Democracy for New Mexico

Bingaman Calls for Inquiry Into "Sedition" Investigation

Editor's Note: Laura Berg, a nurse employed by the Veteran's Administration in Albuquerque, wrote a letter to the editor critical of the Bush administration that was published in the February 9-12, 2006 edition of Albuquerque's Alibi. Click to read the letter, entitled Wake Up, Get Real.

From the office of Senator Jeff Bingaman:
WASHINGTON – U .S. Senator Jeff Bingaman today called on the Veterans Affairs Secretary to do a thorough inquiry of why his agency opened an investigation into whether a VA nurse’s letter to a weekly newspaper criticizing the federal government amounted to “sedition.”

The VA’s Human Resource Office ultimately cleared the nurse, Laura Berg, of any wrongdoing.  But Bingaman said he is concerned that the investigation was ever undertaken.

The letter Bingaman wrote to VA Secretary James Nicholson reads, in part:

“I am writing to express my deep concern regarding news reports that Ms. Laura Berg, a nurse with the Department of Veterans Affairs in Albuquerque, New Mexico, was investigated for sedition after writing a letter to a newspaper that was critical of the current Administration.

“In a democracy, expressing disagreement with the government’s actions does not amount to sedition or insurrection—it is, and must remain, protected speech.  Although it may be permissible to implement restrictions regarding a government employee’s political activities during work hours or on government premises, such employees do not surrender their right to freedom of speech when they enlist in government service. 

“Merely voicing opposition to the government’s policies and expressing the desire to change course does not provide reason to believe that a person is involved in illegal subversive activity.  Clearly, instituting investigations in these types of cases raises a very real possibility of chilling legitimate political speech.  People must be able to exercise their First Amendment rights without the fear of being investigated for sedition.”

Bingaman asked Nicholson to investigate the Berg matter in order to provide VA officials with guidance in handling similar situations in the future.

Berg’s letter to the editor was published in Albuquerque’s Weekly Alibi; it criticized the Bush administration’s handling of Hurricane Katrina and the war in Iraq.

Last Chance to Resurrect a Decent Minimum Wage Bill

From New Mexicans For a Fair Wage:
The House Labor Committee amended the bad Senate bill this morning to restore it to the Speaker’s proposal. Late today, we can expect a Conference Committee to negotiate a final compromise bill for the Legislature to act on before the Session ends at Noon tomorrow.

Make your final 7 calls this afternoon! Make Your Final 7 Calls NOW!

Please make your 7 calls now to the leadership and swing votes that will determine whether this compromise is something we can accept or not.

Here is the message for you to give them: “If legislators are giving themselves a 17% increase to their pension, and if they have a 3% cost of living adjustment, WORKERS deserve the same thing. GIVE ANY MINIMUM WAGE BILL A 3% COST OF LIVING ADJUSTMENT, just like the legislators’ own pension plan!”  Call:

Speaker Ben Lujan, 986-4782
Pro Tem Ben Altamirano, 986-4733
Majority Leader Michael Sanchez, 986-4727
Majority Leader Ken Martinez, 986-4777
Senator John Arthur Smith, 986-4363
Senator Mary Jane Garcia, 986-4726
Governor Bill Richardson 476-2200

CALL NOW!

Gutted Minimum Wage Bill Passed by Senate

SB 449, the much-amended minimum wage bill passed last night in the NM Senate, is really an anti-fair wage bill. Instead of $7.50 an hour, it mandates a raise to only $6 in January 2007. Later, the minimum would go to $6.75, but only for those with at least a year on the job. Later still, it would be raised to $7.50, but only for workers with at least two years on the job. In other words, employers are encouraged to get rid of workers with experience so they won't have to pay the increased minimum. Terrific.

In addition, employers in the chile and dairy businesses, as well as food processors, would be exempt. Cities and towns would be permanently banned from passing laws for a higher minimum wage. Sante Fe's minimum wage rate would be capped permanently at $9.50. This is progress? Thankfully Governor Richardson doesn't think so, and he's threatened to veto the bill if it makes it to his desk as is. An Albuquerque Journal article reports:

Richardson spent hours Tuesday counting noses, meeting with state senators and twisting arms trying to salvage the higher minimum wage proposal he has championed.

The mangled bill goes next to the House. As you may recall, the House already passed an excellent minimum wage bill, sponsored by House Speaker Ben Lujan. That bill is languishing in committee in the Senate and probably will never be resusitated. It will be up to the House to try and reinstate sensibility into this bill. Unless that's possible, I hope every Democrat in the House votes AGAINST this bill.

Who's to blame for this mess? Much of it falls on the shoulders of these three Democrats:

Mary Kay Papen (D-Las Cruces)

James Arthur Smith (D-Deming)

Tim Jennings (D-Roswell)

As the Journal reports:

On the Senate floor Tuesday night, Altamirano tried to amend the committee's version of his bill so that it contained the governor's wage increase proposal. But three border-district Democrats— Tim Jennings of Roswell, Mary Kay Papen of Las Cruces and Smith— joined 18 Republicans to retain the committee language to which Richardson had objected.

Despite the fact that employers that are big dollar campaign donors to these three were exempted completely from having to pay the higher wage, the three musketeers also supported the ridiculous provisions stipulating time on the job as a requirement for workers to earn the new minimum. Oh, how I wish these Dems in Name Only could work for $6.00 an hour and be forced to live on it.

Another excerpt from the Albuquerque Journal article:

Senators from districts bordering Mexico and Texas had earlier amended Altamirano's bill in the Senate Finance Committee, saying businesses in their districts, especially food processing companies, could not afford to pay $7.50 an hour to their unskilled workers. They warned businesses would leave the state, lay off workers, cut benefits or cut new hiring if forced to pay too high a wage.

"We want to preserve the real jobs we have," said Sen. John Arthur Smith, D-Deming. "We also want our folks to have a living wage."

Uh, Senator Smith, even $7.50 an hour isn't a "living wage," as anyone who tries to live on that paltry amount can attest. And why not support the raise to $7.50 since the chile, dairy and food processing companies were exempted in the bill thanks to your work?  We know why. To my mind it's because he's in bed with his big donors and he could care less that people have to try to live on $6.00 an hour.

Remember when THE CORE VALUE of the Democratic Party was making sure working people got a fair deal? Apparently that value has died, at least in the case of these three apologists for "business interests." Apparently this trio is dedicated to keeping wages so low that the only realistic recourse for many is to become a burglar or drug dealer. After all, crime is one way to make a living wage, isn't it? Then we can all pay for this travesty as more and more of our tax dollars go to prisons. I guess some people just can't see the forest for the trees, especially when they're pocketing campaign money from powerful economic interests.

Paper Ballots Bill Passes House

The good news: Senator Linda Lopez's bill to require paper ballot voting in all counties (SB 295) passed the NM House last night by a vote of 38-24. Voting on the bill was expedited by the House leadership.

The bad news: The requirement that the new voting system be in place by the November 2006 election, which was stripped from the bill on the Senate floor, was not reinstated by the House. Instead, an amendment was added delaying the switch to paper ballots until funding is obtained to replace obsolete voting machines and cover other costs. According to an article in the Santa Fe :

The bill ... does not set a firm deadline for counties to move to paper ballot voting systems. Instead, the switch will be required once there’s enough money — state, local or federal — to replace existing equipment, obtain needed software, buy paper ballots for all counties and cover an estimated $3.7 million in loans that counties have for existing electronic voting machines that will be eliminated.

The bill now returns to the Senate for possible final approval if Senators agree to the changes made by the House. Tick tock.

t

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

Guv Says He'll Veto Mangled Minimum Wage Bill

Follow the money. A heavily amended minimum wage bill passed by a 5-4 party-line vote in the Senate Corporations Committee yesterday. The bill was so mangled by special interests that Governor Richardson has threatened to veto if it reaches him. Read all about it in the Santa Fe New Mexican. The bill heads next to the Senate floor, perhaps sometime today.

SB 449, orginally sponsored by Sen. Ben Altamirano on behalf of the Governor, now provides a raise to only $6 an hour for first-year employees in 2007, sets a wage of $6.75 an hour in 2008 for those with at least a year of experience, and raises that to $7.50 in 2009 for employees with at least two year's experience. There is no indexing for inflation. It also exempts the food processing and dairy industries, permanently prohibits cities and towns in NM from passing their own minimum wage laws and caps Santa Fe's current minimum wage at $9.50 an hour. Altamirano calls the amended bill "a joke."

Altamirano and others will be negotiating in the Senate to get a better bill. The House already passed a committee substitute for Rep. Lujan's HB 258, which is better by far than Altamirano's original bill. If a wage bill passes in the Senate, it will have to be reconciled with the House version. Not much time is left. Supporters are urged to contact Senators to urge a return to the original provisions in SB 449. It's especially important to contact Tim Jennings (D-Roswell) 986-4863, John Arthur Smith (D-Deming) 986-4363 and Leonard Tsosie (D-Crownpoint) 986-4859.

Clearly, monied interests rule in the Corporations Committee as they do in most political arenas these days, even on the Democratic side. Democratic members of the Senate Finance Committee include Chair Joe Fidel (D-Grants), Vice Chair John Arthur Smith (D-Deming), Pete Campos (D-Las Vegas), Tim Jennings (D-Roswell), Nancy Rodriguez (D-Santa Fe) and Leonard Tsosie (D-Crownpoint). Jennings, in particular, was instrumental in watering down the bill with an awful amendment that inserted the "training wage" provisions.

Apparently the bucks they receive from special interests like pecan and chile producers, agricultural processors, dairy interests and others who insist on paying substandard wages mean more to them than getting a few more bucks into the pockets of the working poor in their districts. After all, we're talking a minor raise in the pay floor here, not an increase to anything resembling a genuine living wage. I'd love to see any Senator or lobbyist live on $6.75 an hour.

It's important to remember that New Mexico's campaign finance reporting system is rated F, as one of the worst in the nation. Is it any wonder that some Democrats, who apparently like the pay for play system just the way it is, made sure to kill campaign reform legislation this session? We don't want our citizens following the money, do we?

Paper Ballots Bill Passes Senate But Deadline Stripped

After a two-hour NM Senate floor debate, Senator Linda Lopez's bill mandating that paper ballots be used for all New Mexico voting systems is now headed to the House of Representatives for consideration. SB 295 passed on a party-line vote 23-18.

Unfortunately, an amendment approved during the Senate floor debate removed any deadline for county clerks to have the paper ballot system in place. If the amendment isn't deleted while being considered in the House, there's no guarantee that the new machines will be used for the November 2006 election.

I guess Bernalillo County Clerk Mary Herrera's whining campaign worked to convince some lawmakers that it was just too difficult for County Clerks to implement the new system in time for the next election. Hey, no need for urgency on getting our votes counted accurately! It's just a minor matter in this fading democracy of ours. We wouldn't want Mary Herrera and her supporters to be forced to move quickly in response to numerous documented problems with voting in New Mexico. They must have better things to do with their time.

Senator Lopez, however, has vowed to continue the fight. According to an Albuquerque Journal article:

Supporters face Thursday's adjournment of the 30-day legislative session as they attempt to persuade lawmakers to restore a deadline, said Sen. Linda Lopez, D-Albuquerque, the bill's sponsor.

The battle "has only just begun," Lopez said. Gov. Bill Richardson has said repeatedly that he'd like to see paper ballots in use in time for the November general election.

I note that Sen. Dianna Duran (R-Tularosa), one of the main opponents of the bill, proposed the amendment stripping the time requirement. Thus, she should shoulder at least some of the blame for creating an obstacle to timely election reform. However, for the amendment to succeed, some Democrats had to side with her as well. Who are they? If and when I find out, I'll let you know and perhaps we can add their names to the 2006 Democratic Legislator Hall of Shame. The way things are going, that could be a long, long list.

Click to contact House members and urge them to support SB 295 and restore the bill to its original language, with a timeline. With such a short time left in this 30-day session, we must keep the pressure on.

DNC Chairman Howard Dean Coming to NM!

It's been confirmed that DNC Chairman Howard Dean will be visiting New Mexico! Details about his full schedule have yet to be ironed out but we know this event is a go:

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

Click for flyer (doc) or flyer (PDF). Pass it on.

Democracy Disaster: NM Senate Kills Key Reform Measures

Bills to open legislative conference committee meetings to the public, tighten campaign contribution reporting and allow medical marijuana for seriously ill patients were all defeated in the NM Senate. Read all about this failure of democracy at Senator Dede Feldman's blog.

With a Democratically controlled State Senate and House, as well as a Democratic governor in office, it's shocking that crucial bills likes these are stymied. I thought the Democratic Party stood for clean and open government, as well as compassionate and reasonable treatments for suffering people. Guess not, at least during this legislative session. A big thanks goes out to Senator Feldman for all efforts on behalf of these measures, even if she got little help from some in the Democratic establishment.

Join Albuquerque's New CODEPINK Chapter

From Albuquerque CODEPINK:
Come join CODEPINK and help decide how to take action for peace right here, right now!

What: First meeting of the new Albuquerque CODEPINK
When: Saturday, February 18, 2006 at 3 PM
Where: Range Restaurant on Menaul (Click for map)

We want to hear your ideas for making CODEPINK vibrant and effective locally and globally and we want to make plans for an action on International Women's Day, March 8. 

Power to the peaceful,
Dana Leach, danaleach@comcast.net
(505) 259-2187 (call for more information or directions)

P.S. If you haven't done so already, please sign on to the Women's Urgent Call for Peace, and invite your friends and colleagues to sign so that we can reach our goal of 100,000 signatures by March 8, International Women's Day.