Democracy for New Mexico

Quote of the Day

Sen. Feingold said the following to Fox News’ Trish Turner:

I’m amazed at Democrats, cowering with this president’s numbers so low. The administration just has to raise the specter of the war and the Democrats run and hide. … Too many Democrats are going to do the same thing they did in 2000 and 2004. In the face of this, they’ll say we’d better just focus on domestic issues. … [Democrats shouldn’t] cower to the argument, that whatever you do, if you question the administration, you’re helping the terrorists.

You know what to do. Call your Senators AGAIN and sign the MoveOn petition. (Tip o' the hat to Think Progress)

Molly Ivins Does It Again: Enough of the DC Dems

Molly Ivins taking in the spectacle at
Dean rally, 2005 Demfest, Austin

She's a natural treasure, isn't she? I don't usually reproduce entire articles here, but in this case I think I must. Do you feel, like me, that Molly is putting into words -- tough and plainspoken words --  what we all feel so strongly and passionately? As Molly says, "Every Democrat I talk to is appalled at the sheer gutlessness and spinelessness of the Democratic performance."

What can we do? How can we organize? What's the best strategy for maximizing our strength and leverage?  As I'm sure you know, this is a conversation that is going on all over the web and on thousands of listserves. What are your suggestions?

Enough of the DC Dems, By Molly Ivins, March 2006 Issue of The Progressive

Mah fellow progressives, now is the time for all good men and women to come to the aid of the party. I don’t know about you, but I have had it with the D.C. Democrats, had it with the DLC Democrats, had it with every calculating, equivocating, triangulating, straddling, hair-splitting son of a bitch up there, and that includes Hillary Rodham Clinton.

I will not be supporting Senator Clinton because: a) she has no clear stand on the war and b) Terri Schiavo and flag-burning are not issues where you reach out to the other side and try to split the difference. You want to talk about lowering abortion rates through cooperation on sex education and contraception, fine, but don’t jack with stuff that is pure rightwing firewater.

I can’t see a damn soul in D.C. except Russ Feingold who is even worth considering for President. The rest of them seem to me so poisonously in hock to this system of legalized bribery they can’t even see straight.

Molly speaking at 2005 DemFest in Austin

Look at their reaction to this Abramoff scandal. They’re talking about “a lobby reform package.” We don’t need a lobby reform package, you dimwits, we need full public financing of campaigns, and every single one of you who spends half your time whoring after special interest contributions knows it. The Abramoff scandal is a once in a lifetime gift—a perfect lesson on what’s wrong with the system being laid out for people to see. Run with it, don’t mess around with little patches, and fix the system.

As usual, the Democrats have forty good issues on their side and want to run on thirty-nine of them. Here are three they should stick to:

1) Iraq is making terrorism worse; it’s a breeding ground. We need to extricate ourselves as soon as possible. We are not helping the Iraqis by staying.

2) Full public financing of campaigns so as to drive the moneylenders from the halls of Washington.

3) Single-payer health insurance.

Every Democrat I talk to is appalled at the sheer gutlessness and spinelessness of the Democratic performance. The party is still cringing at the thought of being called, ooh-ooh, “unpatriotic” by a bunch of rightwingers.

Take “unpatriotic” and shove it. How dare they do this to our country? “Unpatriotic”? These people have ruined the American military! Not to mention the economy, the middle class, and our reputation in the world. Everything they touch turns to dirt, including Medicare prescription drugs and hurricane relief.

This is not a time for a candidate who will offend no one; it is time for a candidate who takes clear stands and kicks ass.

Who are these idiots talking about Warner of Virginia? Being anodyne is not sufficient qualification for being President. And if there’s nobody in Washington and we can’t find a Democratic governor, let’s run Bill Moyers, or Oprah, or some university president with ethics and charisma.

What happens now is not up to the has-beens in Washington who run this party. It is up to us. So let’s get off our butts and start building a progressive movement that can block the nomination of Hillary Clinton or any other candidate who supposedly has “all the money sewed up.”

I am tired of having the party nomination decided before the first primary vote is cast, tired of having the party beholden to the same old Establishment money.

We can raise our own money on the Internet, and we know it. Howard Dean raised $42 million, largely on the web, with a late start when he was running for President, and that ain’t chicken feed. If we double it, it gives us the lock on the nomination. So let’s go find a good candidate early and organize the shit out of our side.

Taos Dems Angry About Party Weaknesses

It's clear that core Democrats from many parts of New Mexico and around the nation are displeased with their Party. On any given day there's certainly no shortage of articles and commentaries expressing anger and dismay over the Party's reluctance to take strong stands and work effectively with the grassroots. Don't even mention transparency and responsiveness.

I've covered similar problems that SCC members and rank and file Dems are having with our State Party in a number of posts (see below). Murky expenditures, mysterious bookkeeping, "lost" contracts, weak planning and budgeting, a truncated platform process and a general lack of responsiveness by some officers and staff have been ongoing topics of conversation and activism here in Albuquerque and other parts of the state.

Taos County Dems sounded similar themes at their preprimary convention last Saturday, with delegates offering several impassioned statements about "centrist" Democrats. They also criticized remarks made by State Party Chair John Wertheim that expressed dismay about the Party platform and claimed Party rules are mere "guidelines."

An article in the Taos News covered the convention in detail. Excerpt:

Taos County Democrats met Saturday at Kachina Lodge to choose delegates to their statewide convention. The Democrats who attended also adopted a resolution in support of returning the party to its traditional values.

“This is unprecedented,” said County Democratic Party Chairman Billy Knight, after party members adopted the resolution in the hope that it will be included in their party’s statewide position statement.

The resolution came up for consideration after one of its supporters, Andres “Andy” Vargas, told the group that “many Democrats are worried about the position national Democrats have taken to become more centrist.”

“It’s made the party more right-wing,” Vargas said. We have lost two elections and the (U.S.) Supreme Court … now we have a complete takeover of the supreme court and the government by the right wing.”

Vargas gave two reasons why Taos County Democrats should support the resolution that was still being drafted. The first involved an appearance by John Edwards in Santa Fe to speak to members of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees union.

Edwards was later tapped by Rep. John Kerry to be his running mate in the 2004 presidential election.

“John Edwards was thrust into the limelight when he was campaigning in Santa Fe and gave a speech to AFSCE members about the two Americas that exist in this country. It put him into the forefront and was the reason Kerry chose him for his running mate,” Vargas said. “The two Americas speech was never mentioned again during the campaign.”

The issue of two Americas — one for the rich, the other for poor people — did not surface again until after Hurricane Katrina devastated the Gulf Coast and the federal government’s response to it laid the two Americas foundation for numerous politicians to build their comments upon.

Knight was angry about a statement made by State Democratic Chairman John Wertheim. Knight told county convention delegates that Wertheim stated recently that he didn’t think the Democratic Party’s rules were a set of guidelines to follow in governing the party.

Wertheim also said that the Democrats’ platform would give Republicans fodder to use in criticizing the opposition party, suggesting the party platform not be used for that reason.

Marguerite Denevan, a delegate from Arroyo Hondo, had a comment of her own about Wertheim.

“We need to let them know what we think of them,” Denevan said.

Delegate Rena Rosequist then suggested the county party draft a letter to Wertheim “telling him that we abhor his gutlessness.” regarding the statement made to Steven Fettig of Los Alamos.

“If you draft it, I’ll take it,” Knight said. “This is what democracy is about. It’s the only way to take the country back from the tyrants we have in office. I’m sick of it and the solution needs to build from the bottom up. It’s been coming from the top down.”

DPNM Chair John Wertheim was quoted in the Albuquerque Tribune back in late October about Party rules being mere guidelines:

Wertheim said the that rules are more like guidelines.

"Nobody in my tenure has thought those were requirements," he said.

I expect that the push for improved Party transparency, planning, fiscal responsibilty, accountability, leadership and communication will continue and grow. Increasingly, Dems are getting vocal about the poor performance of Party leaders and officials, as well as their depressingly gutless positions on many of the issues that matter to traditional Dems.

All of us are pressuring the Party to become more efficient and effective, and to be more inclusive and grassroots-oriented. We're attempting to hold candidates and officeholders accountable to the resolutions and platforms passed by Party governing bodies. We're running for and winning positions within the Party infrastructure. And we're becoming involved with the Party's standing committees. Rest assured, we won't be quitting anytime soon. You never know, we might just get a copy of the Buckman contract after all, if it exists. Miracles happen.

Memory Lane
A list of some previous posts on DFNM about the NM Democratic Party:

Effort to Get Living Wage Resolution to the SCC, 4/22/05
One Dem's View of the SCC Meeting in Socorro on Saturday, 4/25/05
My Take on the SCC Meeting, 4/26/05
SOUND OFF: Remember the Party of the People?, 5/10/05
Governor's Office Responds, 5/18/05
More Coverage of our Party Discussion, 5/26/05
Calling all REFORM Democrats, 9/19/05
We Need More Dems Like This, 9/27/05
What Kind of Party Are We Having?, 10/25/05
Half-Truths, Non-Truths and the Facts, 11/1/05
The Continuing Saga of State Party Politics, 11/2/05
More, 11/3/05
Sound Off: A Party Out of Order, 11/22/05
Dean, the DNC and DPNM Activism, 12/6/05
Dem Loyalists Question State Party's Plea for Donations, 2/12/06
Show Me the Money, 2/16/06

Madrid Campaign: Breakfast With Joe Wilson, Lunch With John Edwards

The Madrid for Congress campaign is holding two exciting fundraising events this week:

Patricia Madrid Hosts Breakfast
with Ambassador Joe Wilson
March 2nd, 7 - 9 AM
The Flying Star Café
723 Silver Street SW, Albuquerque
Donation: $50/person minimum

Patricia Madrid Hosts Lunch
with John Edwards
March 2nd, 11:30 AM - 1 PM
Hotel Albuquerque at Old Town
800 Rio Grande Bvld. NW
$100 minimum donation

Click for more information or to RSVP.

Dean Wows Albuquerque

UPDATE: The KUNM website has some clips here and here from Dean's speech.

Here he was in Albuquerque, still representing the Democratic Wing of the Democratic Party. Well, as much as he can do that, given the reins he has to contend with -- reins held tightly by the DLC Republican-lites, the Clintonista apologists and the Beltway Bores who work to contain him in the Party.

Once again I could say, "I See Dean People!" Many of the worker bees from the Dean run for president were present, in reunion. It became easy to recall the halcyon days of the Dean campaign -- an atmosphere that was so creative and fun and edgy and spine-tingling and surprising and bold and fresh and energized and, ultimately, tragic.

It took me back. In both a positive and negative way. So much hope crushed by so much cynical manipulation about "electability." And who can forget that speech he gave while earsplitting noise enveloped him in the hall in Iowa, and the media tuned it all out so all you heard was him and that infamous scream. The Party, America and the world lost something really valuable in the process. But we struggle on. And on. And so does Howard Dean.

Be sure to read the Santa Fe New Mexican's excellent description of Dean's Albuquerque appearance written by Steve Terrell. And check out our photos from the event.

Dean Sez: Here's what Democrats believe in:

• Honesty and integrity to be restored to our government
• American jobs that will stay in America using energy independence to create those jobs
• A strong national defense based on telling the truth to our citizens, our soldiers and our allies
• A healthcare system that works for everybody, just like they have in other countries (Costa Rica!)
• A strong public education system so we can have optimism and opportunity back in America

Dean Sez: You can sum up what Democrats stand for in one word -- JUSTICE

I can sum up what Dean brings to the table in one word too -- HOPE. Hope for Democrats of all stripes who are pushing and pushing and pushing for the Party, its officeholders and its candidates to grow some cojones and stand up for what's right, because it's right. For more Dems to join the ranks of courageous and feisty Democrats like Feingold and Boxer and Conyers.

For those who may not have paid close attention to Dean during the last presidential primary season, go listen to his "What I Wanna Know" speech in Sacramento in April 2003. Or read a similar speech he gave at the DNC Winter Meeting in Washington DC in February 2003.

I'm certain that Dean still believes what he said in these speeches and it's what he works for every day. He repeated to me several times that GRASSROOTS REFORMERS ARE MAKING A DIFFERENCE ALL OVER THE NATION and that WE MUST KEEP IT UP even when things seem bleak. I told him that I cursed him almost daily for reawakening my political activism and pulling me away from a more leisurely life. He laughed and said, "I know the feeling." And he does.

Okay, I can't help myself. I took a little trip back to the Dean campaign days and you can too. Here's Thank You Howard Dean. Here's a video sampler put together by Dean people in Wisconsin and an audio of We Call Ourselves Americans. Remember who started us down this path. Remember what gave us hope and excitement. Realize that the most important thing we can do is to keep it up, to persevere, to fight the good fight and never give up. Our democracy, our nation, even our planet is in the balance. We DO have the power...if we use it.

Dean Touts NM Paper Ballot Victory

Terry Riley, Governor Dean, Paul Stokes and Barbara Wold at the Dean event yesterday.

DNC Chair Howard Dean, speaking at Plumbers and Pipefitters hall in Albuquerque yesterday, heavily praised our recent victory in passing a bill mandating the use of paper ballots in every county in New Mexico. He expressed gratitude for all the grassroots activists, election reform groups and legislators who worked so long and hard to get it done. And he had this to say about Governor Richardson's groundbreaking support for replacing the highly inaccurate and unreliable touch screen machines with paper ballots and optical scanners:

This state, thanks to Governor Richardson and a lot of people in this room, is now a leader in one of the most important areas in this country, which is not talked about enough -- and that is the end of corruption in electronic voting machines. To my knowledge, there is no other state that has done it. There is no other state that has said that what the Republicans are doing with these voting machines is wrong. And that it is a deep principle of democracy that every single vote counts.

I want to thank Governor Bill Richardson for taking national leadership on this issue. We need him as a spokesman of this issue. I understand that there may be some discussion of his interest in higher office, but I know that right now he is focused on being the next governor of the state of New Mexico and I hope that every one of you will get out and do everything you can for him, because this is something we need to get nationally. A state stood up to the right-wing Diebold fold!

People believe in democracy and New Mexico is a beacon for that. Thanks to what you all have done and to what Governor Richardson is going to do on March 2nd."

Governor Bill Richardson has indicated he will sign the paper ballot bill on March 2nd -- an important step on the way to assuring that every vote is counted, and counted accurately. 

Governor Dean also said we must push on and work on getting similar efforts going in every state in the union. New Mexico can be the model. When Dean says "YOU'VE Got the Power," he isn't kidding around .... I'll have more on Howard's visit later today.

LAST CHANCE: RSVP to Meet DNC Chair Howard Dean This Thursday

Ana Canales and others have volunteered to make lunch for this week's Dean event. To ensure there's enough for all, it's important that you RSVP FOR THE EVENT BY CALLING THE STATE PARTY AT: 830-3650 if you plan to attend. This is an excellent chance to meet Governor Dean and get his take on what the Party will be doing to turn the tables on the Republicans. Reserve now:

The Democratic Party of NM
Invites You to Meet
DNC Chair Howard Dean

Thursday, February 23, 2006
Noon to 2:00 PM

Plumbers and Pipefitters Hall
510 San Pedro Dr. SE
Albuquerque NM (Click for map)

Suggested Donation $35.00
Lunch will be served
RSVP BY CALLING 830-3650

Watch the DNC video (Windows) on Dean's strategies for rebuilding the Democratic Party from the ground up. (Right-click and choose "Save Target as" for a Quicktime version of the video.)

Help Kick Off Emerge New Mexico

The Honorable Diane Denish, Lieutenant Governor, and The Honorable Patricia Madrid, Attorney General and candidate for Congress, invite you to join in a kickoff celebration of:

EMERGE NEW MEXICO
Recruiting and training Women Democrats for elected office for a better New Mexico

Tuesday, February 21, 2006, 6:30-8:30 PM
At the home of Randi McGinn
2105 Campbell Rd N.W. , Albuquerque
UPDATE: This event has outgrown the private home and has been moved to:
Slate Street Cafe
515 Slate St. NW
Albuquerque NM 87102
Phone 243-2210
Free munchies and cash bar
Please RSVP to koobjulie@yahoo.com 505.920.6002
A $50 Contribution is requested for Training Scholarships

Check out their new website at https://www.emergenm.org/.

Show Me the Money

A renewed effort is being made by SCC members to obtain  clear and credible financial information from the Democratic Party of New Mexico. Recent discussions at local blog New Mexico Matters, as well as previous posts here, describe what has become an ongoing battle to get the Party to follow its own rules regarding financial reporting, and to reclaim the financial oversight powers of the SCC that are stipulated in Party rules.

The following letter was hand-delivered to State Party headquarters today by William J. Kass, Ph.D., and emailed to State Party Chair John Wertheim along with a request for financial information signed by five members of the DPNM State Central Committee. I think the letter speaks for itself:

John Wertheim, Chair
Democratic Party of New Mexico
1301 San Pedro NE
Albuquerque, NM 87110

Dear Mr. Wertheim,

My major reason for becoming involved in Democratic Party politics in New Mexico is to increase the grassroots involvement in the party.  I am trying to accomplish this from the position of a ward chair and SCC member.  We, the ward, precinct and SCC members and officers need help from DPNM. I would like support in the form of a budgeted statewide DPNM plan to educate, train
and promote precinct and ward organizing.

I believe the place to start this effort is to look at the budget of the DPNM.  Based on limited information I have been able to obtain regarding how the DPNM budget is generated and distributed, I believe major changes to this process are necessary if long term changes to the party are to be made. My goal is see the DPNM provide a sufficiently detailed budget to be used as a planning document for all DPNM activities and that includes a specific allocation for precinct and ward organizing.   

I would like to review the history of steps that I have taken to arrive at the conclusion that major changes to the budget process are necessary.

I made a request for budget information at the November SCC meeting.  The response from the Chair was that this was available at DPNM headquarters in the form of treasurer reports and FEC
submissions.

I visited Tara Geise, compliance officer, at DPNM headquarters in November to look at DPNM financial information.  I requested to see the Buckman contract.  The contract could not be found.  I inquired how the DPNM budget was produced.  Tara Geise responded that she reviewed previous years expenditures and estimated expenditures for the next year based on that.  She informed me that this review consisted of going through various sub-accounts within the bookkeeping system (Quick Books) and pulling out the appropriate items.  A review of the filings to the FEC was made and a sample FEC report was shown to me.

I spent several hours reviewing FEC reports on the web at home.  These reports are detailed in the same way a personal checkbook register is detailed.  They do not provide any overview of the budget and are not suitable for planning. 

I had an hour long telephone conversation with you regarding the requests for more budget information, especially an opportunity to examine the Buckman contract.  The result of that conversation was that you recommended I become educated by reviewing DNC and GAIN training manuals I could obtain from Matt Farrauto at DPNM.  Over the course of the next week I picked up these training manuals and reviewed them looking for budget information.  The importance of creating a budget is mentioned but, of course, there is actually not any budget information in
them. 

I also was given and reviewed a document called "Party Building 2005-2006, A nuts and Bolts Guide for Party Leaders and Activists".  This document contains a forward by you emphasizing the need for grassroots and community organizing.  It also contains a section describing a two year budget process that starts with planning activities before developing the budget that funds them. 

At a Ward 25A meeting attended by Democratic Party field organizers I was given a copy of the 2004 NM Coordinated Campaign Plan.  The appendix dealing with budget was missing.  The purpose of this history is to show that the current budget process does not meet minimum standards for transparency and suggests that little long-range planning has been initiated while creating this budget. In other words, we don't have a budget we have a collection of financial records that only serve to obfuscate the goals of the DPNM. 

DPNM rule 5.6 B requires that the DPNM treasurer

'keep full and accurate accounts of all receipts and expenditures subject to the supervision and control of the State Chairperson and make such accounts available for examination by all registered Democrats in the state by request of five (5) members of the State Central committee.'

I am hereby making that request by way of an attached copy of a letter signed by five SCC members.  I construe the meaning of 'all receipts and expenditures' to include contracts that result in expenditures. Therefore, I again renew the request to examine the original Buckman contract.

Although the rules do not require an explanation for requests such as this, I will offer the explanation that seeing the Buckman contract is important for budget transparency.  Budget transparency is important to maintain credibility with party members when fundraising - especially among grassroots Democrats. 

In summary, I request that you instruct the DPNM treasurer to furnish for examination accounts of receipts and expenditures (including the Buckman contract) at DPNM headquarters before the end of February 2006.  I further request that I be notified when these records will be available for
my and other registered Democrats examination. 

Sincerely,
William J. Kass, Ph.D.
Ward Chair 25A
Member, State Central Committee
5114 Royene Ave NE
Albuquerque, NM 87110

DPBC to Hold Candidate Forum 2/16

The Democratic Party of Bernalillo County invites you to attend our:

Candidate Forum to be held on Thursday, February 16, at 6:00 PM at the UNM Law School, Room 2401, at 1117 Stanford NE in Albuquerque. 

We are inviting candidates for the following offices: Attorney General, Secretary of State, State Auditor, State Treasurer, and State Land Commissioner. There will be a series of questions for each candidate as well as several minutes for each candidate to introduce themselves. We hope you will be able to attend this informative meeting.

Terri Holland, Executive Director
Democratic Party of Bernalillo County
130 Alvarado NE, Suite 400
Albuquerque, NM 87108
terri@bernalillodems.org
O-505-256-1855
Fax - 505-265-0327
C - 505-417-3972