Democracy for New Mexico

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:

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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.
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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.
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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.

Heinrich Attends "Strengthening Our Majority" Boot Camp (So Does McCamley)

Martin Heinrich, Dem candidate for Congress in NM-01, has just returned from a special candidate training session in Chicago for top challengers from around the country. He reports on his experiences in a new blog post on his campaign website:

Wow! That's all I can say to describe the last few days. I just returned from Chicago where I attended an incredible candidate training. The "Strengthening Our Majority" Boot Camp was co-sponsored by AFSCME and the New House PAC. They invited the top challengers from around the nation and put us through the paces with two days of intense coaching on management, message, money and mobilization. I've been through a lot of political trainings, but this was in a class by itself. It was especially helpful to get to know some of the freshmen Congressmen like Ed Perlmutter who ran and won in Republican leaning districts.

In addition to being a great learning experience the conference also gave me great hope. This year's challengers are an amazing crop of candidates. They all had impeccable credentials and the fire in the belly to win. By the end of the weekend they all had an impressively polished message as well.

Believe me when I tell you that 2008 is going to be a great year for Democrats, a great year for change, and a great year for America. Watch for my classmates' names in the news:

John Adler (NJ-03), Kay Barnes (MO-06), John Boccieri (OH-16), Charlie Brown (CA-04), Darcy Burner (WA-08), Steve Driehaus (OH-01), Joan Fitz-Gerald (CO-02), Bill Foster (IL-14), Larry Grant (ID-01), Jim Himes (CT-04), Mary Jo Kilroy (OH-15), Bill Kennedy (MT-AL), Bob Lord (AZ-03), Dan Maffei (NY-25), Betsy Markey (CO-04), Eric Massa (NY-29), Bill McCamley (NM-02), Bill O'Neill (OH-14), Gary Peters (MI-09), Jon Powers (NY-26), Mark Schauer (MI-07), Dan Seals (IL-10), Ron Shepston (CA-42), John Unger (WV-02), Dick Versace (IL-18).

I believe you'll see more than a few of them in Congress just over a year from now.

Heinrich was certainly in some top-notch company at the training, judging from the names above. We got to meet several of them at the YearlyKos blogger convention we attended in Chicago this summer, including Charlie Brown (CA-04), Darcy Burner (WA-08) and Eric Massa (NY-29). Very impressive. Many of those who attended the training session with Heinrich are grassroots-netroots favorites, so he was in very good company.

Also exciting that Bill McCamley, running for Congress in NM-02, was in the mix. TWO Dem candidates from TWO Congressional districts in New Mexico. This is gonna be one exciting election cycle, isn't it?

Scary Movie: Night of the Living Republicans Starring Martin Heinrich, Heather Wilson and ...

Just getting you ready for Halloween -- or election days to come! Watch Don Wiviott report on the scene. See our hero Martin Heinrich and our heroine Debbie O'Malley confront the forces of zombie Repubs Heather Wilson, Steve Pearce, Darren White and more!

Democratic Women of NM State Convention Set for 10.27.07

From Democratic Women of New Mexico: "Setting the Stage for the 2008 Convention": The National Federation of Democratic Women's Convention is coming to Albuquerque in 2008 -- planning begins NOW! Please join us in making this national opportunity a great success. This is our chance to show off our beautiful state and to launch the 2008 Presidential Election Season.

Saturday, October 27, 2007
Sign-in and Breakfast 8:00 AM
Meeting Starts at 9:00 AM
Luncheon at 12:00 PM
Early Registration (Deadline: Thursday, October 25) - $30.00
Registration at Door - $50.00
Registration Fee Includes Luncheon
MCM Elegante Hotel, 2020 Menaul NE , Albuquerque, NM

Special Guests: DNC Secretary Alice Germond; New Mexico DNC Committee-Woman Mary Gail Gwaltney; Helen Kutchner, NFDW; DPNM Chairman Brian S. Colon. Presidential Campaign Representatives: Introduced by JoElla Redmon, Executive Director Martin Luther King, Jr. State Commission

Please call Kathy Duffy at 873-7213 or Maxine Velasquez at 831-2233 to make your reservation.

Paid for by the Democratic Party of New Mexico. Not authorized by any candidate or candidate's committee. To contribute, go here: .

Mario Cuomo on Dems, War, Constitution

It's about time a prominent and well-respected Dem called on Democratic members of Congress and the Dem presidential candidates to take their Constitutional responsibilities seriously and quit passing off their power to Bush. I've always been a fan of Cuomo and wish he'd run for president, but I suppose he isn't bought off enough by the war profiteers to pass muster. Maybe we should send a link to this video to every Dem member of Congress and every Dem presidential candidate. Of course that action might have more clout if we attached a pledge to raise big money for their campaigns. You know how it works. Maybe we should add a link to Why We Fight so they know we know what they're doing.

Heinrich Critical of Congressional Votes Against MoveOn Ad

Unbelieveably, the U.S. House just joined the U.S. Senate in voting to condemn MoveOn's recent Petraeus Betray-Us ad. The margin was:

Democrats: 146 Yea, 79 Nay, 6 Not Voting
Republicans: 195 Yea, 0 Nay, 6 Not Voting      
TOTALS: 341 Yea, 79 Nay, 12 Not Voting

Yes, you read that right. I guess the House was tired of seeing the Senate getting all the fruitcake praise on this pseudo-issue, so Rep. Jerry Lewis (R-CA) brought it up on the House side and got it passed. What's worse? Many Dems, including Rep. Tom Udall (NM-03) voted FOR the travesty. Here's the tally.

At least one New Mexico Dem -- Martin Heinrich -- has refused to stop making sense. As reported by Howie Klein at Down With Tyranny:

At the time the vote came down I was talking on the phone with Albuquerque City Councilmember Martin Heinrich, the progressive Democrat running against corrupt rubber stamp Heather Wilson (NM-01). He was very disappointed that the Democratic Leadership even allowed this idiotic voted to come to the floor. Martin's answer was what every Democrat should be saying. "There's a grand diversion for you... It's not something that I'd have been willing to support because it takes us away from the focus of actually making a difference on the ground in Iraq. What we ought to be voting on is a timetable to redeploy our troops."

What can we do to thank Martin Heinrich for speaking out and getting it right on this issue? September 30th is the end of this campaign fundraising quarter. The Heinrich campaign needs good numbers to show that he's the strongest Dem choice to run against Heather Wilson. I urge you to donate a few bucks NOW at the DFNM Netroots for Heinrich page at ActBlue.

Here's a released by MoveOn after the House joined the Senate in fiddling while our democracy, Iraq (and maybe now Iran) burns:

“With every passing day, more information comes to light casting more and more doubt on the validity of the facts and conclusions presented by General Petraeus in his testimony before Congress.

With every passing day, more American soldiers and Iraqi civilians lose their lives in this unwinnable civil war. It is unconscionable and outrageous  that instead of doing the people's work and ending this war, Congress chooses meaningless and distracting gestures.

With every passing day, America's frustration with politicians in Washington drops the approval ratings for this Congress to new lows.  Congress is fiddling with an ad while Iraq burns.

We will continue our ad campaign to accuse the Republicans who are blocking an end to the war of a 'Betrayal of Trust.'”

-- “Petraeus’s numbers differ substantially from the Pentagon’s own numbers – his show progress, and theirs don’t.  The Pentagon’s numbers are the official MNF-I numbers, which Petraeus himself called the most reliable possible.  Petraeus’ numbers differ, the military says, because he includes reports from Iraqi police – the same police the NIE said are corrupt, riddled with sectarianism, and ought to be disbanded.  The actual Iraqi government numbers are nowhere near as positive.” Washington Post, Tuesday, September 25, 2007

-- The NYT reported today that Sunni extremists are targeting Iraqi police and officials.  This is a new trend in violence – but according to the methodology MNF-I released last week, none of these murders would have been counted by Petraeus. New York Times, Wednesday, September 26, 2007

Calling All Democrats: RSVP NOW for NM State Organizing Summit Hosted by DPNM, DNC

From the Democratic Party of New Mexico: What a year we had in 2006! Didn’t it feel great to win? Wouldn’t it be great to feel that way again in 2008 when we elect a Democratic President?  JOIN the Democratic Party of New Mexico (DPNM) and the Democratic National Committee (DNC) for the New Mexico State Organizing Summit and help make us a

Blue State in ’08!

The DPNM, in conjunction with the DNC, will host a free training summit for party activists, community members and candidates. Training will focus on Volunteer Recruitment, Party Building, and Voter Contact. Two separate trainings are scheduled; all activists and party members are encouraged to join us:

Saturday, September 29th, 2007- 9:00 AM -12:30 PM
Alamogordo, NM ♦ Alamogordo Senior Center ♦ 2201 Puerto Rico Ave.
Register ONLINE
Download Alamogordo Agenda


Sunday, September 30th, 2007, 2:00 PM – 5:30 PM
Albuquerque, NM ♦ UNM School of Law ♦ RM 2401 ♦ 1117 Stanford NE

Download Albuquerque Agenda

The 2008 Election Cycle will be the most important election of our time. To prepare for this momentous event, the New Mexico State Organizing Summit will equip you with the tools to organize other Democrats for the upcoming elections. You’ll have an opportunity to hone your skills as a grassroots activist and learn effective tactics in making positive changes in our state and our country.  By participating in this training and using what you learn at the precinct level, you will help ensure that Democrats win elections from the Roundhouse to the White House.

Pleases RSVP with the DPNM by calling 1-800-624-2457 and asking for Mike Wilder or Joseph Casados no later than 5:00 PM, Thursday, September 27th, 2007. You may also email Joseph Casados or Mike Wilder.  To receive training materials and reserve a seat at the summit you must RSVP.

MoveOn Ad Vote: Dems Buy Into Repub Framing (Again)

Yes, it was very important this morning to stop considering things like troops levels, ending the occupation, civil liberties, restoring the U.S. Constitution, the health care crisis, energy policy, the environmental emergency or anything else with real importance to human beings. Instead the Senate took up a "sense of the Senate" debate on whether MoveOn's BETRAY-US ad was naughty or nice. I'm not kidding you. The amendment to the defense appropriations bill eventually passed by a margin of 72-25 with 3 Senators not voting. Imagine what historians will make of this travesty in years to come.

Here's the roll call vote. Note the names of way too many Dems in the Yea category. Lemmings all. Even Leahy. I think every single one of them should be grabbed by the collar and made to read George Lakoff's analysis of MoveOn's framing -- and how powerfully successful it is.

[One positive aspect: Sen. Jeff Bingaman voted against it. Thank you Sen. Bingaman for not playing along with the Republican spin machine and the eternal Republican framing of Democrats -- or anyone else who dares to point out that the emperor has no clothes -- as bad guys.] ***I take back the thank you to Sen. Bingaman contained in the brackets. See my remarks on why in the comments thread below.***

The thing is, Repub gaming on this is losing power. Even after the prolonged, highly orchestrated and chock-full-o'-distortions dog and pony show by Bush-Petraeus, Bush's favorables went down again in the polling. The numbers for ending the Iraq occupation remained steady or rose. The percentage of Americans who believe we're on the wrong track grew. I guess most Americans have finally caught on that they're being lied to AGAIN and that the administration's PR excuses on foreign policy are nothing but hot air and sleight of hand. Too bad too many Democrats are still in the dark on that or at least afraid to publicly admit it.

A Lost Opportunity
The Democrats could have used this lastest example of Republican voodoo-politics-before-the-cameras to point out how wasting time on trivial things when troops and Iraqis are dying is: A) a BETRAYAL of the public trust in elected officials and B) a BETRAYAL of their designated responsibilities as a check on executive power gone mad. Instead, the cowardly Yea voters fell under the spell of their Republican taunters. Do they really think that kowtowing to Bush Bullies will save them from being called names in the future, no matter what they do? Apparently so -- despite it being perfectly clear to just about everyone buth them that their repetitive caving to this same inane maneuvering won't stop the the rightwing mud machine at all. Not one iota. It's what they do.

Thanks A Lot
I work very hard every day (without pay) to try and build support for the Democratic cause, along with millions of other people like me all over the country. You know, like the 3+ million who are members of MoveOn. When too many Dems vote like they did today on the MOVE-ON BETRAYAL AMENDMENT, they wash away any good will or support we've managed to build and replace it with disgust, cynicism and, yes, a sense of betrayal in the pool of possible Dem voters. Bush et al. should personally be thanking every Dem who voted for the amendement -- they've done more for the Republican cause today than any registered Republican could hope to do.

Foot in Mouth Disease
Of course, as Governor Richardson said yesterday in answer to a question about the MoveOn ad: "Why condemn it? I disagreed with it. Who cares?" he said. "You guys have too much fascination with these groups nobody cares about.” I hate to say it, but perhaps the real mistaken fascination is with Richardson's awkward, foot-in-mouth pursuit of the presidential nomination. Doh.

PS: Hooray for these Dems, who voted according to their brains, not their irrational, reptilian fears:

NAYs ---25
Akaka (D-HI) Bingaman (D-NM) Boxer (D-CA) Brown (D-OH) Byrd (D-WV) Clinton (D-NY) Dodd (D-CT) Durbin (D-IL) Feingold (D-WI)	Harkin (D-IA) Inouye (D-HI) Kennedy (D-MA) Kerry (D-MA) Lautenberg (D-NJ) Levin (D-MI) Menendez (D-NJ) Murray (D-WA) Reed (D-RI)	Reid (D-NV) Rockefeller (D-WV) Sanders (I-VT) Schumer (D-NY) Stabenow (D-MI) Whitehouse (D-RI) Wyden (D-OR)

Oh, and shame on every single Republican Senator -- every one of them voted for this sham. Anything to try and distract attention from the utter and miserable failure of their party, their president and their occupation of Iraq.