Democracy for New Mexico

(Updated x2) Obama to Appear on Espanola Plaza on September 18

Update 2: The event is free and open to the public; however, a ticket is required. Seating is limited, and available on a first-come, first-served basis online:

https://nm.barackobama.com/espanolachange

For security reasons, please limit bags or personal items. No signs or banners are permitted.
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Update 1: This has now been confirmed by the Obama campaign. Gates will open at 10:30 AM. Still awaiting ticketing info.
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The Word is that Barack Obama will speak at a public event on Thursday, September 18, at 10:30 AM on the Plaza de Espanola,706 Bond Street, Espanola NM. Confirmation and ticket info to come.

1st Annual ABQ Urban Farm and Harvest Festival: 9/27

From City of Albuquerque Open Space:
Did you know that in addition to other important public lands such as the Sandia Foothills Open Space, the Petroglyph National Monument and the Rio Grande Valley State Park, the City of Albuquerque Open Space Division preserves over 366 acres of farmland within the Albuquerque area?

"Since the purchase of the Candelaria Farm Preserve in 1977, the City’s Open Space Division has proven to be one of the key local agencies involved in the protection of agricultural lands in Albuquerque," says Mayor Martin Chavez. "Our achievements in farm preservation provide another example of why we have one of the most celebrated Open Space programs in the nation." See why:

WHAT: A Celebration of Open Space, urban agriculture, local food, and community with music, fun, workshops, and more! FREE!

WHEN: National Public Lands Day, September 27, 2008, 2–7 PM

WHERE: Open Space Visitor Center, 6500 Coors Blvd NW. The Visitor Center is located east of Coors at the end of Bosque Meadows Rd, which is between Montano and Paseo del Norte.

See here for more details.

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Calling a Lie a Lie

Witness some of McCain's lies

A common practice with some reporters in the trad media today (and especially with local media) is to present a fact and a lie as equivalent -- as merely two sides of an argument -- and in that way demonstrate what they claim is "balance" or "neutrality" in reporting. However, in real life and politics a lie is often just that -- a statement clearly refuted by well documented facts. Thus, the "other side" attempting to pretend that the lie is true (or the fact is a lie) is WRONG and needs to be called on it by what used to be called The Press.

At one time, fact-checking was considered to be one of the most important functions of The Press. Today, however, too many who view themselves as journalists apparently find it too much work or too dangerous to dig out and report the facts, especially if they don't jibe with their biases or the editorial bent of the owners of the newspaper or media outlet where they work. And even if they eventually have to admit someone -- like McCain or Palin -- has clearly been lying, they have a habit of using less accusatory terms like "untruths" or "less than accurate" or "misleading" for what should surely be called lies, plain and simple.

Michael Coleman Provides an Example
There's an excellent example of this kind of weaseling by Michael Coleman in today's Albuquerque Journal. In an article examining the views of New Mexico's Senators and Reps on McCain's simplistic and broadbrush yowling about earmarks and his unrealistic pledge to veto every single earmark request if he becomes president, Coleman slips in this inaccuracy:

The Bridge to Nowhere controversy has been resurrected in this year's presidential race. At the Republican National Convention this month, vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin said as governor of Alaska she shunned the money. Democrats contend she first welcomed it but later denounced it for political reasons.

Hey Michael, if you had bothered to read the news lately, talk to honest sources in Washington -- where you're based -- or even Googled half-heartedly, you would have discovered that it's not just Dems who are "contending" that Palin was for the bridge before she was agin' it. In FACT, Palin's dishonesty about the bridge has been widely reported and well documented by highly respected news and fact-checking organizations across the political spectrum. There's not a shred of doubt left that Palin pushed hard for the porky Bridge to Nowhere earmarks until it was clear that the political environment in Washington made federal funding impossible. At this point in time, even media sources that don't like to report the FACTS about GOP sleaziness have had to admit McCain and his VP choice have been less than honest about the bridge. Check out just a few of the outfits that say so:

Wall Street Journal Headline: "Record Contradicts Palin's 'Bridge' Claims." "The Bridge to Nowhere argument isn't going much of anywhere. Despite significant evidence to the contrary, the McCain campaign continues to assert that Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin told the federal government 'thanks but no thanks' to the now-famous bridge to an island in her home state... But Gov. Palin's claim comes with a serious caveat. She endorsed the multimillion dollar project during her gubernatorial race in 2006. And while she did take part in stopping the project after it became a national scandal, she did not return the federal money. She just allocated it elsewhere." [Wall Street Journal, 9/9/08]

Chicago Tribune Blog: "The McCain-Palin Campaign Keeps Up the Misleading Line That She Was the Main Palyer in Taking Out the Bridge." "Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin keeps saying she stopped the infamous 'Bridge to Nowhere' in an attempt to burnish her credentials as a pork-fighting reformer. And reporters keep pointing out that her claim is exaggerated. Still, the McCain-Palin campaign keeps up the misleading line that she was the main player in taking out the bridge. And still reporters keep shedding light on the inexactness, to put it politely, of that claim. One of the latest journalistic efforts to separate fact from fiction comes from PolitFact, a service of the St. Pete Times and CQ. Yet, the McCain campaign has cut a TV ad that pushes the line that Palin stopped the bridge. It's as if they've decided to go with that first two parts of that famous Lincoln quote: 'You can fool some of the people all of the time and all of the people some of the time...'" [Chicago Tribune Blog, 9/9/08]

Factcheck.org: Congress Had All But Killed Bridge to Nowhere When Palin Killed It, Was Sharp Turnaround From Position During Gubernatorial Campaign. "Palin may have said "Thanks, but no thanks" on the Bridge to Nowhere, though not until Congress had pretty much killed it already. But that was a sharp turnaround from the position she took during her gubernatorial campaign, and the town where she was mayor received lots of earmarks during her tenure." [FactCheck.org, 9/4/08]

Politifact: Palin's Stance On "The Bridge To Nowhere" Is "A Full Flop." Politfact, a service of CQ and the St. Petersburg Times wrote, "McCain said Palin has 'stopped government from wasting taxpayers' money on things they don't want or need. And when we in Congress decided to build a bridge in Alaska to nowhere for $233-million of yours, she said, we don't want it. If we need it, we'll build our own in Alaska. She's the one that stood up to them.' Nevermind that Alaska didn't give the money back. It spent the money on other transportation projects. The context of Palin's and McCain's recent statements suggest Palin flagged the so-called Bridge to Nowhere project as wasteful spending. But that's not the tune she was singing when she was running for governor, particularly not when she was standing before the Ketchikan Chamber of Commerce asking for their vote. And so, we rate Palin's position a Full Flop." [Politifact]

AP FACT CHECK: Palin's Broader Story on the Bridge to Nowhere is "Misleading," Her Self-Description as a Champion of Earmark Reform "Is Harder to Square With the Facts." "Palin did abandon plans to build the nearly $400 million bridge from Ketchikan to an island with 50 residents and an airport. But she made her decision after the project had become an embarrassment to the state, after federal dollars for the project were pulled back and diverted to other uses in Alaska, and after she had appeared to support the bridge during her campaign for governor. McCain and Palin together have told a broader story about the bridge that is misleading. She is portrayed as a crusader for the thrifty use of tax dollars who turned down an offer from Washington to build an expensive bridge of little value to the state. 'I told the Congress 'thanks but no thanks' for that Bridge to Nowhere,' she said in her convention speech last week. That's not what she told Alaskans when she announced a year ago that she was ordering state transportation officials to ditch the project. Her explanation then was that it would be fruitless to try to persuade Congress to come up with the money... Her self-description as a leader who 'championed reform to end the abuses of earmark spending by Congress' is harder to square with the facts." [AP, 9/8/08]

USA Today Adwatch Headline: "A Disconnect on Palin's Bridge Claim." "It's the claim that Palin 'stopped the 'Bridge to Nowhere' that sparked the dispute. The reference is to a proposed bridge to a remote Alaskan community that would have cost the U.S. government more than $200 million. Palin has said repeatedly that she told the federal government: 'Thanks, but no thanks.' As a candidate for governor, however, Palin supported the bridge." [USA Today, 9/8/08]

Anchorage Daily News Headline: "Palin Touts Stance on 'Bridge to Nowhere,' Doesn't Note Flip Flop." "When John McCain introduced Gov. Sarah Palin as his running mate Friday, her reputation as a tough-minded budget-cutter was front and center. 'I told Congress, thanks but no thanks on that bridge to nowhere,' Palin told the cheering McCain crowd, referring to Ketchikan's Gravina Island bridge. But Palin was for the Bridge to Nowhere before she was against it. The Alaska governor campaigned in 2006 on a build-the-bridge platform, telling Ketchikan residents she felt their pain when politicians called them 'nowhere.' They're still feeling pain today in Ketchikan, over Palin's subsequent decision to use the bridge funds for other projects -- and over the timing of her announcement, which they say came in a pre-dawn press release that seemed aimed at national news deadlines. 'I think that's when the campaign for national office began,' said Ketchikan Mayor Bob Weinstein on Saturday." [Anchorage Daily News, 8/31/08]

Daily News Miner: Palin Supported Bridge to Nowhere, Later Kept the Money -- "That Was Hardly 'Thanks, But No Thanks.'" "In her introductory speech Friday as McCain's running mate, Gov. Sarah Palin picked up on the Ketchikan bridge that was never built as a symbol of bad federal policy... That is not how Palin described her position on the Gravina Island bridge when she ran for governor in 2006. On Oct. 22, 2006, the Anchorage Daily News asked Palin and the other candidates, 'Would you continue state funding for the proposed Knik Arm and Gravina Island bridges?' Her response: 'Yes. I would like to see Alaska's infrastructure projects built sooner rather than later. The window is now — while our congressional delegation is in a strong position to assist.' Palin's support of the earmark for the bridge was applauded by the late Lew Williams Jr., the retired Ketchikan Daily News publisher who wrote columns on the topic... The money was not sent back to the federal government, but spent on other projects. That was hardly 'Thanks but no thanks.'" [Daily News Miner, 8/31/08]

TIME: "Palin Has Continued to Repeat the Already Exposed Lie" About Her Opposition to the Bridge to Nowhere. "Palin has continued to repeat the already exposed lie that she said, 'No, thanks,' to the famous 'bridge to nowhere' (McCain's favorite example of wasteful federal spending). In fact, she said, 'Yes, please,' until this project became a symbol and political albatross." [TIME Magazine, 9/9/08]

AP: Palin Supported Bridge, Later Abandoned Project But Used the Federal Money for Other Alaska Projects. "Palin voiced support for the bridge during her campaign to become Alaska's governor, although she was critical of the size, and later abandoned plans for the project. She used the federal dollars for other projects in Alaska." [AP, 9/9/08]

Washington Post's Kurtz: Palin's Assertion on Bridge to Nowhere a "Whopper." "The senator from Arizona has made a crusade of battling pork-barrel 'earmarks,' but the whopper here is the assertion that Palin opposed her state's notorious Bridge to Nowhere. She endorsed the remote project while running for governor in 2006, claimed to be an opponent only after Congress killed its funding the next year, and has used the $223 million provided for it for other state ventures." [Washington Post, Kurtz Column, 9/9/08]
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Clearly, a well-documented consensus has been reached that MCain-Palin lied about this, and yet the GOP candidates keep parroting the LIE on the campaign trail and in ads. And reporters like Michael Cole still refuse to call them on it. If you used the Journal as your primary news source (heaven forbid), you'd never know that the McCain-Palin claim about the bridge had been thoroughly debunked. I guess certain media owners want to keep it that way.

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Pics and Video: Reception for State Senator-Elect Tim Keller

Tim Keller talks about his ideas on change, the need for legislators to "get some guts" to fight for sweeping reforms and the contributions of DFNM

On Thursday, Democrats gathered at a festive and well attended reception in Albuquerque to honor State Senator-Elect Tim Keller (SD17) and help him retire his campaign debt from a hard-fought primary. On June 3rd, Keller defeated long-time incumbent legislator Shannon Robinson and earned the right to represent SD 17.

Keller (center) talks with supporters

On hand were Lt. Gov. Diane Denish, NM-01 Congressional candidate Martin Heinrich, State Auditor Hector Balderas, Public Regulation Commissioner Jason Marks, DNC Committeeman Raymond Sanchez, City Councilor Rey Garduno, State Senators Cisco McSorley and Dede Feldman, Senate Majority Leader Michael Sanchez, State Reps. Al Park and Moe Maestas, legislative candidates Victor Raigoza and Tim Eichenberg and many others.

Rey Garduno, Diane Denish, Tim Keller

Lt. Gov. Denish talks about Tim Keller

Lt. Gov. Diane Denish

Dick Minzner, Raymond Sanchez, Dede Feldman

Sen. Cisco McSorley

Photos and video by M.E. Broderick. See more from this event at YouTube and Flickr.

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(Updated) Palin: One Heartbeat Away

Update: If you want to regain some faith that ordinary people see through this dishonesty and incompetence, check out this DK diary (with wonderful video and photos) that tells the story of the largest demonstration ever held in Anchorage, Alaska -- for an Alaska Women Reject Palin rally. It might make your day.
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Palin does her Bush doctrine fade above. Even better, see last night's hilarious Saturday Night Live opening, with Tina Fey returning to the show to nail Palin, body language and all, and Amy Poehler getting down to it as Hillary. (They keep taking it down at YouTube so click the link to watch it at NBC.)

Tina Fey and Amy Poehler on SNL

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Quote of the Day: Obama Takes Pledge, Hits McCain on Taxes

Video Obama in Dove NH, September 12. Excerpt:

"[McCain's] plan gives absolutely nothing to about 100 million American households. I can make a firm pledge. Under my plan, no family making less than $250,000 a year will see any form of tax increase. Not your income tax, not your payroll tax, not your capital gains taxes, not any of your taxes.

"And my opponent can't make that pledge, and here's why. For the first time in American history, John McCain wants to tax your health-care benefits. Apparently, Senator McCain doesn't think it's enough that health care premiums have doubled, he thinks that you should have to pay taxes on them, too. That's a $3.6 trillion tax increase potentially on middle-class families. And that would eventually leave tens of millions of you paying higher taxes or losing your benefits. That's his idea of change."

Keep it up, keep it up, keep it up

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NM-Sen: Study Proves Pearce Ignored Root Cause of Higher Gas Prices

GOP Senate candidate Steve Pearce likes to spout off about energy, but what he says often has no basis in fact. Take gas prices, for instance. Pearce constantly proclaims that the only way to help lower gas prices is to -- as rightwingers love to chant -- drill, baby, drill, everywhere, regardless.

First off, we all know by now that any positive affects on price of much of the proposed expanded drilling wouldn't kick in for 8-10 years. No help for prices in the short term. And now we know, for a fact, that out of control speculation was the primary culprit in recent gas price hikes. Unfortunately, Pearce sees no merit in trying to fix that. His loyalties always seem to lie with the speculators and tycoons, not with ordinary people.

An independent study by Masters Capital Management said that speculation by large investors was the primary cause for the rise in oil prices this year, not supply and demand. The Associated Press on the study on Wednesday.

According to a statement by the Tom Udall campaign, that means Steve Pearce’s July vote against the Commodity Markets Transparency and Accountability Act, which would have cracked down on excessive oil speculation, was a vote that ignored the primary cause of high gas prices and only put more money into the pockets of Big Oil.

Tom Udall voted for the bill, which narrowly failed to pass the House.

“If voters are looking for someone to blame for high gas prices, look no further than Steve Pearce and other disciples of George Bush’s failed energy policies,” Udall campaign spokeswoman Marissa Padilla said. “Steve Pearce’s record on energy has been abysmal. His vote against cracking down on oil speculation only reinforced Pearce’s refusal to put the interests of middle class Americans ahead those of Big Oil.”

According to the Associated Press: “The report by Masters Capital Management said investors poured $60 billion into oil futures markets during the first five months of the year as oil prices soared from $95 a barrel in January to $145 a barrel in July. Since then, these investors have withdrawn $39 billion from those markets as prices have retreated dramatically, the report said.”

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NM-Sen: Join Tom Udall, Martin Heinrich and NM Professional Fire Fighters Association at Monday Rally

From Tom Udall for Senate: You are invited to join U.S. Senate Candidate Congressman Tom Udall, NM-01 Congressional candidate Martin Heinrich and the New Mexico Professional Fire Fighters Association for an endorsement celebration:

The National Hispanic Cultural Center
1701 4th Street SW
Monday, September 15th, 2008
9:30 AM - 11:00 AM
Click for a Flyer (pdf)

Join us for a rally with New Mexico first responders. For more information or to RSVP please contact: Andrew Marshall; (505) 884-3055; amarshall@tomudall.com.

Quote of the Day: Obama Hits McCain on Harleys

Go get him, tiger.

"Just ask the Machinists in Pennsylvania who build Harley-Davidsons," Obama said of McCain's record. "Because John McCain didn’t just oppose the requirement that the government buy American-made motorcycles, he called Buy American provisions 'disgraceful.' Just ask the workers across this country who have seen their jobs outsourced. The very companies that shipped their jobs overseas have been rewarded with billions of dollars in tax breaks that John McCain supports and plans to continue.

"So when American workers hear John McCain talking about putting 'Country First,'" Obama said, "it’s fair to ask – which country?"

--Obama, speaking this morning to the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers

(Updated) Saturday: Help Celebrate Opening of Obama Campaign's South Valley Office

New Obama Ad: Real Change

Update: Belen Native U.S. Rep. Joe Baca (D-CA), Chair of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, has been added to the list of elected officials who'll be welcoming attendees at the Grand Opening
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Come on down and check out this weekend's grand opening of the Obama Campaign's South Valley Office -- the 34th such office in New Mexico. The celebration will feature food, live music, and appearances by the following elected officials:

U.S. Rep. Joe Baca, Chair, Congressional Hispanic Caucus
State Auditor Hector Balderas
State Senator-Elect Eric Griego
State Senator Linda Lopez
Martin Heinrich, NM-01 Congressional candidate

Obama South Valley Office Grand Opening
Saturday, September 13, 5 to 7 PM
3211 Coors Blvd. SW, Suite A 3-4, ABQ, 87121 Map
RSVP for this event

The New Mexico Campaign for Change is building a culture of participation and empowerment, and this new office is another step toward that goal. If you can't make it to the grand opening, you’re more than welcome to stop by and check out the office in the coming days and find out about volunteer opportunities.

The South Valley Field Office is one of more than 25 offices in the state. View a complete list of New Mexico offices. This will be a great opportunity to learn what we can do to support the Obama Campaign and to talk about what is needed to win the South Valley and all of New Mexico. Please come and help bring in the South Valley for Sen. Barack Obama!

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