Democracy for New Mexico

Domenici's Approval Rating Takes Big Plunge; Wiviott & Dems Gain Momentum

"Pajama Pete"  Domenici

As you've probably heard by now, Sen. Pete Domenici's approval rating tumbled to 41% in the latest Survey USA poll commissioned by Albuquerque's KOB-TV. This is down from 52% who approved in Survey USA's August poll. Six hundred adults in New Mexico were surveyed by telephone for this month's poll during the period 09/14/2007 - 09/16/2007. Ominously, 54% disapproved of Domenici with only 6% not sure. The poll's margin of error is plus or minus 4.1%.

Dem State Party Chair Brian S. Colón weighed in on Domenici's falling numbers: "The people of New Mexico are clearly unhappy that Pete Domenici is more loyal to George Bush and his failed policies than to the families of New Mexico. This poll confirms that Domenici is in serious danger of losing his job when New Mexicans go to the polls next year."

Only 38% of women and 37% of Hispanics approved of Domenici, while a mere 34% of independents and 40% of moderates -- groups Domenici needs to win if he's to keep his seat -- approved of the job he's doing.

Down, Down, Down
Pete's numbers have generally been trending downward since last November when 68% approved. You can track the trend lines here. The number started dipping at the beginning of 2007, when 66% approved. In March 2007, his approval dropped to 57% as the U.S. attorney firing scandal story broke and Domenici was implicated in the firing of David Iglesias, the U.S. Attorney in New Mexico. The damage has continued as Domenici became the subject of a Senate Ethics Committee probe about his dealings with Iglesias and Pete continued to vote in support of Bush's failed policies in Iraq. Despite trying to distance himself rhetorically from the president's positions, Domenici hasn't really budged from his rubberstamping of Bush's policies. Tellingly, Bush traveled to Albuquerque in August to raise campaign funds for Pete.

Domenici's between a rock and a hard place on Iraq. If he sides with the Dems in trying to end the occupation, he may lose his conservative base in New Mexico. If he continues to stick with the sinking ship that is the Bush administration, he has a good chance of going down with it. Meanwhile, ads pointing out Pete's loyalty to Bush on Iraq, like the latest by Americans United for Change, will no doubt increase in frequency. And ad campaigns from the conservative side, like the one by the Swifboat-related "Freedom's Watch" that spent more than $200,000 recently on an ad buy supporting Pete, don't seem to be making a dent.

With Domenici being named to a recent list of the 22 most corrupt members of Congress, reports that the Senate ethics probe into his involvement in the Iglesias firing is heating up and rumors circulating about Pete's weakening mental and phyiscal health, you've got the makings of a perfect storm to take him down.

The Domenici camp has to be alarmed at the lastest plunge of more than 10 percentage points since last month. The rule of thumb is that an incumbent is in trouble if approval ratings drop below the 50% mark. Domenici's approval rating has never been as low as it is today during his lengthy career in the Senate, which began in 1972. Given his long-standing popularity with the majority of New Mexico voters, the numbers this month are truly shocking.

Wiviott and the Dems

On the other hand, would-be Democratic challengers have got to be encouraged by the lastest polling. Don Wiviott (above), who just yesterday held a meet and greet and free dinner at Ladera Golf Course on Albuquerque's West Side, is the major beneficiary right now. Wiviott, who's creating a growing buzz and has been very successful in raising campaign money via ActBlue, needs to show good fundraising numbers when the third quarter ends on September 30th. According to FEC rules, candidates must release their totals by October 15th.

As expected, some pundits and unnamed Dem sources have been repeatedly lamenting that a so-called "big name" candidate hasn't stepped up to run on the Dem side. In an election season characterized by deep distain for DC insiders and business as usual politicos, I think the time couldn't be more right for a run by someone outside the inner circle of power brokers -- especially someone with Wiviott's talents, positions and passion. Clearly, a large percentage of the electorate is looking for candidates with integrity who have solved real problems in the real world, not familiar faces who've spent decades bloviating for the cameras and raising campaign funds from all the wrong people.

Just because someone has made a "name" in politics doesn't mean it's a good name. In fact, in this era, it's the best known "name" politicians who have most often abandoned the needs of ordinary people and instead spent their time bowing down to big-monied interests and lobbyists. Do we need more of that in the U.S. Senate? I don't think so. If you agree, you're encouraged to donate a few bucks to the cause at Beat Back Bush New Mexico to improve fundraising numbers before the September 30th deadline for the quarter.

For our previous posts on the 2008 Senate race in New Mexico, visit our archive. Thanks to the Down With Tyranny gang for the graphic. Thanks to Terry Riley for the Don Wiviott video clip.

Richardson Gains National Blogger Support for Iraq Position

The Bill Richardson campaign has released a new 4+ minute online video (above) stressing that he's the only Democratic candidate for president among the top four who is advocating removing all the troops from Iraq. The video contrasts his stance with with the positions of Clinton, Obama and Edwards in no uncertain terms. The video also features appearances in support of his Iraq position by national bloggers Chris Bowers and Matt Stoller of OpenLeft and Christina Siun O'Connell of Firedoglake. A shorter version of the video will be used as Richardson's next TV ad in New Hampshire.

The campaign has also established a web page entitled where visitors can submit links to their own videos, upload photos or leave messages to tell those in power in DC to end the war now and bring all the troops home.

You can read why Chris Bowers decided to appear in the ad and video here. Excerpt:

One of my greatest frustrations as a Democratic and progressive activist has been finding prominent Democrats who will take up popular progressive positions and messaging, and make the case for those positions nationwide. In 2002 and 2003, this frustration was centered around finding Democratic leaders who would speak out against the war before it began, even though a large percentage of America was yearning for someone to take up that mantle. Thus, Howard Dean emerged. In 2005, this frustration was centered around finding Democrats who would speak out in favor of withdrawal, even though a majority of the country favored withdrawal. Thus, Ned Lamont emerged. Now, for over five months, I have tried to push for a more prominent public debate on Democratic plans for residual forces in Iraq. This time, is has been Bill Richardson who has shown leadership on this issue. Not only has he repeatedly pledged to have no residual forces in Iraq, the largest focus of his campaign to date has been trying to force a public debate on residual forces in Iraq. He has deservedly risen in Iowa and New Hampshire polls as a result.

I am thrilled to be working with Bill Richardson on this issue. While this ad is not an official endorsement of Bill Richardson's candidacy, it is an endorsement of his no residual forces plan for Iraq. It is an endorsement of his leadership on the issue. It is an endorsement of the need for a public debate on how many troops Democrats plan to leave in Iraq, what those troops will do, and how long they will stay in Iraq. Every Democrat should be aware of all candidate plans for residual forces in Iraq before they decide who to support in the primaries. Just because a candidate says he or she will end American military involvement in the war in Iraq does not mean that he or she is actually proposing to end American military involvement in the war in Iraq.

Here's Siun's post about appearing in the Richardson ad. Excerpt:

While the candidates all say they will “end the war,” the frontrunners have ducked the question of residual troops every time they are asked - and they have been asked often by Gov. Richardson in the debates and by several of us privately and in numerous posts.

... While none of us are endorsing a presidential candidate - and Firedoglake has a policy of non-endorsement - Chris, Matt and I all agreed that this question must be answered. We support Bill Richardson’s plan to leave no troops behind - and we support his effort to get the other candidates to step up and answer.

"I believe we should bring all of the troops home with no residual forces left behind," Richardson says in the video. "This is critically important. This war is a quagmire, it is endless, and the time has come to bring the troops home."

The video cites chapter eight of the U.S. Army Field Manual, as noted in the Center for American Progress report "How to Redeploy: Implementing a Responsible Drawdown of U.S. Forces from Iraq," to support that "standard military procedure calls for non-combat troops to withdraw first, so they can be protected by combat forces."

"Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama, and John Edwards would leave tens of thousands of non-combat troops behind in Iraq," campaign manager Dave Contarino said. "An estimated 97,000 American non-combat troops are in Iraq. Leaving behind up to 97,000 American troops does not end this war. As President, Bill Richardson will withdraw non-combat troops in tandem with combat troops to get them all out of Iraq safely."

My Take
What do I think? I certainly support how Richardson is continuing to assert pressure on the three top-polling Dems in the prez race to come clean about how many and what kind of troops they'd leave behind -- and for how long. And I strongly support the position he's taking on removing all the troops now. I believe anyone making clearcut statements like these about the occupation should be applauded at a time when too many Dems are afraid to speak out clearly (and afraid to be seen with anyone in the netroots or activist community doing so). If we have any chance to be successful in convincing the DC Dems, especially the Senate, to take meaningful, courageous action NOW regarding bringing the troops home, we need to band together with anyone and everyone willing to call their bluff. With this effort, Richardson is definitely doing just that. I hope he's doing it for the right reasons and not just to differentiate himself from the pack.

HOWEVER, it still bugs me that Gov. Richardson couldn't seem to refrain from criticizing MoveOn, thus helping the Repubs pump up the fake media frenzy on the ad. I know, his criticism was mild compared with many others and at least he didn't appear on almost every major news outlet to make a point of bashing MoveOn like Hillary Clinton did, but still. If Democrats want us to have their backs, they need to  have ours, you know?

ABQ Mayor Chavez and Police Chief Apologize to Peace Demonstrators

Some good news. As described in a previous post, peaceful demonstrators at last Saturday's Iraq occupation protest at Kirtland AFB's Truman Gate in Albuquerque got a raw deal from members of the Albuquerque Police Department. Those participating in the protest were called names, cars parked in legal spaces were ticketed if they had certain bumperstickers, mounted officers steered their horses onto the sidewalk where people were standing with signs and other problems were reported.

As KRQE News 13 reports, representatives of the peace movement met with Mayor Martin Chavez and APD Chief Ray Schultz last Thursday and received their apologies, as well as a pledge that officers will receive additional training on how to respond to peaceful demonstrations:

A confrontation between anti-war protestors and Albuquerque police last weekend has brought an apology from city officials and a promise of more training for police, according to a protest leader.

... "There's going to be training on First Amendment rights," protest organizer Jeanne Pahls said. "We in the peace movement are looking forward to see how the Police Oversight Committee deals with this.

"We'd like to see there's some accountability for the behavior we saw on Saturday."

View the KRQE News report, which includes video taken at the protest by participants:

GI Rights & Iraq War Featured on Indy Media TV Tonight

From Indy Media TV:
Friday, September 21, 7-8 PM, Comcast Cable Channel 27 and at quote-unquote.org: GI Rights and the Iraq War. Indy Media TV welcomes Reber Boult, an attorney who has worked with GI war resisters since the Vietnam war; Jackie Thomason, from the National GI Rights Hotline; and Bruce Clark, Marine Veteran and father of a marine stationed 20 KM outside of Baghdad right now. Tune in and call in live: 346-1633.

NM Senators' Votes on Key Iraq Amendments

I thought I'd summarize the votes made by New Mexico's Senate delegation on the flurry of amendments to the war funding supplemental yesterday and today so everyone can be clear on where our Senators stand on the issues.

Cornyn Amendment: Passed 72-25-3
Condemning MoveOn Petraeus ad

• Sen. Jeff Bingaman - Nay
• Sen. Pete Domenici - Yea

Boxer Amendment: Failed 50-27-3 (Needed 60 to Pass)
Condemning MoveOn Petraeus ad, criticism of Kerry, Cleland and all in uniform

• Sen. Jeff Bingaman - Yea
• Sen. Pete Domenici - Nay

Webb-Hegel Amendment: Failed 56-44 (Needed 60 to Pass)
Extend troop leave time between deployments:

• Sen. Jeff Bingaman - Yea
• Sen. Pete Domenici - Nay

Feingold-Reid Amendment: Failed 28-70-2
Start troop withdrawals within 90 days, end by June 30, 2008 when funding cut off

• Sen. Jeff Bingaman - Nay
• Sen. Pete Domenici - Nay

Levin-Reed Amendment: Failed 47-47-6
Start troop withdrawals within 9 months

• Sen. Jeff Bingaman - Yea
• Sen. Pete Domenici - Did Not Vote

Cloture on Restoration of Habeas Corpus: Failed 56-43-1 (Needed 60 to Pass)
Bring Spector habeas corpus amendment to the floor for vote

• Sen. Jeff Bingaman - Yea
• Sen. Pete Domenici - Nay

Telling It Like It Is: Keith Olbermann's Special Comment

Last night Keith said it better than anyone else I've heard or read. Just go see the video or read the transcript. It's what saying something in no uncertain terms sounds like. It's what speaking truth to power really means. It's what experiencing someone calling a spade a spade feels like. I promise. It's all there in a nutshell.

Moving On to the War at Hand: A Small Price to Pay

It's no wonder that so many in Congress want to move on to topics other than the ongoing horrors of the occupation in Iraq. Too often, when Repubs talk about Iraq they say things like Rep. John Boehner says in the new ad produced by Americans United for Change above. They seem to have to no real sense of what's going on there or why. They don't seem to get what's really hurting the troops.

Hint: It's not an ad by MoveOn. It's not people working to get our troops out of harm's way and out from under a civil war. What's hurting our troops is the refusal of Republicans to admit realities publicly and take the action they know is needed. It's their fear of getting sideways with Bush that's causing so many Repubs to offer verbal criticisms of the occupation, while at the same time refusing to vote to end the debacle or even take steps in that direction.

Rep. Heather Wilson is one of those doing just that. Despite abundant evidence of the failure of the occupation to achieve any sort of progress on the diplomatic front, Wilson continues to put party loyalty before reason. She said the reports by Gen. Petraeus represented "an important turning point in the war in Iraq." No doubt a similar desire to stay loyal to Bush caused Repub House leader Boehner to utter his infamous "small price to pay" comment about the buckets of blood being spilled in Iraq. Sure it's a small price to pay if you're not the one paying it. Sure it's OK to ignore the damning criticisms in almost every official report other than Petraeus' if you're not the one with your life on the line.

Other Republicans have made similar statements showing just how out of touch with reality they are in terms of what's going on in Iraq. Some examples:

Rep. Mike Pence (R-IN) compared Iraq to an Indiana Farmers Market: "There were thousands of people just walking the streets," he said. "It was very encouraging to me." [New York Times, 4/4/07] 

Mitt Romney said his sons weren't serving in the military because they were helping elect him: At a forum, Romney was asked if his children are in the military. He said no, but they are serving their country by working to get him elected. "It's remarkable how we can show our support for our nation," he said, "and one of the ways my sons are showing support for our nation is helping to get me elected, because they think I'd be a great president." [NYT, 8/13/07]

After a visit to Iraq, Rep. Michelle Bachmann (R-MN) compared Iraq to the Mall of America: "It's absolutely huge. I turned to my colleagues and said there's a commonality with the Mall of America, in that it's on that proportion. There's marble everywhere. The other thing I remarked about was there is water everywhere. He had man-made lakes all around his personal palace - one for fishing, one for boating." [Star Tribune, 7/22/07]

Rep. John Shimkus (R-IL) compared Iraq to a baseball game: "Imagine my beloved St. Louis Cardinals are playing the much-despised Chicago Cubs," began in a speech on the House floor. In his brief but impassioned oratory, Shimkus argued that the Democratic bill calling for the withdrawal of American forces from Iraq was like the Cardinals abandoning the ballpark during a tied, extra-inning game. "Who wins? We know it's the team that stays on the field," he said. [St. Louis Post-Dispatch, 5/2/07]

Webb-Hagel Amendment
Perhaps the most dramatic recent example of Republicans being out of touch with the reality the troops are facing on the ground and in their repeated deployments is the defeat of the Webb-Hagel amendment in the Senate yesterday. Republican votes (including that of Sen. Pete Domenici) caused the defeat of the measure that would have provided members of our regular military, Guard and Reserve proper rest between extended Iraq tours. A reported it this way:

Sen. Chuck Hagel (R-Neb.), a staunch critic of the war who co-sponsored the Webb amendment, said Wednesday's outcome means Republicans will continue to stick with Bush for at least the rest of the year.

"It's stay the course, Part 2," said Hagel, an Army infantryman in Vietnam who earned two Purple Hearts, warning that some of his Republican colleagues running for re-election next year will soon face a "confrontation" between "a very unpopular war and self-preservation."

... Throughout the day, Webb, Hagel and other senators pleaded for the well-being of the troops. They noted a sharp rise in the divorce rate in military families; they pointed to alarming suicide rates and they recounted missed birthdays, anniversaries and first steps of young children.

"This amendment would provide a safety net to our men and women in uniform by providing minimum and more predictable time for them to rest and retrain before again deploying," said Webb, a Marine who was awarded the Navy Cross, the Silver Star, two Bronze Stars and two Purple Hearts for his service in Vietnam. [Webb also has a son serving in Iraq.]

Bottom Line: Look at recent polling. A large majority of the American people understand what's really happening in Iraq. They know a vote to stop the provision of adequate rest between deployments is much more telling than the party-first spin being spun by Republicans these days. Now's the time for action, not rhetoric. The American people demand it.

Want change? Visit Beat Back Bush New Meixo and make a contribution.

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.

Two Powerful Speakers to Discuss Iraq War at DPBC Thursday Meeting

Don't miss this one. The Third Thursday Meeting of the Democratic Party of Bernalillo County will be held on September 20, 2007, at 6:00 PM in Room 2401 at the UNM Law School located at 1117 Stanford Dr NE in Albuquerque (map). All Democrats are welcome. Two excellent speakers will address the dire situations being created by the ongoing Iraq occupation and attacks on our Constitution:

• Major General Melvin Montaño, Ret., former Adjutant General, US Air National Guard
  • THE IRAQ OCCUPATION: Impact on the National Guard and the states supported by the National Guard, including the long-term effects on local communities and the homeland security of the United States.

and

• Bruce Clark, former Marine, with a son currently serving in Iraq North of Baghdad
  • MISSING IN ACTION - AMERICA: With the Iraqi bloodbath reaching new heights and the Constitution treated like a doormat, we can't afford any more of the same under a different label. We'll never get something right that was wrong in the first place or legitimate a lie. In particular, we need to make our elected officials and candidates hear us so we can bring our troops home now and get our country back again. It's time for Democrats to act like Democrats again.

If you attended the Iraq Summer Campaign's Take a Stand town hall meeting last month, you know how passionate, informed and articulate these two speakers are about what's going on in Iraq and our nation because of the woeful Bush administration and its rubberstamps like Sen. Domenici and Rep. Heather Wilson. Highly recommended. (Click on photos for larger images.)

ABQ City Council Passes Resolution to End Iraq Occupation

Good news: On Monday, September 27, 2007, the Albuquerque City Council passed a resolution sponsored by Councilor Ike Benton "calling on the United States Congress to rescind the Iraq resolution and pass a resolution calling for the phased redeployment of American troops from Iraq to commence immediately." The measure passed by a margin of 5-2 with Councilors Debbie O'Malley, Ken Sanchez, Ike Benton, Michael Cadigan and Martin Heinrich voting in favor of the resolution. Councilors Sally Mayer and Craig Loy voted against it. Councilors Brad Winter and Don Harris were absent for the vote.

The resolution was very similar to one passed earlier this month by the UNM Graduate and Professional Student Association. At that time, both State Senator Jerry Ortiz y Pino and Councilor Ike Benton spoke on behalf of the GPSA resolution drafted by the group's president, Joseph J. García. According to García, one of the main purposes of the resolution was to call attention to local student and community needs that are not being fully met due to the allocation of needed funds to the US military engagement in Iraq.

By the way, I read yesterday that the occupation is now costing us approximately $12 billion a month. Imagine what that money could do if it were used for constructive purposes here in the U.S instead of funding Bush's madness.