Democracy for New Mexico

Cheney Rakes in $110,000 for Heather Wilson's Senate Campaign

Dick Cheney appeared at an exclusive fundraiser for NM-01 Rep. Heather Wilson's U.S. Senate campaign at the private Capitol Club on Capitol Hill in Washington DC last night. Tickets were $1000 each. A photo with Dick cost $2,300. The night's haul was $110,000 for Wilson, and both retiring Sen. Pete Domenici and his Chief of Staff, Steve Bell, were in attendance. So far, the only other Repub in the primary race is Rep. Steve Pearce (NM-02). Cheney has reportedly agreed to appear at a fundraiser for Pearce's campaign in January.

The Wilson fundraiser, featuring one of the most unpopular and anti-Constitutional Vice Presidents in history, showed how closely Wilson is aligned with the Bush-Cheney neocon ideologues. She may promote herself as a "moderate," as she always has, but campaign cash is campaign cash. Money talks. The kinds of donors who are attracted to big ticket fundraisers in DC by the presence of Cheney generally don't make contributions out of the goodness of their hearts. They're part of the right-wing machine that's working day and night to keep us mired in Iraq while concocting a way to attack Iran.

In September, Wilson was ranked as one of the "22 Most Corrupt Members of Congress" by the non-partisan Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (along with Pearce). She's been a loyal rubber stamp of the failed Bush-Cheney policies regarding the Iraq occupation and has repeatedly voted in support of the Bush-Cheney agenda, which will place serious financial hardships on future generations. Iraq war spending coupled with fiscally irresponsible policies in other areas has resulted in the U.S. borrowing hundreds of billions of dollars from other nations -- and the largest budget deficits in our history.

Tragically, the Bush-Cheney war of choice has caused the deaths of more than 3,800 American troops and untold thousands of Iraq civilians. Latest estimates are that the U.S. will end up spending more than a half-trillion dollars to keep our soldiers locked in an endless civil war and cover the costs of the aftermath -- funds that could have been spent on our numerous neglected domestic priorities, from health care to education to infrastructure repair to renewable energy research.

Democratic Party of New Mexico Chairman Brian S. Colón weighs in:

Dick Cheney's values are far removed from the values of New Mexicans. He has been the source of much of the deception and disinformation perpetuated by the Bush Administration. Dick Cheney has said that 'deficits don't matter,' he has predicted that our forces would be 'greeted as liberators' in Iraq, and has falsely stated that Saddam Hussein 'had an established relationship with al Qaeda.'  Dick Cheney clearly represents the opposite of what New Mexicans want from Washington.

By standing side-by-side with Cheney last night for money, the voters of New Mexico were reminded that Heather Wilson has been more loyal to the Bush-Cheney Administration than to the priorities of the families of New Mexico. New Mexicans deserve better representation in Washington.

This is another reason why next year New Mexicans will elect a U.S. Senator who is a Democrat -- because they crave leadership that will stand up for the values of the working families of New Mexico, instead of the ideology of a failed Administration.

U.S. Senate Race in New Mexico: Photo & Quote of the Day

Rep. Heather Wilson (NM-01) and Rep. Tom Udall (NM-03) at 2007 Veteran's Day event in Santa Fe

Photo (Flickr) by Santa Fe New Mexican reporter Steve Terrell, from his blog. Silently pondering a future matchup?

And in this Politico piece, Albuquerque Mayor Marty Chavez is quoted dissing Tom Udall again:

But Chavez remains unbowed in his determination to seek the seat. In an interview with Politico, Chavez said his achievements as mayor would compare well with what he called Udall’s lackluster record in the House.

“You take a tough-charging mayor against a congressman who is not known for having done anything,” Chavez said.

“He’s never had the occasion to make tough decisions to offend people. You’re polling at the peak of his popularity. He’ll find that lead will evaporate like wet tissue paper.”

I guess Chavez is referring to "tough decisions" like killing a city ethics bill or fighting a raise in the minimum wage for Albuquerque, or hiring bad boy Republican Greg Payne to run the city's Transportation Department ....

Marty Chavez for Senate: Blog Smackdown

Albuquerque Mayor Marty Chavez has been getting hit repeatedly by bloggers and commenters and folks at Dem gatherings ever since he decided he'd abandon his long advertised run for governor in 2010 and instead enter the Dem Senate primary race. Mockery. Complaining. Groans. Tales of horror about Marty's past dealings. Complaints about his lack of integrity, ethics, people skills, honesty. I guess that's what happens when a politico has a sudden expedient ephiphany (oops) epiphany that leads him to try to pretend he's someone he's not in order climb up a big, big rung on the political scale.

Marty has just burned too many bridges and backstabbed too many people to get away with it. Too many in New Mexico know him for who and what he is, no matter how many top notch campaign consultants he hires to repaint the picture. Here's a sampling of some of the most recent blogging critical of the Mayor and his candidacy:

• Bumpersticker, mjh's blog
• Mayor Marty and Montano, Cocoposts
• Where in the World is Marty San Diego? , Burque Babble
• Marty Chavez’s Donkey Con, Coco on Duke City Fix

And ouch -- this Monday front pager by Markos on Daily Kos certainly doesn't mince any words. Quote:

Everyone wants Chavez out of the primary, suggesting he run for one of the House seats opened up by this Senate race. Me, I'd rather see Chavez' career destroyed by Udall in this primary once and for all. The last thing we need is his corrupt ass in Washington in the House, stinking up the Democratic brand and making Latinos look bad. So I hope he's stupid enough to stay in the Senate race. I'll have fun seeing him go down in flames.

Finally, there's the rapidly evolving story about Marty and his pet money-making red light cameras. You know, the ones he had put into place for safety reasons -- not to make money or headlines. Sheriff Greg Solano of Santa Fe weighs in on those on his blog. Suddenly, now that Marty is running for Senate (and questions are being asked about where the money is going from the program), he's developed new doubts about their effectiveness. So many doubts, in fact, that he's appointing a task force to study the cameras -- better known as putting the onus on somebody else, anybody else.

As of June 30th, the cameras have made $5.8 million for the city after paying off the company that runs the program. Meanwhile, there's no clear cut evidence that they're cutting down on accidents -- or that they're not, for that matter.

The odd thing is that Chavez. who has made the camera program something of a personal crusade, has now admitted publicly that he's reconsidering the red light cameras for political reasons. A Sunday Albuquerque Journal article reports:

Mayor Martin Chávez, saying the city's red-light camera program is not "delivering on its promises," will appoint a task force to consider scrapping it.

... "Folks either love these things or hate them, and more and more people just hate them," Chávez said in a telephone interview Friday from Chicago, where he was attending a conference. "I am not seeing the reduction in accidents that justify the headache and the controversy."

The city launched the program in October 2004 at two Northeast Heights intersections. Initially, it was designed to catch drivers who run red lights.

The program has since expanded to 20 intersections, and most cameras are also catching speeders. The city has added three camera-equipped vans to catch speeders as well. Chávez on Friday acknowledged that the program could be a "political liability." He announced last month that he was seeking the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by Pete Domenici.

"If we have a policy that is not liked and not working, certainly that is a political liability," Chávez said. "It is not the only issue on my municipal plate. I want to make sure that it does not deflect other things we have accomplished."

Probably realizing the impact of what he said on Friday about political considerations, Chavez changed his tune on Sunday:

Chávez downplayed any notion that he is trying to jettison his unpopular red-light camera program because it could be a political liability in his recently announced candidacy for the U.S. Senate.  ... The mayor said his appointment of a nine-member panel— which will make recommendations to him if the program should be kept, changed or scrapped— is timed to January's state legislative session in Santa Fe and not to his campaign strategy.

"If it were political, I'd kill the program," Chávez said in an interview following a news conference at the Civic Plaza.

I've always thought that one of Chavez's most serious faults is the transparency with which he conducts his purely political and often nasty movidas. I guess he really thinks we won't see through them because we're too clueless and naive to realize that the emperor has no clothes. He'd better think again.

For our previous posts on the 2008 U.S. Senate race in New Mexico, visit our archive.

(Updated With Internal Poll, AP Story) Udall & Wiviott: Latest on U.S. Senate Race in New Mexico

UPDATE: The Associated Press is that Tom Nagle, Tom Udall's Chief of Staff, Tom Nagle, has stated,"He's definitely running." Nagle also said Udall will formally announce his decision in New Mexico during Congress's Thanksgiving recess. In addition, DraftUdall and SwingStateProject have released an internal poll conducted for Udall by Fairbank, Maslin, Maullin and Associates during the period October 23-27, 2007 that again shows strong numbers for Udall:

Even more telling in terms of pretty much destroying Marty Chavez's claim that Udall wouldn't do well in the general election because he's "too far to the left," Udall significantly beats Marty's numbers with self-described "moderate" voters in the general:

In addition, Udall is very strong with Dem primary voters, including Hispanics and Bernalillo County residents: "Udall is the clear preference among likely Democratic primary voters for the nomination. In a three-way contest with Chávez and Developer Don Wiviott, Udall also reaches 50 percent support and holds a 20-point lead over Chávez. Udall holds strong leads among Hispanic and self-described moderate and conservative Democratic primary voters, as well as those who live in Bernalillo County, as shown below."

The polling firm also reports low favorables and high unfavorables for Chavez and just the opposite for Udall.

*****************
Original Post:

I have it on very good authority that Rep. Tom Udall is announcing to his long-time supporters tonight that he will, indeed, enter the U.S. Senate race. And that Don Wiviott (left), the first Dem brave enough to run for Senate back when Domenici was still saying he would run for re-election in 2008, intends to withdraw his candidacy if Udall makes an official public announcement of his entry. I've also learned that Don intends to seriously explore running for Congress in NM-03 if he does end up withdrawing from the Senate race. I hope he does. He's one of the good guys who decided to run for office for all the right reasons.

Reliable Source: Tom Udall to Enter U.S. Senate Race

Rep. Tom Udall (R), his wife Jill Cooper Udall (L) and Tom's father, former Secretary of the Interior Stewart Udall (C), with their paper ballots on election day 2006

According to a post yesterday on Heath Haussamen's blog, Rep. Tom Udall (NM-03) will soon announce his entry into the race for the Dem nomination for U.S. Senate in New Mexico. The report is based on leaks from "reliable sources" that Udall has been calling "Dem insiders" and "some county party chairs" this week to inform them he's running. At last Saturday's Dem Party State Central Committee meeting, Udall indicated he'd be making his decision within two weeks.

Today's Albuquerque Journal featured a front-page article by Michael Coleman about Albuquerque Mayor Marty Chavez's responses to a potential run by Udall. Not surprisingly, Chavez says he''ll stay in the Senate race no matter what. Some have interpreted Udall's delay in officially announcing his Senate run as providing some time for Chavez to exit gracefully in the face of a challenge from a highly popular and proven statewide vote getter. No dice. By all accounts, grace is not one of Chavez's strong points.

As reported in Coleman's story,

Albuquerque Mayor Martin Chávez said Friday that speculation that he might drop out of the U.S. Senate race if Rep. Tom Udall gets in is just wishful or wrong-headed thinking. "That's someone's wishful thinking or else someone's mistaken speculation," Chávez said in a telephone interview Friday. ... "I'm in the race," Chávez said. "I believe in this race."

Meanwhile, the Udall camp had this to say in the Journal story:

Tom Nagle, Udall's chief of staff in Washington, said Friday that the congressman is close to announcing his decision— possibly as soon as next week. Nagle said Chávez's entry into the race hasn't factored into Udall's decision-making process. "It's not about the mayor; it's about who would be the best senator from New Mexico," Nagle said. "If he decides to run, Tom Udall believes that would be him."

Chavez was in Washington on Thursday for a meeting he requested with Sen. Chuck Schumer, who heads the DSCC, as well as Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid. He apparently failed to convince them to remain uninvolved or to support his run. It's been widely reported that Schumer and other Senate Dems have been less than impressed with Chavez's chances in the race and have been actively encouraging stronger, more popular Dems to consider running, including Lt. Gov. Diane Denish and Rep. Udall. The pressure on Udall to run appeared to increase exponentially as polling data emerged showing he'd wallop both Steve Pearce and Heather Wilson in the general election, and Denish officially announced she wouldn't mount a Senate run.

Chavez is clearly trying to define Udall as being first and foremost the DSCC's candidate -- implying New Mexicans aren't behind his run. Marty has alternately claimed that Udall is "too far to the left" to succeed in a Senate run or that he and Udall hold the same positions on almost every issue. Pick one. Now Chavez has stooped to criticizing Udall for considering leaving his Congressional seat and his place on the House appropriations committee:

Chávez suggested that Udall, who recently earned a coveted seat on the House appropriations committee, would be doing a disservice to New Mexico if he gave up that seat. "That means we would send three freshman representatives and one freshman senator," to Washington, Chávez said. "It will be the weakest delegation in the history of New Mexico in terms of seniority. They won't have the clout to change a roll of toilet paper."

Always the gentleman, isn't he?

Other Candidates
Other candidates in the Senate race include Dems Don Wiviott, Jim Hannan and Leland Lehrman, all from Santa Fe. These three brave souls entered the Dem primary race months ago, when incumbent Repub Sen. Domenici was still insisting he would run for another term, and no other Dems had the gumption to challenge Pete. Hannan, who ran thousands of dollars worth of newspaper ads critical of Domenici and then Wilson, has said he will withdraw if Udall runs. No word yet from Wiviott, whose campaign has raised more than $400,000 from donors and loans from the candidate. Wiviott has been criss crossing the state for months, working hard on gaining support for his candidacy and reaching out to Dems of all stripes. It appears that Lehrman intends to continue in the race.

When Udall officially announces, expect a free for all of candidates to emerge in NM-03 where Tom will be giving up his seat. It's getting to be the norm in this unique election cycle in New Mexico. One thing that's become evident is the depth of the Democratic bench. The excitement being generated statewide for an unprecedented, across-the-board changing of the guard in New Mexico's House and Senate delegation can only grow stronger.

Race News
By the way, one of the most active forces encouraging Udall's run for Senate has been DraftUdall.com, where you can sign a petition supporting Udall for Senate, donate to the effort via ActBlue and keep track of developments in the race. Other good sources of race info nationally include the blogs Senate2008Guru and SwingStateProject. Locally, HeathHaussamen in Las Cruces, as well as community blog , the bloggers three at m-pyre and La Politica vet JoeMonahan in Albuquerque, are always on top of things. More will be revealed.

To read our previous coverage of the 2008 U.S. Senate race in New Mexico, visit our archive.

(2 Updates) Udall Strong in Daily Kos - Research 2000 Baseline Poll on 2008 U.S. Senate Race in NM

UPDATE 2, 11/9/07: Brent Blackaby of the Chavez campaign emailed the following to me in response to this post: "Marty is not considering a run for NM-01. His campaign for U.S. Senate continues full-speed ahead."

UPDATE 1, 12:06 PM: Check out the coverage from the National Journal's Hotline of what may be going on regarding Marty Chavez and Tom Udall running for Senate. Is Marty considering a switch to being a candidate in the NM-01 Congressional race to save face?
************
National blog Daily Kos has commissioned a baseline poll with the highly regarded Research 2000 on the 2008 race for U.S. Senate in New Mexico. The poll of 600 likely voters who regularly vote was conducted from November 5-7, 2007 and has a margin of error of plus or minus 4%. The poll results are front paged on Kos, where you can find all the cross-tab data, including favorable vs. unfavorable ratings for Rep. Udall, Albuquerque Mayor Marty Chavez, Lt. Gov. Diane Denish, Rep. Steve Pearce (NM-02) and Rep. Heather Wilson (NM-01). Summary results emphasize the strength of Rep. Tom Udall against both Repubs in the race -- Heather Wilson and Steve Pearce -- as well as much better numbers than Chavez against the Repubs:

If 2008 election for U.S. Senate were held today, for whom would you vote for if the choices were between Marty Chavez, the Democrat, and Heather Wilson, the Republican?

Wilson (R) 45
Chavez (D) 42

If 2008 election for U.S. Senate were held today, for whom would you vote for if the choices were between Diane Denish, the Democrat, and Heather Wilson, the Republican?

Wilson (R) 44
Denish (D) 43

If 2008 election for U.S. Senate were held today, for whom would you vote for if the choices were between Tom Udall, the Democrat, and Heather Wilson, the Republican?

Wilson (R) 38
Udall (D) 55

---

If 2008 election for U.S. Senate were held today, for whom would you vote for if the choices were between Marty Chavez, the Democrat, and Steve Pearce, the Republican?

Pearce (R) 40
Chavez (D) 39

If 2008 election for U.S. Senate were held today, for whom would you vote for if the choices were between Diane Denish, the Democrat, and Steve Pearce, the Republican?

Pearce (R) 39
Denish (D) 45

If 2008 election for U.S. Senate were held today, for whom would you vote for if the choices were between Tom Udall, the Democrat, and Steve Pearce, the Republican?

Pearce (R) 37
Udall (D) 54

I don't have time to delve into the cross-tabs right now, but I'll try to get back with some analysis later today. In the meantime, go ahead and post a comment on what you see in the data.

The methodology used by Research 2000 polling is much more respected than the automated, random phone method used by SurveyUSA. Results of the most recent SurveyUSA polling on this race can be found here: Collected 10/27/2007 - 10/30/2007.

For our previous coverage of the 2008 U.S. Senate race in New Mexico, visit our archive. The Draft Udall website can be found here.

More Video Clips: Rep. Tom Udall at State Party Meeting

UPDATE 11/6/07: I wanted to add another clip, this one from KOAT-TV:

**********

In clip 3 of 5, Rep. Tom Udall on supporting our troops.

I've uploaded a few more short video clips from Rep. Tom Udall's speech Saturday at the Democratic Party of New Mexico's State Central Committee meeting at CNM's Smith-Brasher Hall in Albuquerque. See my previous post with video of Rep. Udall saying he'll announce whether he will run for U.S. Senate within two weeks, plus photos and commentary.

The video above (Part 3 of 5) has Udall speaking about supporting our troops and how the Iraq invasion was the major foreign policy blunder in U.S. history. Also see these video clips:

Part 2 of 5: Click for comments on needing 60 votes in the Senate to end the war and overcome filibusters in the Senate on other bills passed in the House.

Part 4 of 5: Click for comments on expanding children's health care with S-CHIP

Part 5 of 5: Protecting and defending our privacy rights and the U.S. Constitution:

Although the clip above cuts off, Udall continues with a statement of support for holding the telecoms accountable for their cooperation with the Bush administration in conducting illegal warrantless surveillance. He also says he'd rather lose an election than vote to give away rights guaranteed by our Constitution and Bill of Rights.

We wish we could have gotten video of Udall's entire speech, as well as the many other rousing and articulate speeches of Dem candidates for U.S. Senate and U.S. House seats in NM-01 and NM-02, and other important parts of the NM State Central Committee meeting. However, it's difficult to get everything when you're also active participants in the meeting with membership on the SCC. I will be posting more photos and commentary on the SCC meeting though, so stay tuned.

Also, bear with us on the video quality. We're currently using the limited video function of a still digital camera for these clips. However, plans are afoot to get a real digial video cam for future use. Tick tock.

See our previous coverage of the 2008 U.S. Senate race in New Mexico in our archive. Also see the revamped Draft Udall website and coverage at . All video by M.E. Broderick.

(Updated) Tom Udall on Possible Senate Run: Two Weeks to Decide

UPDATE: See more video of Rep. Udall speaking at the SCC meeting in my Monday post.
*********
Rep. Tom Udall (NM-03) spoke to New Mexico Democrats yesterday at the Party's State Central Committee meeting at Smith-Brasher hall at CNM in Albuquerque. Bottom line: Udall will take another two weeks to listen to what the people and his family have to say, and weigh the pros and cons of giving up his secure U.S. House seat in Northern New Mexico before making a decision on entering the 2008 U.S. Senate in New Mexico (video above).

Udall (R) had many conversations with Dems at the meeting

Udall spent a lot of time mingling and listening to what Democrats at the meeting had to say about the possibility of his entering the race. Many of them were urging him to step right in, no doubt about it.

Part of the Run, Tom, Run brigade greets Udall

Udall entered the hall to a standing ovation, loud chants of "Run, Tom, Run" and a multitude of waving signs urging the same. His speech touched on many of today's hot button issues including Iraq, supporting our troops by getting them out of harm's way, protecting civil liberties, holding the telecoms accountable for warrantless surveillance and providing expanded children's health care. He emphasized that we need 60 votes in the Senate to overcome filibusters on bills that the U.S. House has been passing  on matters like ending the war and regaining and preserving our Constitutional rights. It certainly sounded to me like he was leaning towards running to take back the seat held for so long by Pete Domenci, and helping to make that 60 vote majority a reality in the Senate.

More Run, Tom, Run during Udall's speech

I'll be writing much more about the business conducted at Saturday's SCC meeting and the rousing speeches of candidates for the U.S House and Senate, as well as posting more video and photos. Today's my partner's birthday, however, and we'll be celebrating that first and foremost! Check back later today and tomorrow for more coverage as time permits.

Udall belting out the Star Spangled Banner with other Dems

See our previous coverage of the 2008 U.S. Senate race in New Mexico in our archive. Also see the revamped Draft Udall website and coverage at .

Click on photos for larger images. All photos and video by M.E. Broderick, who's NOT a professional but does pretty darn good with a small digital camera's limited capabilities. We're hoping to get a real video camera soon but, in the meantime, the less than top-notch quality of the video will have to suffice.

(Updated) Udall to Speak at Today's Dem State Central Committee Meeting: To Announce Senate Run?

Udall at at a Dem rally in La Cienega NM

UPDATE 11/4/07: See this post for the latest on Udall's decision.
*************
Sure sounds like this will be the day that Rep. Tom Udall (NM-02) announces his entry into the race for the Democratic nomination for U.S. Senate from New Mexico. The Democratic Party of New Mexico released the following statement last night:

Albuquerque - Rep. Tom Udall's office has just confirmed that he will deliver an address to the Democratic Party of New Mexico's State Central Committee meeting Saturday afternoon at CNM in Albuquerque. Udall's office announced yesterday that he is reconsidering a run for U.S. Senate. The meeting is open to members of the media as well as the general public.   

• WHO:  Democratic Party of New Mexico State Central Committee
• WHAT: Fall Meeting
• WHERE: Central New Mexico Community College (CNM, formerly TVI), Smith Brasher Hall
• WHEN: Saturday, November 3rd, 1:30 PM to 4:30 PM (media credentialing begins at noon)
• MORE INFO: DPNM website

In a post yesterday I said this would be the perfect opportunity for such an announcement, with so many of the state's Dems gathered to focus on Party business. I imagine the hall will be packed even more than usual with Democrats, politicos and media of all sorts. See you there.

To read our previous coverage of the 2008 U.S. Senate race in New Mexico, see our archive.

Lt. Gov. Denish's Statement on Senate Run Decision

As you've probably heard by now, Lt. Gov. Diane Denish (right) has formally announced she won't be pursuing a run for U.S. Senate in New Mexico in 2008. Her statement is included below the fold. As the race now stands, the Dem candidates competing for the Senate nomination include Don Wiviott, Martin Chavez, Jim Hannan and Leland Lehrman. On the Repub side, we have Rep. Heather Wilson (NM-01), who announced her run the day after Sen. Pete Domenici announced his retirement, and Steve Pearce (NM-02) who just made his run official and is touring the state this weekend.

Of course all eyes are on Rep. Tom Udall (NM-03) and whether he will officially begin a Senate run. Let's hope that he comes to a firm decision ASAP so Dem candidates and activists alike can gauge what they want to do to assure a Senate win in 2008. According to an article in the Albuquerque Tribune, Udall called Dem State Party Chair Brian Colón yesterday to inform him he might be getting into the race after all. Udall's spokesperson in Washington, Marissa Padilla, said yesterday that, "New Mexicans have urged the congressman to reconsider running for the United States Senate and he's doing just that."

It seems to me that a perfect opportunity for an announcement from Udall will present itself tomorrow, November 3rd, when the Democratic Party of New Mexico's State Central Committee meets at Smith-Brasher Hall at CNM from 1:30 to 4:30 PM. Registration starts at Noon and all Democrats are welcome to attend. Most of the Dem candidates for office will be giving short speeches at various times during the meeting's business agenda. I imagine it will be a raucous and energetic affair, to say the least.

Press Release: Lt. Governor Chooses to Stay and Fight for New Mexico

"Keeping our progress going is a fight I can't leave now," says Lt. Governor Diane D. Denish

Nov. 1, 2007

Lt. Governor Diane D. Denish today made the following statement about her intentions for 2008:

I am flattered and honored by everyone's interest in my considering the Senate race. I appreciate the encouragement of everyone I've heard from in Washington, but most of all I appreciate the support, counsel and friendship of so many of you here in New Mexico.  I'm honored by your confidence in me.

We're a country with serious problems.  We are in a war that the President has no plan to end. And that same President just vetoed a children's health care plan that our New Mexico children desperately need. We have been led to the brink of rocky financial times because of reckless economic policies the President has pursued. Because of the state of our country I felt I must give serious consideration to a Senate run.  It's simple: The nation is on the wrong track.

Over the last five years, I've worked with Governor Richardson to keep New Mexico on the right track. I've seen the difference our commitment to early childhood education means for our children's future. I've seen how fighting crime at a neighborhood level and investing in small businesses changes a community and helps make it a great place to live.

Together, we're reaching higher. We've made our state a better place to start a business or start a family, a place where every child in every community has a chance to grow and succeed.

But our work isn't done.  For all the progress we've made, keeping that progress going is a fight I can't leave now.  My heart and soul are in New Mexico. Therefore, it's clear to me that I best serve New Mexico by continuing as Lieutenant Governor, and I hope one day as your Governor. In the meantime, I'll be working hard to elect a Democratic Senator and President in 2008.

I love New Mexico, and the fact is, my feet are firmly planted on the ground here. I like to get up and see that big, blue sky and I'm committed to working hard for everyone who lives below it. Together, we can build a New Mexico that's stronger, safer, and more prepared than ever to take on the challenges we face.

To read our previous coverage of the 2008 U.S. Senate race in New Mexico, visit our archive.

(Photo credit: Don Unser, from .)