Democracy for New Mexico

Four ABQ Events Scheduled to Benefit Herrera for SOS Campaign

Mary Herrera at campaign event.

From the Democratic Party of Bernalillo County:
Here are four Albuquerque events scheduled to benefit the Mary Herrera for Secretary of State campaign, starting on Friday, October 13, 2006:

GOLF OUTING FUNDRAISER
Los Altos Golf Course , 9717 Copper Ave NE, ABQ
Friday, October 13, 2006
Noon Registration/Lunch, 1:00 PM Shotgun Start
$75.00 per person
For a registration form call: 266-6874 or 828-9009 or e-mail to maryherrera@maryherrera.com

WINE TASTING
St. Clair Winery & Bistro, 901 Rio Grande Blvd NW, ABQ
Wednesday, October 18, 2006, 5:30 to 7:30 PM
Suggested donation: $20.00 per person
Music by: Linda Cotton * Hors D'oeuvres *
Tasting of 4 wines and you keep the glass!!
For more information call: 266-6874 or 828-9009 or e-mail to maryherrera@maryherrera.com

COME DANCE TO THE MUSIC OF THE FABULOUS "CHEKKERS"
Fraternal Order of Police (FOP) Lodge
5900 Jefferson NE, ABQ
Friday, October 20, 2006, 8:00 PM to Midnight
Suggested Donation: $25.00 per person
Dinner available at the FOP separately, from 5:00 to 9:00 PM
For more information call: 266-6874 or 828-9009 or e-mail to maryherrera@maryherrera.com

CONCERT/DANCE BY: ANA MARIA Y SANGRE LATINO
Volcano West Club, 10125 Central Ave NW, ABQ
Sunday, October 22, 2006, 5:00 to 8:00 PM
Suggested donations: Donations will be greatly appreciated
For more information call: 266-6874 or 828-9009 or e-mail to maryherrera@maryherrera.com

To learn more about Democrat Mary Herrera's campaign, visit her website.

Nexus: Foley Money, NRCC, and Heather Wilson

Local blog Live From Silver City has a revealing post up that explores an additional compelling angle on the recent big-buck spending by the National Republican Congressional Commitee described in my earlier post. Live From Silver City's must-read piece begs the question, "hey Heather Wilson, are you going to allow dirty Foley money to pay for ad campaigns in NM-01 touting your candidacy?"

NRCC Sinking Big Bucks Into Rove-Connected Negative Phone Banking Nationwide, Including NM-01

According to a post yesterday on TPM Cafe:

The Natiional Republican Congressional Committee today sank $320,851.50 into House races in over a dozen states. Much of the cash went to negative phone-banking and mailers -- see a detailed breakdown of the spending here.

There are two references in the FEC report to a company called Feather Larson & Synhorst DCI of Phoenix, AZ, which was paid some $6,000 on October 9, 2006 by the NRCC to conduct phone banks opposing Democrat challenger Patricia Madrid's campaign against Republican incumbent Rep. Heather Wilson.

As reported by the Center for Media & Democracy's Sourcewatch (must read), FLS DCI is closely associated with Karl Rove. It's known for its phone banking on behalf of phony front groups created to try and convince voters there's more support for the positions of its clients than there really is. For instance, they've been involved in creating bogus groups that put up ads that advocate abandoning net neutrality under names like "Hands Off the Internet." They've created synthetic "grassroots" groups on behalf of telecommunications, pharmaceutical and computer industries, among others.

The three primary partners in FLS DCI are all long-time Republican strategists and consultants who are close to Rove and other right-wing insiders known for dirty campaigning. One of them, Thomas J. Synhorst, is known as the Johnny Appleseed of "astro-turf," a term used for grassroots groups or coalitions that are actually fake and often created by corporations or or PR firms. According to Sourcewatch,

The Associated Press reported in June 2001 that Synhorst "has been linked to South Carolina 'push polls' in the 2000 Republican primary that attacked candidate John McCain as 'a cheat, a liar and a fraud,' according to the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee."

I can only imagine what kind of negative distortions and nasty push-polling the telemarketing company will create to try and undermine Madrid's growing momentum in a climate of tanking poll numbers for Bush and Republican candidates around the nation. Republican leaders are growing increasingly panicked in the face of the Foley scandal, the rapidly deteriorating situation in Iraq and Afghanistan and the recent failure of the Bush administration to negotiate effectively with North Korea. Who knows how low they will go in attacking Dem candidates and spreading their sleaze in an effort to pump up their numbers. Deception is their most important product.

Madrid-related expenditures in the referenced FEC report:

FEATHER LARSON & SYNHORST DCI
2401 W. BEHREND DRIVE SUITE 7
PHOENIX, Arizona 85027
Purpose of Expenditure: Phone Banks
This Committee OPPOSES The Following Candidate: MADRID FOR CONGRESS
Office Sought: House of Representatives
State is New Mexico in District 01
Date Expended = 10/09/2006
Person Completing Form: CHRISTOPHER J. WARD
Date Signed = 10/09/2006
Amount Expended = $4061.04

FEATHER LARSON & SYNHORST DCI
2401 W. BEHREND DRIVE SUITE 7
PHOENIX, Arizona 85027
Purpose of Expenditure: Phone Banks
This Committee OPPOSES The Following Candidate: MADRID FOR CONGRESS
Office Sought: House of Representatives
State is New Mexico in District 01
Date Expended = 10/09/2006
Person Completing Form: CHRISTOPHER J. WARD
Date Signed = 10/09/2006
Amount Expended = $2616.12

A Short Jaunt Back to the Lamont-Lieberman Campaign

After complaining about the Democratic leadership, including Rep. Nancy Pelosi and Sen. Harry Reid, for "politicizing" the Foley-Hastert scandal, Big Baby Lieberman is now mocking DNC Chair Howard Dean in connection with this funny (and accurate) new Lamont ad:

Here's what the Dem turncoat Joey blog (such that it is) has to say:

If you have not had a chance to check out Ned’s new ad, please do (Quicktime).  It’s a scream.

Howard Dean would be proud.

Unfortunately for Ned, his fans are not.

Tell me again why this is tolerated by Dems who can do something about it? Shut up, Joe! And, yeah, I do think Dean would be proud of the ad -- along with everyone I know who sides with real Dems against DLC pretenders. (Tip 'o the hat to firedoglake.)

New Grassroots Political Billboard: No More Clowns!

(Click on photo for larger version.)

From Terry Riley:
If you want a little cheer as you work toward election day I would like to suggest that you take a little drive in Albuquerque down Zuni. On the left side of the street just west of Louisiana you will catch a pony-board, small size bill board, with an evil looking clown walking down an empty New Mexico highway with typical New Mexico ranch land in the background, mountains on the horizon and a beautiful New Mexico sky (see my photo above). A pleasant picture except for the evil clown. He symbolizes the Republicans who have done so much damage to our country over the last eight plus years.  It is time for this to come to an end and therefore the message:  No More Clowns ... Vote Democratic!

I certainly hope that this makes people think about the mess our politics are in and that the general public is ready for responsible government which I am ready to ride herd on Democrats to make sure happens. I also hope that politicians notice that mud and hate are not the only ways to get a message in front of the public.  I am trying to get civility to campaigning, what a thought.

Close-up of pony board.

Take a drive and take a look. This pony board will be up until after the election. I have another full size board that will be going up for the last seven days before the election. This one will be on Menaul just west of Eubank. It will be over Brian O'Brian's Pub facing eastbound traffic.  I wish I had thought of this earlier so there would have been better coverage. I am proud of my small contribution. I certainly hope that it either gives Democratic voters confidence to go ahead and vote Democratic or maybe gives Republican voters a moment to pause and consider if they can afford to continue to support the current crop of Republican candidates.

Editor's Note: I hear that MergingLeft put up two more of their political billboards as well -- one on Isleta at the curve and one on Coors near Bridge Street. If anyone has seen them or has a photo, let me know. Power to the people!

Today: Madeleine Albright, Patricia Madrid to Discuss Intelligence Failures, Need for Change

Attorney General Patricia Madrid, the Democratic challenger in the NM-01 congressional race, and former U.N. Ambassador and U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright will today discuss the intelligence failures that led us to war and the need to take national security in a new direction to make America safer.

The event will take place at the American Legion Post 72, 5107 Central NW (just east of Old Coors), at 4:00 PM, Monday, October 9 (TODAY). The public is invited to attend. Click for map.

Repub Sex Scandal: Curiouser and Curiouser

The plot thickens. Here's Lawrence O'Donnell's latest revelation about Denny Hastert:

... Many chiefs of staff are close, very close, to their bosses on Capitol Hill. But none are closer than Scott Palmer is to Denny Hastert. They don't just work together all day, they live together [emphasis mine].

There are plenty of odd couple Congressmen who have roomed together on Capitol Hill, but I have never heard of a chief of staff who rooms with his boss. It is beyond unusual. But it must have its advantages. Anything they forget to tell each other at the office, they have until bedtime to catch up on. And then there's breakfast for anything they forgot to tell each other before falling asleep. And then there's all day at the office. Hastert and Palmer are together more than any other co-workers in the Congress.

Read the entire post by O'Donnell on Huffington Post to understand why this is important to the evolving Foley scandal. An earlier post by O'Donnell provides more background, as does this story from today's Washington Post -- which reports that another Congressional staffer has backed up the contention that Hastert knew of Foley's problems long ago.

You really have to wonder about these odd, secretive, repressed Republicans and what they are capable of doing to protect their own interests -- including the stealthy actions and lies of Rep. Heather Wilson regarding the infamous disappearing file on her husband when she was Secretary of the NM Department of Children, Youth and Families.

What emerges is how hypocritical so many of these right-wing types are, always putting themselves out front as sterling models of morality and "family values," meanwhile using gay marriage and other wedge "morality" issues to stir up hatred. Not surprisingly, they themselves often eventually get caught doing the very things they are supposedly so vehemently against.

I have to say that this kind of denial, dishonesty and mean-spiritedness is evident in the handling of almost every right-wing issue these days, from the Iraq occupation, to their sorry excuse for a prescription drug plan, to economic fairness. These types are masters of saying one thing and doing another. But maybe -- just maybe -- the tables are turning at last and more will be revealed. Has the light of day ever been more essential in discovering the real meaning of what's gone on in Washington during the Bush years?

Saturday Music Hall: Have You Had Enough?

This ditty, performed by Rickie Lee Jones and  former members of the Squirrel Nut Zippers, is about throwing Repub Speaker of the House Denny Hastert out of office and voting for his Dem opponent. Of course, here in New Mexico's first congressional district, we can't directly vote out Foley-enabler Hastert. However, we CAN vote out Repub incumbent Rep. Heather Wilson -- another Bush rubber stamp who's still refusing to call for Hastert's resignation despite his improper and dishonest handling of the Republican scandal.

Recall that Wilson served on the Page Board from 2001 through 2004 when warnings were reportedly flying about Rep. Foley's tendencies to come on to the underage pages. Of course, like almost every other Repub in Congress, Wilson claims she saw and heard nothing about it. Either she wasn't paying attention to her responsibilities on the Board, or she was (and is) in denial. Either way, we need a real change. We've had enough!

Wanna get rid of Hastert, Boehner and the rest of the sleazy Repubs who've been running things into the ground in leadership positions in the U.S. House? Volunteer, donate and vote for Patricia Madrid for Congress in NM-01. Remember, if Dems win back the House, we'll have subpoena power, we'll have Dems running the House committees and we'll have an opportunity to try and find out what's really been going on with the Iraq occupation and much, much more.

Note: The performers have made versions of this song available to other Dem candidates. The blog Down With Tyranny explains why.

Candidate Forum in Eldorado 10/10

The Eldorado Residents Association is sponsoring a Candidates' Forum moderated by the League of Women Voters to be held on Tuesday October 10, from 7:00-9:00 PM at the Eldorado Elementary School, located on the corner of Vista Grande Avenue and Avenida Torreon in Eldorado. Candidates for the following offices have been invited to attend: US Senate, US Representative--3rd Congressional District, State Governor, State Attorney General, and Public Regulation Commissioner--4th PRC District. This may be the only candidate forum scheduled for the Santa Fe area this election season and it will be televised by the Community TV Station. Click for flyer (pdf).

Data Breakdown in Zogby/Reuters Poll in Madrid-Wilson Race

Joe Monahan has a PDF of the breakdown of data within the Zogby/Reuters poll released yesterday that shows Dem challenger Patricia Madrid with a 10 point lead over Republican incumbent Heather Wilson in the NM-01 congressional race. Must be nice to have "Alligators" willing to chip in and buy the polling data on your behalf! You can read Monahan's take on the data and the race here.

Some interesting results:

Wilson beats Madrid in only two income groups, those making between $75,000-$100,00 and those making more than $100,000.

Of those shopping with varying frequency at WalMart, Wilson beats Madrid in only one category, those who shop there weekly. The majority of those who shop at WalMart only a few times a month, 1-2 times a year or never are in the Madrid column.

Only 7% of Democrats polled say they will vote for Wilson. With the Democrats' advantage in voter registration in the district, the conventional wisdom is that Wilson would have to win about 25% of Democratic votes to win.

Asked whether Wilson deserves to be relected or if it's time for someone new, 58.0% of the total polled want someone new, while 38.5% want Wilson reelected. A total of 87.6% of Democrats, 19.4% of Republicans and 67.6% of Independents want someone new.