Democracy for New Mexico

NM Democrats to Protest Bush's Support of 'Pajama Pete'

From the Democratic Party of New Mexico:

Activists Will Launch Pajama Collection Drive
Albuquerque, NM - As New Mexicans brace for George W. Bush's fundraising visit, the Democratic Party of New Mexico will join with a coalition of organizations to call attention to Senator Pete Domenici's slumberous attitude concerning working families' priorities. 

Bring Pajamas
On Sunday, August 26 at Kelly's Brew Pub in Albuquerque, 3222 Central Ave. SE, Democrats will collect new and used pajamas for protesters to wear at a rally on the day Bush arrives [see below]. The pajamas will be donated to charity after the Monday event. 

"It's time for Senator Domenici to wake up and focus on the important issues that affect all New Mexicans, including jobs, health care, and ending the war in Iraq," said Chairman of the Democratic Party of New Mexico Brian Colon.

SUNDAY, AUGUST 26, 2007, 1-3 PM
DEMOCRATS AND PEOPLE AGAINST PETE
PAJAMA COLLECTION DRIVE & SIGN MAKING
KELLY'S BREW PUB
3222 CENTRAL AVE. SE, ALBUQUERQUE

Petition to Demand Domenici and Wilson Come Clean
The pajama collection drive will be backed by a petition demanding that Domenici and Rep. Heather Wilson come clean about their involvement in the U.S. Attorney scandal and testify under oath about the pressure they put on former U.S. Attorney David Iglesias to push politically sensitive indictments into the courts just before the November, 2006, election.

Domenici is also known as "Pajama Pete" because he was spotted wandering the halls of Congress wearing clothes that closely resembled pajamas. He has tried to claim that he was wearing hunting gear.

Editor's note: More on the pajamas/hunting pants incident: from Raw Story.

(h/t Land of Enchantment)

Where's the Monday Pajamas Demonstration?
The rally against Bush's visit to the Albuquerque area for the big dollar fundraiser for Domenici in Los Ranchos on Monday, August 27th, will be at the corner of Rio Grande NW and Green Valley in Los Ranchos, just north of the Village Hall at 6718 Rio Grande NW (map). Ample parking available at the Los Ranchos Village Tennis Courts just south of Village Hall (north of Chavez Rd). Meeting at 8:30 AM.

What's the Iraq Occupation Costing New Mexicans?

MoveOn.org has released reports, using data from the National Priorities Project, for every Congressional District in America toting up what Bush's failed occupation in Iraq is costing us. To date, nearly a half-trillion dollars has been spent on an unwinnable civil war—money that could have improved our communities. On average, $275 million is spent every day on the war in Iraq—that is an average of $4,100 for every household in the United States over the course of the war. And those costs are continuing to rise with no end in sight.

Last month, Congress voted for an additional $100 billion in spending. That makes the total funding appropriated for the war in Iraq so far $456 billion. The cost to New Mexico taxpayers alone is $1.39 billion. Click highlighted text for reports on Iraq spending in each of New Mexico's three Congressional Districts:

(Albuquerque area): Taxpayers in the 1st congressional district alone are paying $519 million for the Iraq war. What citizens of New Mexico's 1st District could have gotten instead:

• Health care coverage for 153,012 people—or 203,224 kids, or
• Head Start for 74,180 additional kids, or
• 11,093 new elementary school teachers, or
• 132,540 scholarships to make college more affordable, or
• Renewable electricity for 812,254 homes, or
• 5,298 affordable housing units, or
• 13,788 public safety officers to keep the streets safe

(Southern NM): Taxpayers in the 2nd Congressional District alone are paying $395 million for the Iraq war.

(Northern NM): Taxpayers in the 3nd Congressional District alone are paying $473 million for the Iraq war.

The money being spent in Iraq could be used to improve the lives of Americans instead of putting them at risk. Congress must act quickly to rein in this reckless president and bring an end to this war. With the costs of the war expected to ultimately double, taxpayers in New Mexico cannot afford another $519 million to keep our troops stuck in an unwinnable civil war in Iraq—especially when our communities are paying such a heavy price.

Compare actual war spending vs. Bush administration projections: In late 2002, President Bush's Budget Director estimated that the cost of the war with Iraq could be in the range of $50 billion to $60 billion. When Bush's chief economic adviser, Lawrence Lindsey, publicly estimated that the war in Iraq might cost $100 billion to $200 billion, he was fired. [New York Times, 12/31/02; Time Magazine, 12/23/02]

Speak Up: Congress is currently on its August recess, but we want to make sure our representatives know we mean business. We want them to know what they must do when they return to work next month. Please contact your U.S. Representative and Senators and urge them to stop the war NOW. Congress.org makes it easy.

Guest Blog: Mayoral Makeover - How Marty Chavez is Working to Reinvent His Image

This is a guest blog by Keegan King (right), co-director of Young Voters NM. It was originally published as an op-ed in Albuquerque's alibi weekly.

Historically, much has been made of the fact that people under the age of 25 vote at dramatically lower rates than any other segment of the population. Apathy is partly to blame, but I believe the primary reason for a lack of youth involvement in the political process is cynicism. And much of this cynicism stems from watching politicians who manipulate the media to conceal their true policy agendas.

Take the chief executive of our own fair city, Mayor Martin Chavez. Two recent news items reveal how Chavez is working overtime to reinvent his image:

Item #1: Gail Reese, a top assistant to Albuquerque Mayor Martin Chavez, made an on-the-air call to his radio talk show and, using a fake name, parroted the administration's talking points while flaming several city councilors. When Reese was busted for her crude attempt to mislead the public by trying to pose as just another "Jane Q. Citizen," her first response was to feign memory loss.

After Reese finally fessed up, the mayor's office swung into damage control mode by issuing a press release that spun her surreptitious call as nothing less than a valiant exercise of free speech. KKOB station manager Art Ortega was charitable in characterizing the incident as "disingenuous." The Tribune editorialized against fake "Astroturf" grassroots lobbying efforts emanating from the mayor's office.

Item #2: Albuquerque's morning daily newspaper reported that Chavez had received something called the "Climate Protection Award" at a recent meeting of the National Conference of Mayors. The story trumpeted the claim that Albuquerque had reduced greenhouse emissions by an extraordinary 67 percent since 2000, making it a "Green City."

But there were some glaring problems with the story.

For one thing, the claimed emissions reductions were for — not for the community as a whole.

That's a huge difference and it illuminates the challenge Chavez faces in refashioning his image.

Sandy Buffett, executive director of , cut right through the hype in a Journal letter to the editor: "One only needs to look at the unbridled real estate sprawl development to know that Albuquerque's carbon footprint is rapidly exploding ... If Chavez is serious about reducing Albuquerque's carbon footprint, than he needs to get serious about managing and planning Albuquerque's growth." As anyone who has lived in Albuquerque for the past few years knows, Chavez has been the developers' darling by shepherding their big-box, cookie-cutter sprawl development over and over again.

Oh, and one more thing. The story neglected to inform readers that Chavez' award was sponsored and underwritten by none other than Wal-Mart — the outfit that builds all those big-box stores that do so much to fuel the very sprawl development and car culture that is at the heart of the problem.

There are more recent examples of Chavez manipulating the media as he works to revamp his image and obscure long-held policy positions.

Last month, Chavez issued a sweeping "Executive Order" to ban smoking outdoors on all city government property. TV reporting featured footage of the mayor intoning piously about the health dangers of smoking.

Oddly, this was the very same Mayor Chavez who in 2002 brandished veto threats to block the City Council's efforts to pass an ordinance banning smoking in restaurants. His complaint then? The ordinance restricted to eating establishments was too sweeping and unenforceable. Talk about a 180!

And then there is Chavez' unveiling of his "Open Government" initiative. It calls for posting the minutes of city board and commission meetings online and reducing photocopy costs for public documents. With the ABQ PAC slush fund scandal fading from public memory, Chavez clearly has calculated that it’s time to jump on the "ethics" bandwagon.

But again, when you get past the hype, it's worth recalling that Chavez' silence was deafening during the last Legislative Session when really tough ethics reforms were being debated — contribution limits, an independent ethics commission and clean election financing (which he opposed for city elections in 2003).

This, of course, is what explains Marty's rush to makeover his image. Anticipating a gubernatorial run in 2010, but facing lagging poll numbers, Chavez is desperately trying to reinvent himself to appeal to Democratic primary voters around the state.

Hollow posturing of this sort is exactly what turns off young voters, who are a growing force to be reckoned with. After years of lagging participation, their turnout surged in the last two elections. Young voters demand honesty and authenticity from those who would presume to lead us. That's bad news for Martin Chavez and his big bamboozle.

Editor's Note: [all emphasis above mine] This is a guest blog by Keegan King, co-director of Young Voters NM. It was originally published as an op-ed in Albuquerque's alibi weekly. Guest blogs provide readers with an opportunity to express their opinions on issues of the day, and may or may not express our views. If you'd like to submit a post for consideration as a guest blog, contact me by clicking on the Email Me link on the upper left-hand corner of the page.

In the Good News Department - Literally

Have you heard about The Real News, a new plan to build the world's first global independent news network -- without funding from governments, corporations or advertising? Be sure to watch the entire video above and check out their site at TheRealNews.com.

They're only at the Beta stage but they plan to eventually offer a full service international news service on the web and and an hour-long TV newscast. They need seed money now to create their web news service, and plan to start their TV show in time to cover the 2008 election. I signed up as a supporter and I hope you'll join me and pass this info on. If this isn't worth $10 a month or however much you can give, I don't know what is. I find their concept really exciting.

Check out of esteemed supporters, which includes people like CBS News veteran Tom Fenton, Air America radio host and journalist Laura Flanders, author Gore Vidal, Freepress founder and president Robert McChesney, longtime progressive Phil Donahue and many others from all over the world who are concerned about the damaging influence of corporate-filtered news.

We all complain about how badly the mainstream media has been performing in terms of keeping citizens informed with REAL fair and balanced coverage that relies on fact instead of spin. We're all tired of the news concentrating on fluff, gossip and mayhem. Now there's something we can do about it. We can sign up to support The Real News.

The Real News will be financed by the economic power of thousands of viewers like us around the world. Just 250,000 people paying $10 a month will make it happen. I made my pledge. I hope you do the same. Here's film maker and Real News founder Paul Jay explaining why our support is so important:

Click for media and blog coverage on the creation of The Real News.

July 24: Celebrate NM's Statewide Boost to Minimum Wage

You're Invited

Please Join

Americans United for Change, Elected Officials, Labor Leaders, and Community Activists to

Celebrate New Mexico's First Statewide Boost to the Minimum Wage in a Decade

We've lead the way with state and local increases

And now Congress has followed:

Thanks to Sen. Bingaman and Rep. Udall and new leadership in Congress, ALL NM workers are finally getting a raise after ten long years on July 24, 2007

Tuesday, July 24th at 3:00 PM
Downtown Flying Star Cafe
Upstairs Meeting Room
723 Silver Ave SW, Albuquerque

Hear from Elected Officials, Labor Leaders and Community Activists that have long fought for a federal increase and our local increases.

Refreshments will be served.

Please RSVP to joshgeise@aol.com or 505-603-1067

Last Chance to Tell the FCC to Save the Internet As We Know It

Go to SaveTheInternet.com and tell your story by July 16th -- that's Monday!

Rant of the Day: Privatize This

Henry Rollins Tees Off. To augment that, read this IndyMedia report on Iraqi unionists speaking out during a U.S. tour against the American occupation and privatization schemes. This kind of corporatist money and power grab is at the very core of many of the festering problems our elected officials refuse to address effectively, whether they're related to health care, energy, education, natural resources like water, voting machines, trade, jobs, media, the prison industrial complex, our highway system or other areas where "privatization" to fill corporate coffers is being pushed to the detriment of the common good and common sense.

Is it any wonder? The powerful lobbying arms of these profit-at-any-cost outfits siphon tons of cash into the "campaign funds" of politicians on both sides of the aisle. They don't do that without getting what they want in return. They aren't donating large sums of money to be nice. Bottom line -- the "contributions" are nothing more than bribes masquerading as "free speech." Isn't it time we strengthen the challenges against politicos in both political parties on this score?

Secrecy Continues on Earmarks
I happened to turn on the TV this morning and caught a story on CNN about a project they're conducting to gather information on the specific "earmarks" being stuck into bills by members of Congress. Remember how one of the promises made by Dems in the 2006 election was that they'd reduce the rapid proliferation of these hidden subsidies to cronies and make the process transparent? Don't hold your breath. Of the 435 House members contacted by CNN interns, only 31 provided data on the specific earmarks they're pursuing. I guess they don't believe we have a right to know what projects are being supported with our tax dollars. Remember, we're just here to vote, pay our taxes and do the grunt work door to door while the "important people" who "contribute" generously to their campaigns get to call the shots.

NM House Members: Show Us the Money
According to the database compiled by CNN, New Mexico Reps. Heather Wilson (NM-01), Steve Pearce (NM-02) and Tom Udall (NM-03) all failed to provide the requested information on earmarks. What are they hiding? If you'd like to contact them to ask, click here. You know they always like to hear from contituents, as their websites and emails always state.

Private Equity and Hedge Fund Scams
In a related vein, don't even get me started on the "private equity funds" that are buying up public American companies, taking them private, dumping employees and benefits and essentially stealing their pension funds and other capital assets for distribution to their secret members. Have you heard ANY politician in the national spotlight criticize the full extent of this robbery? Even John Edwards, our token "populist" candidate, hems and haws when asked about private equity or hedge funds. After all, he recently worked for Fortress, a private equity firm that was taken public and produced large gains for its officers. And as this article reports, the majority of hedge fund "donations" are going to Dem candidates.

Again, don't hold your breath for any meaningful action by politicos anytime soon. They wouldn't want to subject members of such filthy outfits as the Carlisle Group to public scrutiny or fair taxation. It would cut down on the level of today's record-breaking campaign contributions!

Oh, there's a small dent in the dam as Congress has been so shamed by the revealed shenanigans of the Blackstone Fund that a bill has been introduced to address a narrow instance of the widespread problems with the equity funds. As this article in The Nation explains, Blackstone's greed and opportunism represents only the tip of the iceberg. Meanwhile, the Dem presidential candidates remain silent. Their owners don't like to be outed.

Tuesday: Join the Call to Free NM Government from Corporate Grip

From Ben Luce, Break the Grip!:
Tired of the domination of New Mexico by big corporations like PNM, Qwest, Oil & Gas, Media monopolies, and others, but feeling helpless to do anything about it?

Break the Grip! is initiating a campaign to end the pervasive grip of corporations on New Mexico State Government. For more information on the origins of this campaign, see the Open Letter to Governor Bill Richardson. More information will be given at BTG!'s Campaign Initiation Gathering (supporters are encouraged to attend) and press conference:

• When: Tuesday, June 19th, High Noon
• Where: East Entrance of the Santa Fe Roundhouse
• Directions: Northwest corner of Paseo de Peralta and Old Santa Fe Trail. Come early - parking close by can be hard to find. Parking may be available in the parking lots off the northeast corner of this intersection. There is paid parking near the St. Francis Cathedral downtown, about a 10 minute walk from the Roundhouse.

Supporters are encouraged to attend. (Detractors are encouraged to enjoy lunch instead at the Mission Cafe, located on East DeVargas Street near the Roundhouse.) Come prepared to sing! See the Lyrics to our theme song, "Let's Break Their Grip!"

An expanded version of the Break the Grip! website will be uploaded on June 19th and will contain history, calls for reform, calls to action, and more. Break the Grip! is a citizen's campaign that is not affiliated with any political party, election drive, nonprofit or for-profit corporation or other interest.

Editor's Note: Ben Luce is the former Chair and Policy Director of the New Mexico Coalition for Clean Affordable Energy (CCAE). Mother Media has more on Luce's decision to leave that post and start Break the Grip!.

Martin Luther King III in Albuquerque Today and Tomorrow for Poverty Initiative

According to a brief item in the Albuquerque Journal, Martin Luther King III, the eldest son of civil rights leader MLK Jr., arrives in Albuquerque today as part of his Realizing the Dream -- Poverty in America Initiative. He'll visit the in the South Valley, tour the South Broadway neighborhood and meet with Mayor Marty Chavez.

Tomorrow, Tuesday, June 12, he'll tour the Alamosa neighborhood on the SW Mesa, beginning at 9:00 AM at 6013 Sunset Gardens SW, ending the tour with a program at the Alamosa Multipurpose Center gym, located at 6900 Gonzales Road SW (just south of Central off Coors Blvd., 836-8760). Later on Tuesday, King will host a town hall meeting at the South Broadway Cultural Center from 5:30 to 8:30 PM. For more information on the SBCC event: 848-1320.

Krugman Says Single-Payer System the Only Way to Go in Health Care Reform

The good news is that we know more about the economics of health care than we did when Clinton tried and failed to remake the system. There's now a large body of evidence on what works and what doesn't work in health care, and it's not hard to see how to make dramatic improvements in US practice.

As we'll see, the evidence clearly shows that the key problem with the US health care system is its fragmentation. A history of failed attempts to introduce universal health insurance has left us with a system in which the government pays directly or indirectly for more than half of the nation's health care, but the actual delivery both of insurance and of care is undertaken by a crazy quilt of private insurers, for-profit hospitals, and other players who add cost without adding value.

A Canadian-style single-payer system, in which the government directly provides insurance, would almost surely be both cheaper and more effective than what we now have. And we could do even better if we learned from "integrated" systems, like the Veterans Administration, that directly provide some health care as well as medical insurance. --Paul Krugman and Robin Wells in the New York Review of Books

Read the entire article. It's comprehensive, detailed and persuasive. With the Governor's task force currently considering the results of Mathematica's study of three alternatives for reforming health care coverage in New Mexico, now's the time for ordinary folks to get more informed on what works and what doesn't. This article is a good start. I think Governor Richardson, his staff  and those involved with any aspect of health care in the state should read it too.

More nuggest from the article:

... the available evidence suggests that if the United States were to replace its current complex mix of health insurance systems with standardized, universal coverage, the savings would be so large that we could cover all those currently uninsured, yet end up spending less overall. That's what happened in Taiwan, which adopted a single-payer system in 1995: the percentage of the population with health insurance soared from 57 percent to 97 percent, yet health care costs actually grew more slowly than one would have predicted from trends before the change in system.

... In summary, then, the obvious way to make the US health care system more efficient is to make it more like the systems of other advanced countries, and more like the most efficient parts of our own system. That means a shift from private insurance to public insurance, and greater government involvement in the provision of health care—if not publicly run hospitals and clinics, at least a much larger government role in creating integrated record-keeping and quality control. Such a system would probably allow individuals to purchase additional medical care, as they can in Britain (although not in Canada). But the core of the system would be government insurance—"Medicare for all," as Ted Kennedy puts it.

... We believe that the compromise plans being proposed by the cautious reformers would run into the same political problems [as Bill Clinton's did], and that it would be politically smarter as well as economically superior to go for broke: to propose a straightforward single-payer system, and try to sell voters on the huge advantages such a system would bring. But this would mean taking on the drug and insurance companies rather than trying to co-opt them, and even progressive policy wonks, let alone Democratic politicians, still seem too timid to do that.

So are we stuck with a less than effective reform climate because of the timidity of Democrats? Oh, no, not again.... Political timidity: our most prevalent and dangerous problem.