Anti-Reform Dems Teaming Up to Defeat Ethics and Campaign Finance Bills AGAIN

First, to set the stage, be sure to read Cocopost's piece on the dinosaurs in suits that populate the New Mexico Legislature -- especially on the Senate side. As she says:

There is a quaint charm to our New Mexico State Senate. It's the Jurassic Park of New Mexico politics -- dinosaurs in suits. The place still runs under Manny's Rules - just without Manny. It's where good bills go to die horrible deaths - like Domestic Partnership. And the bills it spawns just rise straight out of some primordial political muck.

Senate Majority Leader Michael Sanchez: Ethics Obstructionist
The latest legislation that is emerging from the NM Senate's "primordial political muck" is designed to kill all the campaign finance and ethics reform bills introduced this Session by lumping them together into a super-bill. Even worse, the anti-reformers -- led by Senate Majority Leader Michael Sanchez -- are threatening to add a provision to require nonprofit groups that work on issue advocacy and voter education to be treated like PACs. This, despite the fact that the nonprofits are NOT political action committees, and are required to follow stringent rules and laws that bar them from partisan actions. Cute, isn't it? This way, certain long-time foes of change can pretend they're for reform while making sure it won't happen. And they apparently believe we won't see through their antics, or won't care.

But New Mexicans are noticing that the State Senate has been the serial killer of major ethics laws over the past few years. That they’ve killed contribution limits, an independent ethics commission, public financing of statewide races – you name it. And that they’ve killed the reforms not just once, but repeatedly. Meanwhile, many Democratic anti-reform legislators continue to claim to be FOR ethics and campaign finance reform. Somehow, however, they just can't get it done with a Dem-dominated House and Senate, as well as a Dem Governor. Funny how that happens.

Unfortunately for the obstructionists, folks are noticing that ethics bills almost always die in Sen. Linda Lopez's Rules Committee, and that Sen. Lopez is close with Michael Sanchez. Folks are witnessing how Senate Majority Leader Michael Sanchez works with Senate Pro-Tem Tim Jennings and others to make sure change-agent legislators are given committee assignments that ensure their power is diluted or negated. People are getting the reasons why Sen. Michael Sanchez -- who's supposed to be the leader of the Democratic caucus in the Senate -- stayed "neutral" when Sen. Carlos Cisneros, the caucus choice for Pro-Tem, was successfully challenged by Dem-In-Name-Only Jennings.

Sen. Michael Sanchez was clearly more concerned with ensuring that the anti-reform, anti-domestic partnership cabal retained power within the committee structure than in representing his Caucus.

Let's travel back to 2007, to examine how Senate Majority Leader Michael Sanchez handled the ethics issue at a prior Session where it was getting a strong push. Remember how he defended the Senate’s killing of ethics reform?

'What did the Legislature do to warrant the push for the change?’ Sanchez asked. ‘Give me something factually that we've done to warrant all the changes that have been proposed’ [Reform Proposals Find Little Momentum, Albuquerque Journal, February 17, 2007].

Okay, ignore the fact that it's more than a little wacky to claim the Legislature shouldn't act to improve ethics until someone's been caught. But now that the Manny Aragon courthouse scandal has resulted in convictions, shouldn't ethics reform be at the top of Sen. Sanchez's to-do list? Think again:

Senate Majority Leader Michael Sanchez, D-Belen, meanwhile, said Tuesday that ethics proposals in that chamber — campaign contribution limits and an ethics commission, for example — may be rolled into a comprehensive reform bill. And he said some senators have suggested broadening campaign reporting laws to include nonprofit groups that get into political activity.

"If they're going to get involved in campaigns, they should probably disclose where the money's coming from," he said. [Denish promotes ethics bills to lawmakers, Deborah Baker, AP]

First of all, nonprofits DON'T get involved in campaigns, by law. They are strictly prohibited from acting during prescribed dates before and during election cycles. But what we really have here is a situation where the Senate Democratic Majority Leader finally pledges to allow ethics reform, but in a manner that is guaranteed to kill the bill. Clearly, he intends to once again bury ethics reform -- this time by tossing all the measures into one unwieldy bill -- and then amending it with unacceptable and unconstitutional provisions targeting nonprofits.

House Majority Leader Ken Martinez: Ethics Obstructionist
Another recent example of the anti-reform herd's antics -- this time on the House side -- is on display in a video by GOP Rep. Janice Arnold-Jones of the Feburary 5th meeting of the House Voters and Elections Committee. While discussing Rep. Jeff Steinborn's campaign contribution limits bill, Rep. Ken Martinez, the Majority Floor Leader, reveals his anti-reform fervor. He also manages to showcase his ignorance about the legal identities of the groups he's trying to hand-cuff and discredit.

Click on the "On Demand" button at the video website, go to Part II of the February 5th HVEC video and move to the 20 minute mark. Here we have Rep. Martinez holding forth on how campaign finance reform would put legislators like himself at a disadvantage because "the 527s" would still have free rein.

The 527s? Which 527 groups are active in legislative matters? I haven't heard of any, have you? Obviously Rep. Martinez doesn't know the difference between 527s and the nonprofit, nonpartisan advocacy groups that status-quo legislators are so up at arms about. Why? Because their perfectly legal work shining the light on voting records and campaign donors lets ordinary people in on what's really going on in Santa Fe. Message to Rep. Martinez: 527 groups can legally be active during election cycles. The 501(3)(c) nonprofits cannot, because they are not political action groups. They advocate on issues and educate on records. Period.

At any rate, Martinez claims these 527's would "force" legislators to vote against the wishes of constituents and their own personal positions on issues. I'm not sure how voting to represent the majority views of your constituents would jeopardize your electoral chances with your constituents, but Martinez is definitely scared about it. Could it be that he's really worried about votes legislators take to please their big donors that really AREN'T supported by constituents? And that, in fact, Martinez's fear is related to the chance that legislator voting records and campaign donor lists might be revealed by groups dedicating to keeping citizens informed? After all, citizens took a more negative view of their legislators in at least three Senate districts last year when they were provided with factual data on their records. Can't have that!

Act Now to Stop the Charade
So where do we go from here? Clearly anti-reform Dems, led by their Senate and House Leaders, are hooking up with anti-reform Repubs to make sure nothing significant in the way of ethics reform gets passed again this year in Santa Fe. Their behavior is becoming more and more blatant and more and more arrogant. They obviously believe they'll be immune to the wrath of the voters if they keep PRETENDING to be for change. We need to show them otherwise.

Take a minute and call or email your legislators and Democratic Senate and House Leaders to let them know you see through their shenanigans and don't approve. Do it now, before it's too late:

• Find your legislators here.
• Find Senate Leaders here.
• Find House Leaders here.

Technorati tags: