Democracy for New Mexico

Cheney in Albuquerque Monday 8.6.07

Cheney's high school yearbook photo

VP Dick Cheney will emerge from his cave in an undisclosed location and be in Albuquerque on Monday, August 6. He's set to address the joint opening session of the Marine Corps League's national convention at the Marriott Hotel located at 2101 Louisiana Boulevard NE. According to the meeting agenda, Cheney will be speaking to the convention from 10:30 to 11:00 AM. No word yet on any other events scheduled for Dick while he's in town.

I wonder if he'll try to raise some bucks for the faltering Repub team while here. Or maybe he'll just have a conversation or two with Pat Rogers or another of the NM Repub biggies about how to illegally keep Democratic voters off the rolls with voter caging techniques or trumped up claims of "voter fraud."

As we previously reported, Bush himself will be attending a fundraiser for Sen. Pete Domenici in New Mexico sometime in late August.

Karl Rove must be fretting about the GOP's chances in New Mexico in 2008. With the House Ethics Committee meeting behind closed doors to hear testimony about  Rep. Heather Wilson's pressuring phone call to fired U.S. Attorney David Iglesias, Sen. Pete Domenici entangled in a similar controversy on the Senate side and Rep. Steve Pearce voting against a recent House resolution to establish that permanent bases won't be built in Iraq (that passed by a 399-24 margin), Rove has his work cut out for him.

Iglesias to Testify to House Ethics Committee on Pressure Call From Heather Wilson

Oh to be a fly on the wall. As reported by Jason Leopold at Truthout:

David Iglesias, the former US attorney for New Mexico who was fired last year along with eight other federal prosecutors, will testify Wednesday before the House Ethics Committee about a phone call he received from Representative Heather Wilson (R-New Mexico), who queried Iglesias about the status of public corruption cases he was pursuing in the state.

In a brief interview Monday, Iglesias said he will testify in a closed-door session of the Ethics Committee about the call he received from Wilson last October. The committee has opened a preliminary investigation into allegations that Wilson violated House ethics rules by calling Iglesias to find out about corruption cases involving Democrats weeks before last year's midterm elections. Wilson faced a tough reelection campaign last fall.

RSVP Now: DFA-DFNM Meetup with Martin Heinrich

Our next regular monthly Albuquerque DFA-Democracy for New Mexico Meetup will feature special guest MARTIN HEINRICH, the Democratic candidate for Congress in NM-01 who'll be challenging Republican incumbent Heather Wilson. We'll hear about Martin's platform and strategies and have a chance to ask him questions or offer comments. Gabriel Nims of is also scheduled to stop in and, as usual, there'll be a few other announcements and info.

Don't miss this Meetup. Come to the Social Hall of the First Unitarian Church on the SW corner of Carlisle and Comanche in Albuquerque at 7:00 PM on Thursday, August 2nd. Click to join our Meetup group, RSVP or get on our email list.

Mark Your Calendars: Our September 6th Meetup will feature NM Senator Jerry Ortiz y Pino as our keynote speaker so mark your calendars now. He's expected to talk about what's coming at the next NM Legislative Session and provide some perspective on what happened at the last one. Sen. Ortiz y Pino has sponsored many excellent pieces of progressive legislation, including the NM Senate resolution to impeach Bush and Cheney.

Note if you haven't yet donated to Martin Heinrich's campaign, you can do so at the DFNM Netroots page at Act Blue.

Wilson Votes Against Changing Course in Iraq

As usual, Repub Rep. Heather Wilson is trying to have it both ways. She's continuing to blindly support the Bush Iraq agenda while pretending to want what's right for the American people, our troops and her constituents in NM-01. Her task  -- like that of so many Republicans who keep putting politics before common sense -- is getting harder and harder given the escalating carnage and chaos in Iraq.

Today Wilson voted against the Responsible Redeployment from Iraq Act (HR 2956), sponsored by Armed Services Committee Chairman Ike Skelton, D-Mo. The bill would require troops to begin withdrawing from Iraq within 120 days of enactment of the legislation. All troops would have to be redeployed from Iraq by April 1, 2008, with minor exceptions. The bill passed 223-201 -- by the largest margin yet for a so-called redeployment bill.

Although Wilson has been critical of Bush's "surge" strategy, she's apparently willing to allow the failed policy to remain in place and our escalating casualties to continue unabated in Iraq in order to stay loyal to Bush. Back in January, she had this to say about the president's strategy, as quoted by  CNN:

“I am not a supporter of a surge to do for the Iraqis what the Iraqis will not do for themselves…. I also have not seen a clarity of mission. And I think that’s the greatest weakness that we have right now."

Well, there's still no clarity of mission and things are not improving in Iraq either militarily or politically:

Iraqi progress on political and military goals sought by Congress has been mixed during the past several months, with slow advances toward some of the targets and paralysis or even reverses in other areas, the White House said today in a much-anticipated assessment.

... The administration's assessment comes the day after U.S. intelligence experts offered an overwhelmingly negative view of military and political conditions in Iraq, saying that Iraqi forces will remain incapable of taking charge of security for years to come and that deepening sectarian political divides remain the largest impediment to progress.

Moreover, the lastest assessment describes "a 'complex and extremely challenging' security environment, an 'uneven' economic situation and little sign of progress toward political benchmarks."

Why won't Wilson vote in alignment with her negative views on Bush's Iraq plan and the realities of what's happening on the ground in Iraq? Pure politics. Despite trying to paint herself as a "moderate" and offering periodic criticisms about the war, she has never voted for any Iraq measure offered by Democrats and remains a rubberstamp for the Bush administration. I wonder when her conscience will bother her enough to prompt her to break with the president and truly support our troops.

By the way, Repub Rep. Steve Pearce (NM-02) voted against redeployment. Dem Rep. Tom Udall (NM-03) voted for it.

Heinrich Exceeds Fundraising Goal, Garners National Praise

Democratic Congressional candidate Martin Heinrich, who's running to replace Repub incumbent Heather Wilson in NM-01, announced that his campaign raised about $181,000 in the quarter that ended on June 30th. That's $31,000 more than the goal of $150,000 set by his campaign when he entered the race in April. Donations came from about 700 individuals in only nine weeks of fundraising. According to the campaign, about 71% of donations came from within New Mexico's first Congressional District, and about 88% from within the state.

As reported in a previous post, Heinrich's campaign was one of the top 20 online fundraisers at ActBlue, the Democratic netroots website. Donations to his campaign this quarter on ActBlue totaled more than $35,000, $800 of which was donated via Democracy for New Mexico's netroots page on the site.

According to an Albuquerque Tribune article:

The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee says it is impressed with Martin Heinrich's quick start in raising money ... That's a good showing, a committee spokesman said. "We think he's a strong candidate," said Fernando Cuevas, Western regional press secretary for the DCCC.

An Albuquerque Journal article quotes Heinrich's reaction to the news:

"I am really humbled at the amount of support we've gotten in a short period of time," said Heinrich ... "We exceeded our goal for the quarter fairly substantially. I was trying to hit $150,000— and obviously we went past that ... I think this will be another top-tier race ..."

In a press release, Heinrich continued:

“The outpouring of grassroots energy I have witnessed since entering this race demonstrates to me that voters are ready for new leadership. As I have spoken with voters across this district, they have told me that they’re sick and tired of the failed policies of George Bush and Heather Wilson, and they’re ready to put our country back on the right track.”

To gain some perspective, recall that at this time two years ago, no Democratic candidate had yet announced a run for the NM-01 seat. The eventual Democratic contender, former Attorney General Patricia Madrid, didn't start raising money for the race until Octobe 2005.

Rep. Heather Wilson has until July 15th to report her fundraising totals for the second quarter to the Federal Election Commission. Her campaign raised more than $274,000 in the first quarter of 2007.

As of July 5th, the NM-01 race has another Dem contender in the form of attorney Jon Adams. has the details.

Note: Martin Heinrich will be the featured guest at our next DFA-Democracy for New Mexico Meetup set for Thursday, August 2nd, at 7:00 PM, at the Social Hall of the First Unitarian Church at Carlisle and Comanche in Albuquerque. He'll be speaking to the group about his campaign and taking questions and comments. To join the DFA-DFNM Meetup group and get on our email list, click here. We've been meeting since 2003, when the Meetup originated as Dean for America.

To check out our previous posts on the NM-01 race, visit our archive.

Heinrich, McCamley in Top 20 House Race Fundraisers on ActBlue

State	CD	Candidate	Raised on Actblue	Contributors
CO	2	Jared Polis	$128,216	266
MA	5	Niki Tsongas	$118,887	341
MA	5	Jamie Eldridge	$102,420	570
ME	1	Chellie Pingree	$97,000	210
IL	10	Dan Seals	$68,073	218
CA	26	Russ Warner	$66,946	199
MO	6	Kay Barnes	$58,859	82
AZ	3	Bob Lord	$55,705	145
TX	10	Dan Grant	$54,150	132
NY	26	Jon Powers	$48,375	217
NY	29	Eric Massa	$48,255	423
CA	4	Charlie Brown	$45,738	943
FL	8	Mike Smith	$42,820	62
NM	1	Martin Heinrich	$35,149	172
MD	4	Donna Edwards	$34,260	522
NC	8	Larry Kissell	$30,687	265
CT	4	Jim Himes	$25,813	48
MT	AL	Bill Kennedy	$17,366	67
MA	5	Barry Finegold	$16,250	16
NM	2	Bill McCamley	$13,930	47

Chart by SwingStateProject.com. (h/t )

Two Democratic candidates for U.S. House seats -- Martin Heinrich, running in NM-01 for a chance to challenge incumbent Heather Wilson, and Bill McCamley, running in NM-02 for a chance to challenge incumbent Steve Pearce -- are in the top 20 for funds raised for 2008 Congressional campaigns at national online netroots website ActBlue. Second quarter fundraising ended yesterday at midnight.

As you can see on the chart, ActBlue Heinrich donations rank 14th with $35,149 from 172 online donors, including $800 raised this quarter at the Democracy for New Mexico Netroots page dedicated to his campaign. Las Cruces candidate McCamley, with a 20th place finish this quarter on ActBlue, raised $13,930 from 47 internet donors. THANKS TO ALL WHO DONATED!

Considering the hundreds of races at play around the country, and how early we are in the 2008 election cycle, these are impressive numbers indeed. Moreover, most of the other candidates on the top 20 list are from states with much larger and more affluent populations. Clearly, many New Mexico grassroots Dems are excited about these candidates and are willing to put some dollars on the line to help jumpstart their campaigns.

Official campaign reports on fundraising totals from all sources will be available by mid-July. Let's hope the off-line donations are as impressive at this stage of the game as those made via ActBlue.

ActBlue just celebrated its 3rd anniversary on the web. A total of $24,767,583 has been raised online via ActBlue since 2004!

RIGHT NOW: Only a Few Hours to Help Martin Heinrich This Quarter

NOTE: I'll be keeping this post at the top of the page until the fundraising quarter is over at Midnight tonight, June 30th. Please donate if you can.

Time is short if you want to help make a difference in Martin Heinrich's campaign for Congress in NM-01 for this fundraising quarter. If we want to help Martin show that he has widespread support from the netroots-grassroots community, now is the time. Click to Donate: https://www.actblue.com/page/dfnmforheinrich

Martin's campaign needs to demonstrate it has the backing of as many people as possible to make it clear that he's the best Democratic candidate to take on Heather Wilson in 2008.

Please donate RIGHT NOW if you can, and use the DFNM Netroots fundraising page at Act Blue to do so. In this way, Martin will know that progressive Democrats and Independents are doing whatever we can to support his candidacy:

https://www.actblue.com/page/dfnmforheinrich

Even a $5 donation helps. Remember how Howard Dean outraised all his competitors based on hundreds of thousands of small donations? Let's help Martin Heinrich do the same.

You can also sign up for automatic monthly donations, if you'd prefer, which spreads the expense over time so you can afford it.

https://www.actblue.com/page/dfnmforheinrich

We know that Heather Wilson will have millions of dollars to try and "Swiftboat" Martin Heinrich. Let's help him build a strong campaign so he can stand up to Heather and provide representation that we can be proud of!

ABQ City Councilors Host Heinrich for Congress Fundraiser

MARTIN HEINRICH for CONGRESS FUNDRAISER:
Hosted by Albuquerque City Councilors: Michael Cadigan, Debbie O'Malley, Isaac Benton

Wednesday, June 27, 2007, 5:30-7:30PM, at the home of Michael and Traci Cadigan, 2705 Bosque del Sol NW, Albuquerque (map). Hors d'oeuvres and refreshments will be served.

Contribution Levels:
$100: Juniper; $250: Piñon; $500: Cottonwood

Checks should be made out to Martin Heinrich for Congress, and may be submitted either at the event or via mail to: 2118 Central Avenue, SE #71, Albuquerque, New Mexico 87106. For information or additional directions, please call Michael Cadigan at (505) 980-5623. 

Amy Foster, Finance Director
Martin Heinrich for Congress
2118 Central Avenue SE #71
Albuquerque, New Mexico 87106
Office 505.244.0022
www.martinheinrich.com

Editor's Note: You can also contribute to Martin Heinrich's campaign via the Democracy for New Mexico Netroots page at Act Blue.

Young Professionals Fundraiser for Heinrich for Congress Set for June 12

You are Invited to a Young Professionals Fundraiser

for

Martin Heinrich

Democratic Candidate for Congress

Tuesday, June 12, 2007 6:00 to 8:00 p.m.

O'Neill's Pub and Grill

4310 Central Ave. SE

(Central and Washington in East Nob Hill)

$100 Suggested Contribution

(all contributions accepted)

To contribute on-line go to: www.ActBlue.com

Sponsors

Adolfo Mendez, Allan Oliver, Ann Marie Padilla, Anthony DeMarnello, Antonio Sandoval, Arturo Archuleta, Barbara Lopez,Brian Morris, Brian Egolf, Carlos Castaneda, Chris Catechis, Chris Garcia, Christina Vigil, Claire Dudley, David Berkey,DeAnza Valencia, Drew Setter, Geno Zamora, Giovanna Rossi, Hakim Bellamy, James Aranda, James Bristol, Javier Benavidez,Jennifer Garcia Kozlowski, Jason M. Burnette, Joe LiRosi, Kara Shair-Rosenfield, Keegan King, Kelly Egolf, Kenneth Owens, Kenny Roybal, Laura Harris, Leanne Leith, Leticia Archuleta, Luisa Casso, Manuel Casias, Mario Benavidez, Mia Chavez, Michael Randolph, Mike Puelle, Mimi Aledo, Moises Gonzales, Nerissa Whittington, Ozawa Benishi Albert, Peter Lopez, Rachel Howell, Robert Chavez, Sandy Buffett,Steve Archibeque, Tamara Stands and Looks Back, Troy Fernandez, and Webb Johnson

Click for flyer (pdf). Pass it on. For more information call 315-3596 or visit MartinHeinrich.com.

Editor's Note: If you'd like to contribute to the Martin Heinrich for Congress campaign via our DFNM Netroots for Martin Heinrich page, click here

Martin Heinrich: New Campaign Website, New DFNM Netroots Donation Page

Current Albuquerque City Council member Martin Heinrich, who's tossed his hat in the ring to be the Democratic candidate for Congress in NM-1 against incumbent Republican Rep. Heather Wilson, now has a campaign website up and running. Go to MartinHeinrich.com. Under a heading of 'Ethics, Vision and Results', the site includes info on Heinrich's accomplishments, news stories, videos and a bio.

Donate to Heinrich Campaign Via Our New DFNM Netroots Fundraising Page:

Noted for his problem-solving pragmatism, negotiating skills, ethics and dedication to a green agenda, Heinrich has already raised more than $4,500 in campaign funds since his recent entry into the race. You can add to that by kicking in a few bucks using our new Act Blue fundraising page: DFNM Netroots for Martin Heinrich. As we learned in the Dean campaign, many small donations can trump a handful of large donations. Help demonstrate that members of the grassroots - netroots are ready to step up to the plate and support people-powered candidates like Heinrich. Donate today at https://www.actblue.com/page/dfnmforheinrich.

Here's Martin Heinrich answering the question, "Why are you a Democrat," at the Democratic Party of Bernalillo County's Memorial Day picnic this past Monday:

Note: The clip above is one of a continuing series of digital camera video clips Mary Ellen is producing, asking all kinds of folks about why they're Democrats. Check our previous post for more, and keep an eye out for additional videos in the series. Also keep an eye out for Mary Ellen pointing her camera at you! These are low-tech video clips taken with an ordinary digital camera, not a top-notch video cam, but we think the messages come across loud and clear.