Democracy for New Mexico

Bingaman Measure Approved to Expand Use of Renewable Energy

From the DPNM Victory Line:
Right off the bat, the U.S. Senate adopted a measure written by U.S. Senator Jeff Bingaman that ensures electric companies will generate more of their power from renewable sources such as the wind and the sun.

In a 52-48 vote Bingaman’s amendment was added to the Senate version of the energy bill.  The Bingaman provision calls on electric utilities to generate 10 percent of their power through renewables by 2020; that requirement is called the “renewable portfolio standard.”

“Our country is growing increasingly dependent on coal and natural gas to generate electricity.  In my view, we must seek ways to diversify our sources of energy.  We can and we must find ways to adopt new technologies such as wind, solar and biomass power. That is exactly what this provision does,” Bingaman said.

Bingaman’s measure allows for a gradual transition into the renewable requirement, beginning with 1 percent of the company’s sales base in 2005 and increasing to 10 percent in 2020.

One major benefit to Bingaman’s amendment is the fact that it likely will spur rural economic development and create tens of thousands of jobs nationwide in the manufacturing and construction of renewable energy facilities.  And it sets the United States back on a course to being the world leader in renewable technologies.

“The United States was once a world leader in the manufacture of renewable technologies.  This provision will help create a robust domestic market for the technologies that will help U.S. suppliers to recapture their former dominance in these markets,” Bingaman said.

Bingaman pointed out that New Mexico has is its renewable portfolio standard at 10 percent by 2011. 

“Our state has embraced renewable energy and it is leading our country in finding ways to rely more heavily on renewable resources and less on imports,” Bingaman said. 

The Energy Information Administration estimates that the Bingaman amendment would result in a $22.6 billion savings for consumers. 

Also, see the Albuquerque Tribune's coverage, which leads off by saying: “The Senate finished its first week of work on the energy bill by handing a big victory to Sen. Jeff Bingaman.”

Editor's Note: A Senate vote on its version of the energy bill is expected Tuesday morning. Here's an assessment of the bill by the American Council for An Energy-Efficient Economy with links to detailed analyses of both the Senate and House versions of the energy bill. The Natural Resources Defense Council provides analysis of the more damaging aspects of the bill and a link to its complete text.

You can contact Senator Bingaman at his website. 

Stop Global Warming: Join the Virtual March on Washington

THE STOP GLOBAL WARMING VIRTUAL MARCH ON WASHINGTON is a non-political effort to bring all Americans together in one place, proving there is a vast consensus that global warming is here now and it is time for our country to start addressing it. With the support of leading scientists, political and religious leaders, prominent Americans and concerned citizens, the Virtual March on Washington will move across the United States via the Internet from one town to the next, showing the evidence of global warming's alarming affects, and highlighting real people's concerns and real solutions along the way.

Please join the march and make your voice heard too. Click for my march page or to create your own and invite your friends to join.

Current marchers include Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., Senator John McCain, Walter Cronkite, NY Attorney General Eliot Spitzer, Al Gore, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, Wesley Clark, SEIU President Andy Stern and thousands of ordinary people.

Sensenbrenner: Gaveling Democracy Off the Table

The local blog Truth, Rants and Ramblings has excellent coverage of this week's special hearing on the Patriot Act and how the U.S. government is running the "war on terror," which was called by Rep. John Conyers and the Democratic members of the House Judiciary Committee. The Committee's chair, Republican Rep. John Sensenbrenner, abruptly cut off witnesses, was incredibly rude to Conyers and other Dems, limited to 5 minutes the time that each member could ask questions and receive answers and unilaterally and illegally adjourned the hearing while not letting points of order be heard.

The story includes a link to video of the complete hearing. The last 15 minutes puts the fascist flavor of recent Republican Congressional maneuvers on full display. I watched about the last 30 minutes of the hearing on CSPAN and it is a sight to behold. Remember, after all, that this administration is allegedly on a crusade (!) to spread democracy around the world. Perhaps they should start with their bullies in the Congress.

Of course many of the DLC-type Beltway Dems will probably view any criticism of Sensenbrenner's tactics as being over the top and representing views that they can't support. I mean, do we want to insult all of Sensenbrenner's swing voter supporters? Mercy. Better to keep talking about what a bad boy Howard Dean is and pretend not to notice that our democracy is going to hell in a handbasket while insider Dems ponder how they can get more face time on TV by disingenuously criticizing the Party Chair.

Report on Take Back America Conference

Editor's Note: Many of you will remember Matt McMillan from the Miles Nelson for Congress campaign. He also was a founding member of Tidewater for Dean during the presidential primay campaign. He's now working in DC and it was great to get this from him.

I got to watch several of the main speeches from the conference on CSPAN, including great ones by Howard Dean, John Edwards and Kim Gandy. Edwards' populist barnburner about poverty, a living wage and more was especially powerful. It's terrific to hear a Democrat talking like a real Democrat and stressing that our Party is traditionally a voice for those who have difficulty developing one, not for monied special interests. You can read, hear or see video of most of the major speeches at the CFAF site.

Greetings NM Friends,

My organization, Campaign for America's Future, just concluded our annual Take Back America Conference.  I was fortunate enough to conduct FutureCasts - online radio broadcasts - with a number of leading progressives including George Lakoff, Katrina vanden Heuvel (Editor, The Nation), and others. Click to check it out. Also, check out more coverage  from the conference.

Hope you all are doing well - and enjoy!

Best, Matt

Study in LA Counters Many Myths About Living Wage

The Southwest Organizing Project's SWPOblogger has posted the results of a recent study of the effects of a Living Wage ordinance in Los Angeles. Contrary to the undocumented and rather hysterical jive talk that emerges from the likes of City Councilor Sally Mayer (MAY-YAY'), as well as many Dems, the study found that the law resulted in raised pay for nearly 10,000 jobs with minimal employment loss. The study, funded by the Ford Foundation, also reports that nearly 70 percent of workers affected by the law are low-income and only 4 percent are teenagers.

Click on the link to SWOPblogger above to learn more and access a link to the entire report.

Wal-Mart: Low Prices at What Cost?

In anticipation of Wal-Mart's annual meeting this Friday, WalmartWatch.com has just released their Annual Report 2005: Low Prices at What Cost? This is a must read for anyone interested in how Wal-Mart actually does business, with lots of facts to back up their positions. Download it and pass it on, especially to friends and neighbors who don't really understand how Wal-Mart operates and how damaging they are to communities.

Also, filmaker Robert Greenwald has announced the release of his new documentary, "Wal-Mart: The High Cost of Low Price." Click to check it out.

MoveOn Filibuster Demonstrations Cancelled; Join Conference Call with Reid Today

According to MoveOn PAC, today's planned demonstrations in support of the filibuster have been cancelled in response to the compromise reached yesterday. You can participate in a conference call with Senator Harry Reid about the deal later today.

From MoveOn PAC:
Last night, 14 senators struck a deal that, for now, takes the nuclear option off the table. It's a big blow for Bill Frist and the radical right, and a win for democracy. Join us at 6PM Mountain Time for a call with Democratic Senate Leader Harry Reid, the MoveOn staff, and other members nation-wide. .

President Bush, Bill Frist and the radical right-wing of the Republican Party have failed in their attempt to seize absolute power over the courts. Together, we've stopped the "nuclear option" — for now.

Last night at 7:30pm, with only hours to go before Senator Frist rose in the Senate to try to break the rules and seize power to appoint extreme judges, 14 senators announced they had struck a deal. As powerful far-right leader James Dobson put it, "This Senate agreement represents a complete bailout and betrayal by a cabal of Republicans and a great victory for united Democrats...The rules that blocked conservative nominees remain in effect, and nothing of significance has changed."

For once, we agree with Mr. Dobson. With 7 Republicans pledging to oppose Frist's scheme as long as the Democrats stick to the standard for filibusters they've used all along — only using them in extraordinary circumstances — the "nuclear option" is dead unless Republicans break their word. And if that happens we will be in a much stronger position to stop them.

You've been one of the heroes who made calls, wrote letters, supported ads, or went to local events to help stop the nuclear option. So tonight, we'd like to invite you to a victory conference call and debriefing session at 8:00 pm EST / 5:00 PM PT with Senator Harry Reid, the Democratic Leader in the Senate, to thank you, talk about what this really means and what's coming next, and answer your questions. We hope you can join us.

Last night's resolution was a real victory, but it came at a heavy price. Three of the nominees the Democrats agreed not to filibuster, Janice Rogers Brown, Priscilla Owen, and William Pryor, will now head to confirmation votes in the Senate where they may well be approved. Their record of corporate bias and outright hostility to the basic rights of ordinary Americans poses a serious threat that we will have to contend with for years to come.

You can see the full, original text of the agreement at:
https://www.c-span.org/pdf/senatecompromise.pdf)

Had Senator Frist succeeded in executing the "nuclear option" we wouldn't just be facing three terrible judges on the US Courts of Appeals — we'd be watching one party take absolute control of all branches of government for the first time ever. And radical Republicans would have had complete power to stack the Supreme Court with unchecked extremists and to roll back decades of progress on all our most cherished rights.

Of course, the Republicans could still decide to go back on their word and break the agreement at some point in the future. But even if that happens they have already failed in their primary goal: to eliminate the filibuster now, before there's a vacancy on the Supreme Court -- before Americans are watching and it's clear how much is at stake.

So why wasn't Republican Leader Frist able to translate his 10-vote advantage in the Senate into 51 votes for his "nuclear" scheme? A large part of the answer is you.

Over the last few months MoveOn members have racked up a simply amazing string of accomplishments in our fight to save the courts. Together, we have:

Submitted 59,645 letters to the editors of 3,162 newspapers

Placed 118,016 calls to Congress (that we know of!)

Held 1,539 house meetings to form local organizing teams

Placed tens of thousands of signs in your windows, all across the country

Gathered at over 1,000 theaters to pass out "Save the Republic" flyers to Star Wars fans

Knocked on thousands of doors to spread the word, in almost 1,000 neighborhoods nationwide

Raised $1.3 million to fund the campaign, with an average contribution of $43

Supported the creation and placement of 4 television commercials, radio commercials, and 2 print ads running in target states and nationwide

Organized 192 simultaneous rallies in all 50 states

Submitted 580,371 signatures and comments opposing the nuclear option

Organized round-the-clock emergency "Citizen Filibusters" in key target states, and signed up to organize 108 more nation-wide — before breathing a sigh of relief when we won before it was time to start.
Frist couldn't get 50 of his 55 Republicans to support the "nuclear option" in large part because we and our allies convinced them it would be political suicide to do so. If there had been no grassroots movement to stop the "nuclear option," it's almost certain that today George Bush and Bill Frist would hold absolute power to stack the Supreme Court and we would be powerless to protect our most basic rights. Preventing that nightmare is an accomplishment to feel proud of.

The fight to protect our courts and, as the Star Wars fans say, to "Save the Republic," goes on. There are more Republican assaults we need to block, from John Bolton to Social Security privitization, and we'll need all hands on deck to help shift the balance in Washington in the 2006 elections. Our next immediate focus will be on Tom DeLay and Republican leaders' abuse of power in the House — starting with petition deliveries to local Republican offices next Wednesday (more on this soon).

With a failed Republican leadership transparently consumed with power and out of touch with the nation, and a growing, powerful grassroots community churning out victories against overwhelming odds — the prospects for change are looking good.

Thank you — really, THANK YOU — for everything you've done. Democracy won the night, because of you.

Sincerely,
–-Ben, Eli, Carrie, Matt and the MoveOn PAC Team
  Tuesday, May 24th, 2005

Deal Reached on Nuclear Option

So who do you think won? Who caved? What's the net result? Check it out and let us know:

https://www.dailykos.com/story/2005/5/23/201840/027#178

It feels to me like a cave by the Dems but then Reid didn't have a strong hand and this is no doubt better than the nuclear option. And I'm sure the rightwingos will be raving at Frist for not being able to swing this even with 55 Repub Senators. Still, the reviews are mostly mixed...

Phew!

Hot, hot, hot recordbreaking temperatures have moved into New Mexico:

The sudden heat wave is causing flooding and high stream and river water up north as the snowpack melts lickety split:

Read all about it in the Taos News and Santa Fe New Mexican.

And of course the temps in the 90s in Albuquerque, 100s down south and 80s up north are pushing people onto their boiling roofs for emergency start-up. Why cover this on a political blog? I was thinking this might be one of the reasons political debate has heated up of late. Nah. Comments still coming.

Palast Fundraisers a Big Success

The fundraisers for Voter Action NM and election investigation work held in Albuquerque and Santa Fe this Friday and Saturday were well attended and raised substantial financial support for the NM voters' lawsuit and investigative work in the state. Investigative journalist Greg Palast and attorneys John Boyd and Lowell Finley appeared at the IBEW Hall in Albuquerque and a dinner in Corrales on Friday, then moved up to similar events in Santa Fe on Saturday.

In the photo, Eric Elison gives Greg Palast a New Mexico Democratic Friends button at the Corrales dinner fundraiser. The Albuquerque events were cosponsored by NM Democratic Friends and Democracy for New Mexico.

Click to view a photo album of the Albuquerque-Corrales events or click on the link to the album down a ways on the right-hand sidebar on this page.

Click to visit Greg Palast's website. To learn more about NM election irregularities, the voters' lawsuit, the work of Voter Action NM or to donate to the cause, click to visit the website of Voter Action NM.

Local blog Fort Progress has more photos in their story on the IBEW event.