocracyForAmerica.com, our nation’s largest progressive political action community, has endorsed Ben Ray Luján’s campaign to represent New Mexico’s 3rd Congressional District.

“Ben Ray Luján is a committed public servant with a deserved reputation as a forward thinking problem solver and Democracy for America is proud to endorse his campaign,” said Jim Dean, Chair of DFA.  “Ben Ray Luján is running for his constituents, New Mexicans, and all Americans and will be a loud voice for progressive solutions.”

Democracy for America is a key endorsement in this race, bringing donations from progressives and providing volunteers to participate in door-to-door, grassroots outreach. DFA has helped elect over 550 progressives to office from Governor Deval Patrick in Massachusetts to Rep. Jerry McNerney in California’s 11th Congressional District.

"I’m honored to receive the endorsement of Democracy for America. They play an important role in organizing and activating voters around the country,” said Ben Ray Lujan.  “Grassroots organizing has made a huge difference in my campaign, and I look forward to working with Democracy for America to empower voters."

As a New Mexico Public Regulation Commissioner and a former chairman of the Commission, Ben Ray Luján has a proven record of standing up for New Mexico to create real change.

As a leading proponent of renewable energy, Commissioner Luján has worked to increase renewable energy production by New Mexico utilities to 20 percent of their total production by 2020.  He also pushed to diversify the renewable portfolio to include solar energy.  With his colleagues in California, Oregon and Washington, Luján signed on to the Joint Action Framework on Climate Change on behalf of the state of New Mexico to create regional solutions for global warming. Luján also took on health insurance companies by working to close loopholes that allowed insurance companies to unfairly deny medical claims.

In Congress, Ben Ray Luján will work for solutions to the energy crisis, an economy that works for the middle class, affordable, accessible health care for all New Mexicans and an end to the war in Iraq.

“With an economy in freefall, gas prices rising by the day, and the seemingly endless engagement in Iraq, we need someone with Ben Ray Luján’s experience and judgment in Washington,” said Arshad Hasan, Executive Director of DFA. “Ben Ray Luján will stand up for the working men and women who’ve been left behind by the failed policies of George Bush and John McCain. Ben Ray Luján will be a champion for our brave men and women in uniform and for our veterans.”

The Albuquerque DFA-DFNM Meetup group is loosely affiliated with Democracy for America, located in Burlington, VT. The present-day DFA evolved out of the Dean for America campaign and is chaired by Jim Dean, Howard's brother.

Democracy for America is our nation's largest progressive political action community. With over 725,000 members nationwide, DFA is a grassroots powerhouse working to change our country and the Democratic Party from the bottom-up. DFA provides campaign training, organizing resources, and media exposure so members have the power to support progressive issues and candidates up and down the ballot.

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(Updated) Reminder: Howard Dean & Register for Change Tour in NM Tomorrow

As I posted previously, DNC Chair Howard Dean will be in New Mexico tomorrow, Thursday, August 21, with the Register for Change Tour bus. He'll be joined by Jill Cooper-Udall (Tom's wife), Derek Fisher of the LA Lakers and actor Kal Penn. Come on down to greet Howard and company, register to vote if you haven't yet done so and pick up some good vibes from an excited crowd of Dems:

Dean & Register for Change, Thursday, August 21:

• Santa Fe, NM: 10:15 AM, Casa Solano Shopping Center Parking Lot, Alameda Street & St Francis
• Sandia Pueblo, NM: 1:00 PM,Sandia Library
• Albuquerque, NM: 3:15 PM, Albuquerque Campaign for Change Office Parking Lot, 3523 Central Avenue

Click for flyer (doc). Unfortunately, the stop originally scheduled for Santo Domingo Pueblo has been cancelled. The Tour will stop at Sandia Pueblo instead.

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Personal Countdown to Denver

Denver Auditorium, site of 1908 Dem Convention,
the last time Denver hosted it

I'm finding it difficult to keep up my posts on local politics when there's so much preparation and planning to complete before heading off to Denver this Friday for the Democratic National Convention. We're expecting chaos no matter how much we manage to nail things down, and we're way behind on nailing things down.

I'm beginning to think that delegates have it easy. All they have to do is show up and allow themselves to be shepherded around, from the Albuquerque Sunport to DIA to the direct shuttle to their hotel, to the official events and parties. They're handed info packets and vouchers, maps and schedules, and they're all staying together at a hotel not far from the Pepsi Center, Convention Center and Mile High. They can focus on enjoying the events they attend. That's their job. Of course the downside is that they won't have anywhere near the freedom we'll have in Denver. We can go almost anywhere, anytime, following our curiosity wherever it leads. Or we can just sit still and watch the crowds passing by.

Still, it can be daunting to consider the challenges to be faced by the blogger contingent. We'll have to solve a myriad of technical and logistical problems, find the events we want to cover among a confusing array of calendars and listings, shoot the video and photos, take the notes and come up with story ideas. We'll have to write the stories and take the time to get everything uploaded with a variety of tools, some of them fairly complicated and new to us. We'll be dependent on phone and net connections that might be overwhelmed because so many other people will be trying to do the same thing at the same time. We've even been warned that Denver may experience brownouts because of the massive increase in power usage, especially if the weather is hot.

Quite a difference from the Pepsi Center,
and no TV cameras or net access

Blogger Logistics
As members of the DNC State Blogger Corps, our status is rather ambiguous. We're not delegates, yet we'll be sitting with our New Mexico delegation on the floor of the Pepsi Center. We're not really press either -- we don't have the support of any media outfit -- but we'll have media credentials and we've been receiving numerous emails that pertain to things that have nothing to do with bloggers. I'm still not positive we can ride the shuttles that will carry delegates to and from their hotels and around town, because we aren't delegates.

The NM delegation will be staying at the Crowne Plaza hotel in downtown Denver. We'll be staying where the DNC housing office assigned us -- about 35 minutes away (in normal traffic, which we won't have) in something called the Crosslands Economy Studios in Aurora out towards the airport. That means we really can't go back to our room during the day to rest, drop stuff off, change clothes, write, recharge batteries for our gear or upload files. We've been encouraged to attend and cover NM's delegate breakfasts -- which start at about 7:00 AM each day -- so we'll have to leave our room at some ungodly hour and we won't return until late at night. That means we'll have to lug everything with us all day and into the night.

At a minimum, Mary Ellen and I will each have a laptop, digital camera, Flip Video, cables, battery charger, spare batteries, extension cord and cell phone. Probably a jacket or sweater, rain poncho, water and munchy food. Of course we can't take the water or munchy food into the Pepsi Center -- there's a page-long list of items that aren't allowed.

We've seen schedules that claim the official events in the Pepsi Center will begin anywhere from 3:00 PM to 6:00 PM each day. We still don't know which is right. To get in, we'll first have to work our way through several layers of security perimeters we've heard will begin a couple blocks out. We have to pick up a new credential each day downtown. The delegates get theirs each day at their hotel, where they also will receive various info and tickets for other events and parties. We're on our own in that regard. We hear the media will have access to a bunch of gatherings, but we don't know which ones yet. Almost no parking. Many major streets, and even I-25, will be closed at times. Cabs will be scarce.

We're Anxious, But Really, Really Excited
I know, it sounds like I'm whining, and I guess I am to some extent. We're leaving in a couple days so we're feeling just a bit nervous and overwhelmed. But make no mistake about it, we're also incredibly excited and feeling really lucky to be the recipients of blogger credentials that will give us unprecedented access to the action. We still have to pinch ourselves at times. And I guess that's part of the pressure we're feeling too -- we want to do a great job of providing coverage to you and people, literally, around the world. We've been given a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and we want to perform at our very best -- but still leave time to have some fun.

I wish we knew more about the conditions under which we'll be operating. I keep having this dream that all the power goes off in Denver and stays that way for a good long time, causing fumbling and confusion galore. We're keeping our fingers crossed.

I'm glad we purchased passes to what's known as The Big Tent, created by bloggers for bloggers. It'll probably serve as our main sanctuary when we aren't at other events. It's a couple of blocks away from the Pepsi Center and will be filled with geeks and writers from all over the country who will certainly know more than we do if our equipment goes haywire. The Big Tent will offer daily food, drink, camaraderie, moral support, wi-fi, speakers, panels, entertainment, live feeds from the Convention and workspace all week -- for the measley sum of $100 per person. They even have yoga in the mornings.

As part of the DNC's state blogger corps, we'll have more connection with our delegation, more deals and more access to official events than others who are going up there independently, either for blogging, protesting or side events. We should be counting our blessings instead of venting our anxieties, right? Well, there's a time for everything. The anxieties are coming out now; the awe and joy will come later. No doubt about it.

Check in Often
Keep coming back for video, photos, stories and anecdotes about the Convention from now until Obama is offically nominated before 75,000+ people at Mile High Stadium on Thursday night, rain or shine. If we can work out all the technical, geeky details as we go along!

Support Us If You Can
If you still haven't donated to help us cover our expenses, I hope you'll click on the orange "Donate" button on the upper left-hand side of the page. We have to cover more than a week of hotel bills, food and gas. We each paid $100 for Big Tent passes. We've purchased Flip Videos, a new digital camera, extra memory cards, a MacBook to replace my olden Dell PC, extra cell phone service, various wires, cables and gizmos and a few bags to carry it all in. Our time and energy is donated too.

If you like reading our blog, please support us financially, either by donating or purchasing ads, and please do the same for New Mexico FBIHOP. Matt has been running up gas bills like crazy covering the campaigns, and he's also heading up to Denver this weekend. We need your help now. Big shout out of thanks to all of you who've already contributed -- or who'll click that button now.

Click on photos for larger images. Click to see additional Convention photos at the DNCC website.

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David Rovics Brings His Political Folk Music to AirDance AirSpace Tonight

Singer/songwriter David Rovics is playing Wednesday night, August 20, at 8 PM at the AirDance AirSpace at 3030 Isleta SW in Albuquerque. Rovics presents a political array of folk music that's gotten praise from many quarters.

David Rovics has been called the musical voice of the progressive movement in the US. Amy Goodman has called him "the musical version of Democracy Now! Since the mid-90's, Rovics has spent most of his time on the road, playing hundreds of shows every year at massive rallies throughout North America and Europe and at thousands of conferences, college campuses and folk clubs throughout the world. He has shared the stage regularly with famed individuals such as Noam Chomsky, Howard Zinn, Ralph Nader, Dennis Kucinich, Billy Bragg, the Indigo Girls, Martin Sheen, and Susan Sarandon. More importantly, folks say he's really good. He will make you laugh, he will make you cry, and he will make the revolution irresistible. David also has over 200 songs for free download on his website, www.davidrovics.com.

Dems to Protest Failed Bush-McCain Policies in Las Cruces Tomorrow

Things you might not know about McCain's economic policies ... and his wealth

John McCain will be holding a town hall meeting at the New Mexico State University Pan American Center Gym Annex in Las Cruces tomorrow starting at 10:00 AM. No doubt he'll be doing what he always does at such events -- launching underhanded personal attacks at Obama, pretending to be against the unpopular and damaging Bush policies he has long supported and generally trying to be something he's not. In other words, he'll be trying to convince people that he's offering fresh answers to new challenges when all he's really doing is serving up warmed-over remnants of what got us in this trouble in the first place. More of the same from the ultimate Washington insider.

We should never let McCain's dishonest posturing go unanswered. So it's great that folks from the Democratic Party of New Mexico, County Commissioner Bill McCamley, City Councillor Nathan P. Small and DNC Committeewoman Mary Gail Gwaltney will be there to protest the Bush-McCain economic policies that promise to keep us on the road to ruin. If you live anywhere near the Las Cruces area, you can too.

"Democrats, Republicans, and Independents alike are looking for change this election year," said Josh Geise, Executive Director of the Democratic Party of New Mexico. "Maybe while he's here, John McCain can explain why his only plan for New Mexicans is to give them more of the same Bush Administration policies that have resulted in job losses, record foreclosure rates and sky high gas prices."

WHAT: Demonstration and Press Conference

WHO: County Commissioner Bill McCamley, City Councillor Nathan P. Small and DNC Committeewoman Mary Gail Gwaltney

WHERE: Intersection of University and Treviz in Las Cruces, NM

WHEN: Wednesday, August 20th at 11:00 AM

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Photos: Obama Town Hall in Albuquerque

One of our readers, Elliot Madriss, sent in these fabulous photos he shot at yesterday's town hall meeting at the Rio Grande High School gym in Albuquerque. Thanks for sharing, Elliot!

Martin Heinrich (L) Rep. Tom Udall, Sen Jeff Bingaman (R)

Gov. Bill Richardson (R)






ABQ Mayor Martin Chavez (L)

Click on photos for larger images. All photos by Elliot Madriss.

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The Bad Guys Win (for Now): AG King & SOS Herrera Side with Shannon Robinson on NMYO; Shannon's Tirade on Senate Floor

No surprise here. Secretary of State Mary Herrera (right) decided to accept Attorney General Gary King's advice about changing New Mexico Youth Organized's legal status. Herrera evidently made her decision based on King's secretive determination, using undisclosed criteria, that the non-profit NMYO had crossed some undefined political line with its mailings about the voting records and campaign donors of certain lawmakers months before the June 3rd primary election.

Letter from the Secretary of State
Herrera issued her letter yesterday instructing Keegan King, the Director of New Mexico Youth Organized, to comply with the reporting requirements of a political committee rather than a nonprofit. You can read her letter here. Note that Herrera couldn't even get the letter's salutation right -- starting the letter with "Dear Mr. Keegan." The brief letter reveals no details about why the decision was made or the criteria used to make it. It simply says NMYO "appears" to be acting like a political committee, and gives the nonprofit ten days to explain and correct its alleged "violation" and complete and file documents that were attached to the original letter.

Herrera doesn't even bother to name or describe what she calls the "apparent violation," perhaps because she really doesn't know what it is. What we know is that defeated status quo insider Shannon Robinson complained to the AG back in May about NMYO. We know that the AG's office quickly jumped in response and sent Herrera an inaccurate, horribly researched letter two weeks before the primary. I'm sure that Robinson probably thought that would help him in the election. It had become quite clear that he was way behind.

We know that the AG's office then asked the SOS to ignore the letter and that there was a odd lull after that. We know that AG King finally did directly advise Herrera in a private meeting last Friday. And that today she jumped, without explanation or definition of the "violation" committed by NMYO. Nobody from the SOS's office or the AG's office has to date met or spoken with anyone representing NMYO or the Center for Civic Policy (its parent organization) about the matter.

Response by the Center for Civic Policy
Eli Il Yong Lee, Executive Director of the Center for Civic Policy, the parent group of New Mexico Youth Organized, issued this statement yesterday in response to the SOS's letter:

"The Center for Civic Policy and New Mexico Youth Organized strongly disagree with the decision made public today by Secretary of State Mary Herrera and Attorney General Gary King. We will pursue all legal remedies at our disposal.

With our educational mailings, we upheld our responsibility to make sure New Mexicans knew what actions have been taken on issues important to them by their elected officials. Any effort to restrict this legal activity would muzzle New Mexico nonprofits from doing the very important job of keeping public officials accountable. Public information is just that…public. Any attempt to hide this kind of information is not in the interests of the people of New Mexico. It is surprising that any public official would actually advocate for this irresponsible course of action."

If It Swims Like a Fish ...
So, is Mary Herrera caving under the same status quo political pressure that may be steering Attorney General Gary King on this matter? Nobody knows, but this whole thing sure looks fishy. And if it swims like a fish and blows bubbles like a fish, it probably IS fishy, right?

Don't forget that the press release issued by AG King to explain how he came to his legal position said, "If it walks like a duck and quacks like a duck, then it’s probably a duck. And I think we know a duck when we see one." Imagine an attorney general in any other state making a similarly vacuous and unprofessional statement to the press about a decision that could impact the majority of nonprofits operating in the state.

Super Heroes to the Rescue in the Windmill Tilt
I've been a Democrat all my life. It pains me that two of the top Democratic elected officials in the state seem to be acting without a logical, legal explanation or any semblance of fairness in furthering Shannon Robinson's Quixotic quest. It's hard for me to believe they take the paranoid Robinson seriously when he blames his thorough drubbing at the polls on some nefarious plot.

Everybody knew Robinson was probably finished when he was called out repeatedly by the Albuquerque Journal for steering legislative appropriations to the rugby team he coaches. He was caught in the act abusing public funds. He had no convincing explanation. Voters noticed.

But in Robinson's mind, it's Shannon against the world, and Mary and Gary are the super heros he calls forth to help him protect truth, justice and the American way. Well, if the American way means voting the wishes of your campaign donors, ignoring the pressing needs of your constituents and refusing to accept the results of an election.

Scare Tactics
Make no mistake about it. This particular attack may be against NMYO, but it sure seems designed to scare, intimidate and threaten other nonprofits from doing their jobs in educating the public about the behavior of their elected officials. The hit job also seems aimed at gobbling up the resources, time and attention of a number of nonprofits to lessen their effectiveness in educating the public.

Shannon Jumps the Shark
You'd think that Shannon Robinson's reprehensible behavior on the Floor of the State Senate last Friday, as well as other crazy statements he's made of late, would be highly embarrasing to both King and Herrera. This is the point of view they are both apparently defending.

Check out these gems reported by the NMI's Trip Jennings as Sen. Shannon Robinson's utterances on the Senate Floor last Friday during the New Mexico Special Legislative Sessiion:

Robinson said, "I'm on a manhunt. And I am going to track it down. Follow the money.... These nonprofit watchdogs are anything but that. They don't have a right to be a nonprofit. They are going to have to face charges of tax evasion. This is a scheme to avoid taxes We are going to see in the next few months ... the state Supreme Court will back us up on that. I think the AG will back us up.

During his speech, Robinson appeared to accuse Sen. Gerald Ortiz Y Pino of participating in a conspiracy of silence. "Sen. Ortiz y Pino will not comment," Robinson said. "He knows if he talks about it he can get indicted."

Robinson then turned questions toward Sen. Cisco McSorley, D-Albuquerque. McSorley would have none of it, however. "I dont know of anything of what you are talking about. I have no idea of what you are talking about," McSorley said to Robinson. "There you have it," Robinson said.

Here's the Albuquerque Journal's account of what they term Robinson's half-hour "tirade" on the Senate Floor. Quote:

In his blistering tirade, which included references to the devil, George Soros and the FBI, Robinson also accused city and state agencies of wrongdoing but gave no details. And he asserted that two senators have ties to the nonprofit, the Center for Civic Policy.

... On the Senate floor Friday, Robinson said, "That organization put out obscene literature. It shows a picture, supposedly of me, taking the oath of office with my left hand. Now only the devil swears in with his left hand." He also said Soros, a philanthropist and social activist, was financing the group — a charge Lee denies. [emphasis mine]

... McSorley said, "I don't think anybody has any idea about what you're talking about here. Robinson's response: "Okay. There you have it. And you know what? If you live by the sword you die by the sword. And if you lie under oath, eventually what happens is, the FBI shows up."

You have to give Robinson credit for chutzpah. He personally attacked two of the most ethically responsible and highly respected Senators in the chamber, right to their faces. You may or may not agree with the politics of Ortiz y Pino and McSorley, but there has never been even a whiff of scandal connected to either of them. Yet somehow, in Shannon's mind, they're in on the plot to get him. It's a pretty wide-ranging plot, after all.

The Plot Thickens
And now the "conspiracy" is spreading -- to federal races in New Mexico -- according to Robinson's rambling statements in an interview with Peter St. Cyr just before Shannon headed to Santa Fe for the Special Session. You really must listen to the entire audio file yourselves to get the full flavor of just where Robinson is headed with his "conspiracy" talk. It's no longer merely wacky. It's no longer merely odd. It's downright scary in my book. Listening to this interview made my hair stand on end. Maybe that's it. Maybe people are afraid to go too hard on him, you know?

See our previous post on this matter and the lawsuit filed by Robinson and two other losing primary candidates. That post contains a list of links to other posts related to the attack on the primary winners and various nonprofits. Also see another recent post that provides a statement by the Southwest Organizing Project on the attacks by Robinson.

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