Democracy for New Mexico

(Updated) Thursday: 3 NM Stops for Howard Dean and Register for Change

Dean for Prez rally, Santa Fe Plaza, June 3, 2003

It's been more than five years now since many of us got more active in politics than we ever dreamed we would. The involvement of many of us dates back to Howard Dean's 2003 presidential campaign. Because The Doctor (Is In) is visiting New Mexico later this week, I thought some of the old Deaniacs out there might enjoy seeing a few photos from that era. If it wasn''t for Howard, much of what we're involved with today would never have become a reality.

I know, you've been bored because there hasn't been much happening of late in New Mexico in the way of political dramas and events. Wait, that was just a bad dream I had last night -- nothing could be farther from the truth.

We've go the exciting campaigns of Barack Obama, Ben Ray Lujan, Martin Heinrich, Harry Teague, Tom Udall and a flock of legislative candidates going full throttle, and the convening of the oddly timed and confusing Special Legislative Session in Santa Fe. There are the controversies being fed by desperate backlash against highly respected nonprofits and progressive candidate victories, and an abundance of events organized by a diverse bunch of groups like the Defenders of Wildlife Action Fund and Wellstone Action-- not to mention the countdown to the Democratic National Convention in Denver. Political junkies, activists and this blogger have barely had a chance to take a deep breath. And the pace can only accelerate as we move closer to November 4th.

Dean walks with supporters to Prez debate at Popejoy, September 2003

So I almost hate to tell you that there are three more fabulous events set for next week in New Mexico. DNC Chair (and grassroots hero) Howard Dean will be visiting Albquerque, Santa Fe and Santo Domingo Pueblo with the DNC's Register for Change Tour bus:

Dean & Register for Change, Thursday, August 21:

Santa Fe, NM: 10:15 AM, Casa Solano Shopping Center Parking Lot, Alameda Street & St Francis

CANCELLED: Santo Domingo Pueblo, NM: 1:00 PM. New location being sought.

Albuquerque, NM: 3:15 PM, Albuquerque Campaign for Change Office Parking Lot, 3523 Central Avenue

West Side Dean Meetup group and Ken Harper and their Dean Van

Come on down to hear 50-State-Strategy guru Howard Dean's always rousing words -- and if you aren't registered to vote you can do it right there, no sweat. If you have friends or neighbors who need to register, bring them along too. The more folks we get registered, the better chance we have to win all up and down the ticket.

Onward to Denver
Howard and the Register for Change Tour will be heading up to Denver next as Dems pretty much take over the city of Denver to officially nominate Obama and his VP choice at the Convention. We'll be there too, reporting from the Convention Floor, seated with the New Mexico delegation as part of the DNC State Blogger Corps. So we've been spending a lot of time trying to raise money for our expenses (hint, hint), buying better equipment to cover the events and trying to get everything set up so it works right (grrrr). If some of our coverage on the multitude of events happening here this week isn't as comprehensive as usual, you'll know why.

also needs donations, as he'll be heading up to Denver on his own to cover events using The Big Tent as his HQ (we'll be popping in there too). I understand Dave Maass of Swing State of Mind, Peter St. Cyr of What's the Word, David Alire Garcia and Tracy Dingman of the New Mexico Independent and who knows who else will also be in Denver sending back stories, video and photos from lots of different angles.

A multitude of national bloggers will also be on the scene, either inside the Pepsi Center (and Mile High Stadium) or in other places, so your blog reading should be quite an experience starting Saturday or Sunday, when folks are traveling to Colorado. Wish us luck!

Click on photos for larger images. Photos from New Mexico's Dean for America Meetup collection.

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Details On Obama Visit to Albuquerque on Monday, Tix Available Saturday & Sunday

Campaign for Change New Mexico has announced that Obama will return to New Mexico on Monday, August 18th, to hold two events in Albuquerque. In the morning, he will have an invitation only discussion on the economy with local residents. In the afternoon, Obama will hold a public town hall meeting at Rio Grande High School. Tickets are required.

MONDAY, AUGUST 18
TOWN HALL MEETING WITH BARACK OBAMA
Rio Grande High School
Main Gymnasium
2300 Arenal Road, SW
Albuquerque NM 87105
Doors Open: 10:45 AM, Program Begins: 1:00 PM

This event is free and open to the public; however, tickets are REQUIRED. Tickets are limited and will be available on a first come, first serve basis. Members of the public can sign up online to receive a free ticket via email at https://www.barackobama.com or they can pick up free tickets on Saturday and Sunday at the locations listed below. (Specific page on Obama website for signing up for the town hall is https://my.barackobama.com/page/content/nmhome.)

Use of public transportation is STRONGLY ENCOURAGED. LIMITED public parking will be available at Rio Grande High School in student parking on the West side of the school on Arenal Road. Attendees are encouraged to car pool whenever possible.

Ticket Distribution Locations:
Tickets will be available: Saturday, August 16th and Sunday, August 17th from 9 AM- 5 PM

Albuquerque - State Headquarters
117 Montclaire Drive SE
Albuquerque, NM 87108
Contact Tel.: 505-266-3556

Albuquerque - Volunteer Headquarters
3523 Central Avenue NE
Albuquerque, NM 87106
Contact Tel.: 505-435-0723

Bernalillo Office
240 South Camino del Pueblo
Albuquerque, NM 87004

Los Lunas Office
1052 Main Street NE, Suite B
Albuquerque, NM 87031
Contact Tel.: 505-865-9481

***For security reasons, do not bring bags. Please limit personal items. No signs or banners allowed.***

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Hillary and Barack to Visit New Mexico

Sunday: Hillary Clinton will campaign at a public event in Española Sunday for Obama:

August 17, Doors Open 2:00 PM
Gym at Northern New Mexico College
921 Paseo de Oñate, Española, NM
First come, first served, no bags

Afterwards, Gov. Bill Richardson will host private fundraisers in Albuquerque and Santa Fe to help Hillary with her campaign debt. I'm sure all our U.S. House, U.S. Senate, State House and State Senate candidates are thrilled. I know I am. Let's pull more money out of the state, why don't we!

As for Barack, his campaign has announced he'll be visiting New Mexico on Monday, but no other details are yet available. I hope he does a big public event somewhere in a more rural part of the state, not in Albuquerque or Santa Fe. We're already for Obama -- he needs to reach out to other areas that gave strong support to Hillary in the primary.

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Saturday: Join Defenders of Wildlife Santa Fe Volunteer Day of Action

From the Defenders of Wildlife Action Fund: We're organizing a Volunteer Day of Action this Saturday, August 16, in Santa Fe. Canvassers will talk with registered voters, encouraging them to vote for Barack Obama, Tom Udall and Martin Heinrich in the 1st Congressional District. Here's how to get involved:

What: Join us for canvassing starting at Noon. Well be driving to Rio Rancho from Santa Fe, and be back in Santa Fe by 5 PM. We'll provide transportation to/from Santa Fe OR you can phone bank in Santa Fe to registered voters throughout the state, anytime from 1:30 PM to 5 PM.

Where: Meet for both activities at 826 Camino del Monte Rey, on the second floor in the reading room. The location is north of St. Michael's off of St. Francis Street in Santa Fe.

RSVP for Canvass to: Maggie Raiken at 505-254-4756; no need to RSVP for phone bank. We will provide food for lunch for our volunteers.

NM Campaign for Change to Launch Veterans for Obama

New Mexico’s Campaign for Change has announced that tomorrow today at 2:00 PM it will officially unveil a group called Veterans for Obama at its campaign headquarters at 117 Montclaire DR SE in Albuquerque. A press release explained that Veterans for Obama are a group of key veterans throughout the state who will play a key role in Campaign for Change’s outreach to New Mexico’s veterans. The group will also serve as a platform, to unveil new veterans’ initiatives and advisory committees throughout the state. Participants in tomorrow's event include:

• Major General Montano, U.S. Air Force
• Former Albuquerque Mayor Jim Baca, Vietnam Veteran
• Jim Buhaug, Retired US Army
• Mr. Mark Mora, Retired Air Force Master Sergeant
• Mr. Ramon Mondragon Retired Corporal in the Marine Corps
• Mr. John Lewis, Retired US Army
• Mr. Stephon Scott, Retired Army Staff Sergeant
• Mr. Dick Muenzer, Retired US Army, Special Agent with Counter Intelligence Corps
• Dr. Darlene Collins, Air Force, Desert Storm 

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Lt. Gov. Denish, Obama Campaign Discuss Blueprint for New Mexico

Obama campaign reaching out in Taos

On a conference call today with reporters and bloggers, Obama officials discussed where the Campaign for Change stands in New Mexico and the tactics they'll employ to win this Fall. Participants included Lt. Gov. Diane Denish, who's now a NM Co-Chair for Obama after previously backing Hillary Clinton, State Director Adrian Saenz, Deputy National Campaign Manager Steve Hildebrand and others.

The main differences between the Obama campaign and past Dem prez efforts here: vastly increased and proactive voter registration activities, an emphasis on contacting registered Dems who don't vote regularly and outreach in every corner of the state, not just along the I-25 corridor.

An Unprecedented Hunger for Change: Lt. Gov. Denish spoke about her recent trips around the state, where she encountered what she called "an unprecedented level" of grassroots support for change and lots of activity already happening on the ground. She mentioned the registration advantage Dems have long had in NM and the importance of powerful GOTV efforts to reach Dems who vote only sporatically, as well as independents -- especially outside major population areas. Denish said that she'd never witnessed such a "massive mobilization" by a presidential campaign here, and it's only just begun.

Agressively Reaching Out to Rural Voters: NM Campaign Director Adrian Saenz said the campaign is "aggressively" going after voters in rural communities and small towns. Of the 23 field offices now open, 17 are in rural areas, including a recently launched office in Shiprock. Tomorrow an Obama campaign will open in Espanola. There'll be even more to come.

Saenz said the reception in areas of the state almost always ignored by presidential candidates has been "phenomenal," with large numbers of volunteers clamoring to join up. Saenz worked in New Mexico during the 2004 election and said he was amazed at how many volunteers were active then, but that this year's turnout to date "blows away" the totals for '04.

Now Active: The campaign had more than 1000 canvassers out this weekend all over the state, with the largest number showing up to walk in Raton, in Northern New Mexico. There are more than 4000 active volunteers for Obama here, with about a quarter of those in rural areas. About 34,000 are on the New Mexico email list, about a third of which are from less populated cities and towns.

Early GOTV for Early Voting: There is a big push to convince supporters to vote early by mail. Extensive GOTV efforts will start early, because folks can start voting on October 1st at County Clerk offices and on October 18th at satellite locations before the November 4th election.

Special Focus on SE New Mexico: One area that will get special attention is Southeastern New Mexico, where Bush won big in '04. There will be campaign offices in most of the towns there and the campaign is finding a strong volunteer base shaping up in that region already. The Obama campaign clearly thinks they can increase Dem vote totals substantially in the area if they reach out to enough new voters, moderates and Dems who seldom vote.

Check out this document (pdf) for more on Obama's blueprint for change in New Mexico.

Get Involved Now: You can learn more about what's happening around the state and sign up to be a part of it at the New Mexico for Obama page. The New Mexico event calendar lists 115 events at the moment. Sign up for one or start your own. The clock is ticking.

Photos from Taos courtesy Obama Campaign for Change.

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Barack, Johnny, Sir Paul and ABBA

With Russia invading Georgia and all hell breaking loose on so many fronts, we need some light news, don't we? Blender magazine asked Obama and McSame to name their top ten favorite songs. Even I find it hard to believe that two of Johnny's top three are ABBA songs. ABBA songs. Between the two of them no Beatles, one Stones, two Sinatras. Gotta love the Marvin Gaye, Nina Simone, Aretha and Roy Orbison.

Sen. Barack Obama
1. Ready or Not, Fugees
2. What's Going On, Marvin Gaye
3. I'm On Fire, Bruce Springsteen
4. Gimme Shelter, Rolling Stones
5. Sinnerman, Nina Simone
6. Touch the Sky, Kanye West
7. You'd Be So Easy to Love, Frank Sinatra
8. Think, Aretha Franklin
9. City of Blinding Lights, U2
10. Yes We Can, will.i.am

Sen. John McCain
1. Dancing Queen, ABBA
2. Blue Bayou, Roy Orbison
3. Take a Chance On Me, ABBA
4. If We Make It Through December, Merle Haggard
5. As Time Goes By, Dooley Wilson
6. Good Vibrations, The Beach Boys
7. What A Wonderful World, Louis Armstrong
8. I've Got You Under My Skin, Frank Sinatra
9. Sweet Caroline, Neil Diamond
10. Smoke Gets In Your Eyes, The Platters

McCartney in NM: Speaking of music, Paul McCartney is getting his kicks by traveling Old Route 66 from Illinois to California in an old Ford Bronco with his new girlfriend, Nancy Shevell. They were spotted at the Georgia O'Keeffe Museum and checking out Ansel Adams photos at the Andrew Smith Gallery in Santa Fe over the weekend.

The Quay County Sun reports the couple was seen in Tucumcari on Thursday, visiting an antique shop and getting takeout from Del's Restaurant. Be sure to check out the photos in the Sun. McCartney and Shevell also attended the Inter-Tribal Indian Ceremonial in Gallup on Saturday. More details on the trip and some photos in the Brit tabloid, the Daily Mail.

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DNCC/Obama Unveil Convention Speakers and Themes

The Democracy for New Mexico blog was selected to represent our state on the DNC's State Blogger Corps at the Convention. We'll be reporting from Denver and will be seated with the NM delegation. We attended a recent gathering of our delegates and Dem officials and got a chance to interview many of them about their thoughts on the Convention. Keep an eye out because we'll be posting videos like this one with State Rep. Antonio "Moe" Maestas, an early Obama endorser who'll be in Denver as part of Obama's team.

In a press release today the Democratic National Convention Committee (DNCC) and the Obama for America Campaign announced the themes for each night of the 2008 Convention, which will be held in Denver from August 25th through August 28th.

"The 2008 Convention is about ensuring that those peoples’ voices are heard and their call for change is heeded,” said Kansas Governor and Convention Co-Chair Kathleen Sebelius. “From Monday through Thursday, our Convention program will highlight the people of this country who want positive change and who believe Barack Obama is the leader who will listen to their concerns and get our country moving in the right direction again.”

State Auditor Hector Balderas talking with State Treasurer James B. Lewis at NM delegate gathering earlier this month

Monday, August 25 -- One Nation
Headline prime-time speaker: Michelle Obama.

Tuesday, August 26 – Renewing America’s Promise
Headline prime-time speaker: Senator Hillary Clinton

Wednesday, August 27 -- Securing America’s Future
The Vice Presidential Acceptance Speech
Headline prime-time speaker: Vice Presidential Nominee.

Thursday, August 28 – Change You Can Believe In
Barack Obama’s Acceptance Speech

Note: The word is that former President Bill Clinton will be among the speakers on Wednesday, but he's apparently not being billed as a headliner.

On Thursday night, the DNCC says it will throw open the doors of the Convention and move to INVESCO Field at Mile High so that more Americans can be a part of the fourth night of the Convention as Barack Obama accepts the Democratic nomination. Obama will communicate the urgency of the moment, highlight the struggles Americans are facing and call on Americans to come together to change the course of our nation. 

The DNCC will unveil additional Convention program details and speakers throughout this week.

Click on photo for larger image. Photo and video by M.E. Broderick.

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Monday: Bush Legacy Tour Comes to Albuquerque

Brace yourself and watch the video to refresh your memory about some of the too-numerous-to-name failures that make up the disastrous legacy of Bush and his conservative cronies. Then think about what's at stake in November when one of those conservative cronies has a chance to win another four years for the team. Then get off the couch and get active.

has created a museum on wheels that documents some of the worst moments of the last eight years under Bush and the conservatives, and it's coming to Albuquerque on Monday, August 11, 2008. Stop by the bio-diesel-fueled bus to see the memorabilia and show your support for American United:

Monday, August 11th, 11:00 AM - 1:00 PM
In front of Natural Sound music store and Flying Star Cafe
Central Avenue and Carlisle Blvd, Albuquerque, NM

Pass it on. To learn more about the Bush Legacy Tour, and to see what other stops it will be making this summer and fall, visit BushLegacyTour.com. The tour will be in Farmington, NM on Tuesday.

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Concerned About Election Integrity? Sign Up Here

Many people complain about how elections are run, but too few step up to the plate to help them run smoothly and effectively. If you're concerned about making sure every vote counts, consider signing up to be a poll official.

From the Bernalillo County Clerk's Office:
The Bernalillo County Clerk's Office, Bureau of Elections, is actively recruiting Poll Officials for the General Election to be held on November 4th, 2008. Training classes will be provided, and are mandatory. There will be a selection of training times from which to choose, and each will last approximately 2 to 3 hours. Poll Officials are compensated for their Election Day work as well as Training time. 

The Election Day work schedule is 6:00 AM – 9:00 PM. Please be prepared to attend the entire day. Poll Official Requirements:

• Must be a Registered Voter in Bernalillo County
• Must have no Felony Convictions
• Cannot be a relative of a candidate
• Cannot be an active Law Enforcement Officer

Poll Official Information:

• Channon – 468-1221, cdishman-flores@bernco.gov
• Amber – 468-1253, agarley@bernco.gov

General Information: 468-1291, clerk@bernco.gov

Poll officials are also needed in most other counties. Click for county clerk contact info and get in touch to learn how you can help on election day.

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