Democracy for New Mexico

NM Domestic Partnership Act: Wait Till Next Year

Yes, catching up after a vacation is a you-know-what. Sadly, New Mexico's domestic partnership bill died at the Legislative Special Session. Insight New Mexico has the story (and audio clips from Peter Simonson of the American Civil Liberties Union of New Mexico). Equality New Mexico reports that Governor Richardson has promised to put domestic partnership on the call for the thirty-day 2008 NM Legislative Session next January.

This year's Domestic Partnership Act passed the NM House THREE times -- once during its initial trip to the House Floor, once to restore the bill after it was gutted by the Senate, and once during the Special Session. Essenatially, it was stripped of its meaning and killed in the final hours of the regular Session by one vote. This post summarizes what happened. Four Democratic Senators voted with Republicans to kill the bill: Tim Jennings (Roswell), John Arthur Smith (Deming), Lidio Rainaldi (Gallup) and Carlos Cisneros (Questa). Opposition by the first three was anticipated, but Cisneros, for unknown reasons, suddenly switched sides. Sen. Cisneros wins my own personal Democratic Turncoat of the 2007 Legislative Session Award for this vote, as well as the one he cast (with 8 other Dem Senators) to deny the NM impeachment bill a floor debate in the Senate.

Sen. Cisneros has long been a champion of environmental, health care and other liberal causes, so it seems entirely out of character that he voted as he did in these two instances. Who knows what kinds of political pressures convinced him to vote as he did or when they came from. Maybe his thinking was still muddled because of the whack on the head with a hammer he got from his then wife, Patsy, when she caught him at a cabin with another woman in May of 2005. You can't make this stuff up. I just hope he didn't have the nerve to kill the domestic partnership bill on "moral" grounds. Maybe he'll regain his senses by next January.

Should you want to torture yourself, you can refresh yourself on our coverage of the ups and downs of this (and other) legislation by visiting our 2007 Legislative Session post archive. Also see State Senator Dede Feldman's blog post on the wrap-up of the nightmarish Special Session.

Civil Rights Leader Julian Bond to Speak in Santa Fe

Long time civil rights leader and activist Julian Bond will speak at Temple Beth Shalom in Santa Fe on Saturday, April 14, 2007 at 4:00 PM. Bond’s lecture is presented by Santa Fe’s Human Rights Alliance with sponsorship by Temple Beth Shalom. Co-hosts include the Santa Fe chapter of the NAACP, the New Mexico Holocaust and Intolerance Museum and Equality New Mexico.

Tickets for Bond’s lecture are available exclusively at the Lensic Box Office in Santa Fe or their online site. The box office can be reached at 988-1234. Tickets are $15 for the lecture and $50 for the lecture and a private reception with Mr. Bond afterwards. Temple Beth Shalom, the lecture site, is located at 205 E. Barcelona Road. Additional parking is available at the Unitarian Universalist Congregation, St. John’s United Methodist Church and Immanuel Lutheran Church, all located on Barcelona Road.

In an October 2006 interview with the gay news magazine The Advocate, Bond spoke out against homophobia in the African American community and linked it directly to the spread of AIDS among black people. He stated, “Homophobia is one of the major obstacles to black Americans coming to grips with this disease in the ways that we should.  It is awfully disturbing.  It’s a refutation of what the movement for civil rights stood for.  It’s disgraceful.”

Julian Bond, who has served as the Chairman of the Board of the NAACP since 1998, began his civil rights activism in 1960 as one of the founders of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) while he was a student at Morehouse College in Atlanta.  He was active in civil rights protests and voter registration drives across the South.  In 1968 he was co-chair of the challenge delegation from Georgia to the Democratic National Convention that successfully unseated Georgia’s regular Democrats.

In 1965 he was first elected to the Georgia House of Representatives but was prevented from taking his seat due to his opposition to the Viet Nam war.  Bond was elected twice again before the United States Supreme Court ruled unanimously that the Georgia House had violated his rights in denying him his seat.  In 1974, Bond was elected to the Georgia Senate where he served until 1987.  His tenure ended after an unsuccessful run for Congress in 1986 that prevented him from seeking re-election to the state senate.  At that time, Bond had been elected to public office more times than any other black Georgian in history.

Bond was also the first president of the Southern Poverty Law Center at its founding in 1971, and he continues to serve on its board of directors today.  He also serves on the Boards of the People for the American Way and the Council for a Livable World.  He is currently a Distinguished Scholar in Residence at the American University in Washington, D.C. and a professor in the history department at the University of Virginia. 

Video: Gov. Richardson Speaks at HRC Dinner in L.A.

As anyone following the back and forth on the NM Legislature's Special Session knows, Governor Bill Richardson spoke this weekend at a Human Rights Campaign (HRC) dinner in Los Angeles. He discusses some of his legislative initiatives in New Mexico including those concerning clean energy, a minimum wage raise, medical marijuana and tax cuts, as well as his record on GLBT civil rights, including the domestic partnership bill awaiting a vote by the Senate in our continuing Special Session. Quote:

"I want a domestic partnership bill so I can sign it right now, this year, soon. And I'm pushing this bill because I believe all families deserve our respect no matter their race, creed, sexual orientation. I think people realize that this bill is a victory for fairness and equality as well as to open hearts and open minds. So far my state senate has not agreed. But I'm gonna keep pushing ... This bill is as important to me as it is to you.

Let's hope our NM Senators see this issue through the same prism of fairness and equality for all New Mexican families, and vote to pass it on Thursday, when they are due to reconvene in Santa Fe. The bill has passed the NM House in both our regular Legislative Session and the Special Session. To those awaiting at least basic legal protections under civil law, every year that passes without this legislation is another year at risk.

The HRC release on Gov. Richardson's speech said,

New Mexico Governor and 2008 presidential candidate Bill Richardson pledged his support for equal domestic partnership rights, fighting HIV/AIDS internationally and repealing the military’s anti-gay “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy as keynote speaker at the annual Human Rights Campaign Los Angeles Gala Dinner on Saturday.

‘This country is tired of the politics of hatred and division. What we need in this country is someone that can bring us together,” said Gov. Richardson. “Gay and lesbian families deserve respect. What we don’t need are constitutional amendments designed to exclude supportive, devoted couples. We need to extend the rights due to all of us as Americans.”

The HRC Los Angeles Gala Dinner was attended by over 1000 HRC members and supporters, including Marine Sgt. Eric Alva (ret.), spokesperson for HRC’s efforts to repeal “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” and comedian Bill Maher, who received the 2007 HRC Equality Award.

Click for a transcript of the speech.

The Human Rights Campaign is America’s largest civil rights organization working to achieve gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender equality. By inspiring and engaging all Americans, HRC strives to end discrimination against GLBT citizens and realize a nation that achieves fundamental fairness and equality for all.

(Updated) NM Senators Leave Citizens, Ethics in the Lurch

UPDATE 3.25.07: We now know 3 Dems voted with Repubs to adjourn: Senators Linda Lopez, Tim Jennings and John Arthur Smith. We also know 4 Dems were absent: Senators Cisco McSorley, Ortiz y Pino, Cynthia Nava and Mary Kay Papen. Adjournment was achieved by an 18-17 margin. According to this morning's Sunday Journal article it appears that Governor Richardson and the NM House leadership intend to keep going. Richardson is quoted as saying he'll basically keep a Special Session going until the Senate gives him an up or down vote on the bills he specified in his proclamation. Senate Majority Leader Michael Sanchez and some others appear to favor a cooling down period, with a break before another Special Session is called. The Governor doesn't agree, saying:

"I don't want them to go home and get comfortable and then find excuses not to come back," Richardson said. "If there are some senators that would rather politic and make excuses than do their work, I think the people are going to respond at the polls.

"I want the Senate to ask: What do they say to victims of domestic violence? What do they say to the (people) of New Mexico that wants roads in their cities and counties? What do they say to gay couples that want a fair shot? What do they say to controlling the meth problem in the state? And what do they say about ethics? I mean, we've had all these scandals, and the Senate doesn't even want to vote?"

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Kate Nash reports briefly:

UPDATE 11:23 AM The clerk is calling the roll. At 11:30, Senate Minority Leader Stuart Ingle made a motion to adjourn. It was a voice vote, which is being challenged. The clerk is now calling the roll. There were enough votes, by one, to adjourn. The Senate is clearing out.

They voted on nothing except adjournment, failing to pass even a feed bill to pay themselves. I'd love to know which Democrats voted to adjourn so I could personally thank them for the valiant efforts they made to show Governor Richardson who's boss, to stick it to the majority of New Mexicans who support ethics and campaign finance reform in the wake of ongoing ethics scandals, to make it clear to New Mexican families who critically need the very basic civil law protections of the domestic partnership bill that their civil rights aren't considered important and, well, you get the idea. Shameful. In my view, if there's ever been an argument to be made for terms limits, this is it.

Thanks, Senators! You've shown your true colors.

No word yet on whether the NM House intends to join in the adjournment. If they don't, the Senate would be forced to reconvene again in three days. This could go on for 30 days beyond the start of the Special Session, at which point the Governor could issue another call for a Special Session. We'll see what happens. 

To access all our past coverage of the 2007 NM Legislature, visit our archived posts on the topic.

Not Alone

Our steadfast Dem Senator Dede Feldman has a post and a podcast on her blog laying out her views on what she calls the "Standoff at the OK Corral - NM Style." Apparently, I'm not alone in believing that the legislation proposed by Governor Richardson for the Special Legislative Session -- especially the campaign and ethics reform and domestic partnership bills -- are important and need passage NOW. She urges folks who want to see the Senate take action tomorrow, instead of merely thumbing their noses, to contact their Senators, as well as this list of "renegades" who don't seem to get the need for reform:

Sen. Lopez Linda.Lopez@nmlegis.gov  phone:986-4737
Sen. Pinto John.Pinto@nmlegis.gov phone: 986-4835
Sen. John Arthur Smith john.smith@nmlegis.gov phone:986-4363
Sen. Michael Sanchez senatormssanchez@aol.com phone: 986-4727
Sen. James Taylor jamesg.taylor@nmlegis.gov phone: 986-4862
Sen. Bernadette Sanchez, especially. bernadette.sanchez@nmlegis.gov phone: 986-4267

NM Senate: Will They Stay or Will They Go?

Kate Nash at the Albuquerque Tribune says:

Word is that the Senate is expected to come back to Santa Fe at 9 a.m. [Saturday] to caucus and then reconvene at 10. We'll see how that goes. At the conference, Richardson said he wants to see the Senate to do the work the House did Wednesday night. I'd say it's up in the air right now as to whether they will stay. Senate President Ben Altamirano says he thinks the votes are there; I just talked to Senate Minority Whip Leonard Lee Rawson, who said the votes are there to leave . . .

This morning, an Albuquerque Journal article quoted Sen. Altamirano on the prospects of Senate action Saturday:

"I can almost say I'm positive we can go in there and get the Senate together," said Senate President Pro Tem Ben Altamirano, D-Silver City. But he said staying in session doesn't guarantee passage of the governor's agenda. "(Richardson) said that all he wanted is an up-or-down vote," Altamirano said. "If the guy wants an up-or-down vote on those bills, it's time we gave it to him."

Senators Griego and Altamirano also said a voter backlash might develop if the Senate again adjourned without voting on anything:

...  Altamirano and Sen. Phil Griego, D-San Jose, another Richardson ally, said they believe there could be a voter backlash if the Senate calls another adjournment. "Another turn of events would turn the general public against us," Altamirano said.

The most positive news was that the Senate might pass a couple of bills tomorrow, including the domestic partnership bill that failed in the Senate by a few votes near the end of the regular Session:

While he is willing to meet, Griego said he doesn't believe there are enough votes to pass measures that cost money— such as the $208 million highway package and the ethics commission. But he said he's hoping for a compromise: Pass the domestic partners bill, and possibly a House-approved measure to increase the penalties for domestic violence ... [emphasis mine]

We can only hope that everyone involved stops using the domestic partnership legislation as a political football and instead do what's right for a significant number of New Mexican citizens who have long been striving to obtain the most basic of civil law protections for themselves and their families.

To access the archive of all our posts on the 2007 Legislature, click here.

To read our archive of posts on the domestic partnership act, click here.

NM House Up All Night, Passes All But One Bill

Members of the New Mexico House stayed up all night in a seven-hour marathon on the House Floor to pass all but one of the bills Gov. Richardson included in his proclamation calling the Special Session. Thank you and congratulations to our Dem Representatives for sticking to business! We know it wasn't any fun with Rep. Dan Foley and other Repubs reportedly interrupting the floor action, interjecting insults and introducing motions to adjourn. Luckily, they couldn't make any headway in the face of Dem unity.

The only bill left for the House to pass would limit campaign contributions. A long debate focused on whether the limits should apply to PACs as well as individual donors. This morning, House Speaker Ben Lujan called a recess, subject to the call of the chair to reconvene at any time. It's not known if they will meet again later today to try and pass the remaining campaign finance bill.

The bills are now headed to the Senate, which is adjourned in protest, but must reconvene on Saturday according to legislative rules. Various Senators are threatening to call another adjournment on Saturday, which would give them another three days before they meet again, but only if the House stays in session. Again, let's hope for the sake of New Mexicans that the balking Senators come to their senses, abandon their rebellion against the Governor and vote on the bills quickly. We get the point, Senators. You're displeased that Gov. Richardson called the Special Session so soon after a grueling regular session and then left the state for campaign events. Now could we please move on to the business of the Senate?

Here are links to the bills passed by the House in the Special Session, along with vote tallies:

HB 1, Feed Bill: Passed 47-13

HB 2, Severance Tax Bond Transporation Projects (GRIP II): Passed 42-16

HB 3, Clandestine Drug Lab Act: Passed 55-0

HB 4, Domestic Partnership Rights and Responsbilities: Passed 30-23

HB 5, Domestic Violence Penalties and Treatment: Passed 56-0

HB 6, Public Financing of Statewide Campaigns: Passed 35-21

HB 8, State Ethics Commission Act: Passed 38-16

Not yet passed by House in Special Session:

HB 7, Campaign Reporting Requirements: Passed House Judiciary Committee 8-0

More coverage available at the Santa Fe New Mexican and Heath Haussamen.

(Updated) NM House Keeps Working in Special Session

UPDATE 5:30 PM: I've heard tonight the House will try to hear all the bills to be considered during the Special Session, starting at 7:00 PM.
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In a running update, Kate Nash reports the NM House is in still in session after reconvening at approximately 2:30 PM today. If they continue to work, the NM Senate will be forced to reconvene on Saturday, after adjourning yesterday in protest of Governor Richardson's call for a Special Session. Is it too much to hope they can pass some bills before making another stand?

According to an Albuquerque Tribune article, eight Democratic Senators voted with Republicans to adjourn yesterday. I can imagine which ones, can't you? As to the importance of the bills on the Governor's proclamation:

Sen. Linda Lopez, an Albuquerque Democrat, made the motion to adjourn. "It's not a health, life-or-death situation," she said after the vote. "It can wait until the next legislative session."

No problem if it's not YOUR civil rights, or you've been blocking ethics and campaign reform the entire session. Meanwhile some Republicans were rumored to be planning to introduce a bill to institute a constitutional ban on domestic partnership agreements, a move that would need ratification by New Mexico voters.

How would you like your rights under civil law put to a vote? Strange that in a republic based on ensuring the rights of minorities and the separation of church and state, this is the kind of anti-American proposal being made by members of a Party always harping on patriotism and the Constitution. I guess they haven't read it carefully, if at all. If they're good at anything, it's cherry picking -- whether it's passages from the Bible, intelligence on WMDs or the U.S. Constitution.

Meanwhile, the domestic partnership act (HB 4) was passed by the House Judiciary Committee yesterday and is headed to the House floor. It was already passed by the NM House during the regular Session:

Linda Siegle, a lobbyist for the Equality New Mexico PAC and other groups, said she's glad to see the issue on the special session agenda - but her group didn't request it be done now.

"We did not request it of the governor for the special session. The governor did it on his own, and we're grateful for that." But, she said, the bill is crucial. "This is a very important bill for people's families to have rights and responsibilities and protection," she said.

Let's hope Senate Democrats manage to lose their attitudes and at least approve this bill. Families all over New Mexico are holding their breath. It's like that when your basic civil rights and the stability of your lives are at stake.

NM Senate Quits Special Session in a Tizzy, at Least for Now

Bottom line: the NM House can call the Senate back after three days, if they so choose. If not, it's all over. Kate Nash provides a day-long play-by-play and reports:

5:57 Sen. Linda Lopez just moved the Senate adjourn SINE DIE. It passed. But there is a challenge to the ruling, which was on a voice vote ... The vote was upheld. The Senate is out of here on a vote of 24-14 ... House committees have passed several bills, including the domestic partnership measure and the GRIP II road construction bill.

Oh, who cares about that, especially whether all our citizens have a semblance of parity under civil law? As the NM Repub Party news release puts it, in their typically sleazy, schoolyard style:

Special Session – Gov. Richardson’s “Domestic Partner” Agenda Spells Gay and Lesbian Votes in California: Gov. Richardson’s hastily called Special Session of the Legislature is a thinly disguised attempt to woo the votes of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender individuals in the United States in his ambitions to run for president.

A “domestic partner” bill is one of the key issues the politicking governor has put on the agenda for the 2007 New Mexico Special Session. This piece of liberal legislation ensures that unmarried homosexual and heterosexual couples would receive the same rights as traditional married couples.

First off, if this domestic partner bill would give GLBT folks the same rights as legally married couples, I'll eat my 'Bush Is Over' teeshirt.  As has been well documented, legally married heterosexual couples receive a total of 1,138 FEDERAL benefits that neither state domestic partnerships nor state-provided same-sex marriages offer. All this domestic partnership law would do is provide the most basic of legal protections for partners and their families, whether straight or gay.

Secondly, is anyone else sick and tired of the Senators' whining and refusal to work? Think back to all the time spent on bolo tie, cowboy song and talapia farm bills and compare that to the time it would take to pass these bills of substance, some of which would significantly improve the lives of our citizens and the ethics of our goverment. In my opinion the Senate -- including many Democratic Senators -- are acting like rebellious children. Wah, I don't wanna work cuz the Guv. is running for president. Apparently it's all a game to them, just another ego-power struggle while the masses wait.

Of course it might help if Gov. Richardson would stay in town long enough to get this done. Surely he could miss a couple "fundraisers" at this early point in the presidential primary race, couldn't he? I mean if people like us were really important to him. More important than big donor cash.

I wish all of them would act their ages, get the business of the people completed without delay and quit the showboating, on all sides. Is that asking too much of those who are supposed to represent us?

PS: According to EQNM: By a vote of 6-2 HB4 (Domestic Partnerships) passed out of House Judiciary today and is now scheduled for a full floor vote of the House tomorrow Wednesday, March 21 at 2:00PM. If you can, please come to the Roundhouse to pack the gallery.

Peace Too Controversial for Colorado Springs Parade

Read all about it. Shocking photos too. Those "arrested" had a permit to march in the St. Paddy's Day Parade. The cops didn't bother to ask to see it. Choke holds are more fun.

Remember, Colorado Springs is home to the anti-democratice right wing group, Focus on the Family -- who just happen to have put out an alert for their members to contact NM legislators to urge them to vote no on the domestic partnership bill to be considered at the Legislature's Special Session, which starts today. Please do your part to fight against them by clicking here and urging your legislators to vote YES on domestic partnership and help ALL New Mexican families.