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Saturday, November 29, 2008
12-3 Changing Administrations Is Hard To Do
WED, 12-4-08
SANTA FE - To paraphrase an old love song, "Changing administrations is hard to do." It's especially true in tough times after a long romance of voters by both sides.
We are getting smarter, however. When Franklin Roosevelt beat incumbent Herbert Hoover in 1932, he had to wait until March to take over. Now the date is Jan. 20. New Mexico switches over on Jan. 1. That may be an even better idea.
This time around, it appears New Mexico will get an opportunity to see a Jan. 20 switch in its administration as Gov. Bill Richardson waits until President Barack Obama is sworn in to give up his reins of New Mexico government in order to accept a federal position. If he could hold both jobs, do you suppose he'd try?
At this point, Gov. Richardson says he will deliver New Mexico's State of the State address on Jan. 20, the day Obama is inaugurated and also present his budget to the Legislature that day, even though it will be our next Gov Diane Denish, who will be in charge of getting it passed and implemented. That's assuming Richardson gets the U.S. secretary of Commerce post he is seeking.
President George W. Bush has been making magnanimous gestures toward President-Elect Obama and his family, although there is plenty going on behind the scenes. There are time limits on when certain administrative changes can be initiated before the end of the president's term.
The Bush administration has begun efforts to drill and conduct mining activity closer to national parks. Those actions will be harder for the new president to overturn.
This also is the period when presidents issue many pardons to old friends and acquaintances.
Some nations make the changes more quickly that we do. It appears that the attacks on Mumbai, India might have been scheduled to occur during our nation's clumsy interim.
At the state level, the expected handover from Gov. Richardson to Lt. Gov. Denish is similar but with some interesting twists. There is no statutory date for the transfer to occur. Richardson appears to want to hold onto power as long as absolutely possible.
Developments during the course of this year indicate that the relationship between Richardson and Denish has become strained. Richardson says he has met briefly with Denish on the transition but nothing else. Denish says she is ready to take the lead.
The situation may dictate that Denish take the lead on the transition also. With the air of uncertainty floating heavily around the Roundhouse, the situation is ripe for turmoil, anxiety and mischief.
Denish must appear to be in command as she takes over and not be a deferential lieutenant waiting to be handed the reins. It won't be easy because Richardson is going to want to do it entirely his way.
If Denish becomes governor, she will have the power to replace all of Richardson's appointees with her own. It is going to make for a very unsettling situation. Blogger Joe Monahan predicts many of her new appointees may be women.
A constitutional amendment passed last month gives the new Gov. Denish the authority to appoint a lieutenant governor. That will be a very big decision. It needs to be the person she feels will best serve her in the 2010 election when she will run for the governor's office. It is an incredible gift to her to be able to balance her ticket. It is something no other governor ever has had the privilege to do.
Some of Richardson's current staff won't get fired by Denish. She won't have the chance. Richardson will take them with him to Washington. Who and how many that will be are yet to be known. Past New Mexicans who have taken office in Washington have taken staff with them. Richardson is somewhat different in that he spent many years in Washington. There may be staff back there whom he may have in mind.
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SANTA FE - To paraphrase an old love song, "Changing administrations is hard to do." It's especially true in tough times after a long romance of voters by both sides.
We are getting smarter, however. When Franklin Roosevelt beat incumbent Herbert Hoover in 1932, he had to wait until March to take over. Now the date is Jan. 20. New Mexico switches over on Jan. 1. That may be an even better idea.
This time around, it appears New Mexico will get an opportunity to see a Jan. 20 switch in its administration as Gov. Bill Richardson waits until President Barack Obama is sworn in to give up his reins of New Mexico government in order to accept a federal position. If he could hold both jobs, do you suppose he'd try?
At this point, Gov. Richardson says he will deliver New Mexico's State of the State address on Jan. 20, the day Obama is inaugurated and also present his budget to the Legislature that day, even though it will be our next Gov Diane Denish, who will be in charge of getting it passed and implemented. That's assuming Richardson gets the U.S. secretary of Commerce post he is seeking.
President George W. Bush has been making magnanimous gestures toward President-Elect Obama and his family, although there is plenty going on behind the scenes. There are time limits on when certain administrative changes can be initiated before the end of the president's term.
The Bush administration has begun efforts to drill and conduct mining activity closer to national parks. Those actions will be harder for the new president to overturn.
This also is the period when presidents issue many pardons to old friends and acquaintances.
Some nations make the changes more quickly that we do. It appears that the attacks on Mumbai, India might have been scheduled to occur during our nation's clumsy interim.
At the state level, the expected handover from Gov. Richardson to Lt. Gov. Denish is similar but with some interesting twists. There is no statutory date for the transfer to occur. Richardson appears to want to hold onto power as long as absolutely possible.
Developments during the course of this year indicate that the relationship between Richardson and Denish has become strained. Richardson says he has met briefly with Denish on the transition but nothing else. Denish says she is ready to take the lead.
The situation may dictate that Denish take the lead on the transition also. With the air of uncertainty floating heavily around the Roundhouse, the situation is ripe for turmoil, anxiety and mischief.
Denish must appear to be in command as she takes over and not be a deferential lieutenant waiting to be handed the reins. It won't be easy because Richardson is going to want to do it entirely his way.
If Denish becomes governor, she will have the power to replace all of Richardson's appointees with her own. It is going to make for a very unsettling situation. Blogger Joe Monahan predicts many of her new appointees may be women.
A constitutional amendment passed last month gives the new Gov. Denish the authority to appoint a lieutenant governor. That will be a very big decision. It needs to be the person she feels will best serve her in the 2010 election when she will run for the governor's office. It is an incredible gift to her to be able to balance her ticket. It is something no other governor ever has had the privilege to do.
Some of Richardson's current staff won't get fired by Denish. She won't have the chance. Richardson will take them with him to Washington. Who and how many that will be are yet to be known. Past New Mexicans who have taken office in Washington have taken staff with them. Richardson is somewhat different in that he spent many years in Washington. There may be staff back there whom he may have in mind.
Windows Live Hotmail now works up to 70% faster. Sign up today.
Wednesday, November 26, 2008
12-1 Who investigates the Investigators?
MON, 12-01-08
SANTA FE - Who investigates the government when it goes bad? We've had some experience with that. Two state treasurers and a state insurance deputy superintendent have gone to prison for crimes in recent years.
Add to that federal employee Wen Ho Lee a few years ago and people involved in the Albuquerque Metro Court scandal and one can see that our law enforcement agencies seem quite capable of tracking down on public officials who behave badly and bringing them to justice.
But then the question becomes one of who investigates the investigators? Recently citizen complaints have been made against police in Albuquerque, Santa Fe and Las Cruces, among others, for inappropriate behavior. But those complaints don't seem to have anywhere to go.
Taking complaints to the police chief, city councilors or the mayor are rebuffed. In Las Cruces, taking complaints to the district attorney has been completely unsuccessful.
So where does one go? The state level seems like the next step. How about the attorney general? But he testified to a legislative committee two weeks ago that his job is not to represent the people of the state, it is to represent the state to keep it out of trouble.
There also is a New Mexico Law Enforcement academy, charged with certifying and decertifying law enforcement officers. That sounds like the solution. But that has been tried and it doesn't work either.
Fred Chilton, from Las Cruces has tried often to get police misbehavior before the Academy Board because its regulations and statutes prohibit it and there is no was to change it other than the Legislature changing the statutes.
But Chilton has sent me a copy of the academy board's own regulation saying, "All persons, other than members of the board or its director, desiring to pace before the board any item of business for the board's consideration shall do so by submitting to the director as early as possible, and no later than eight days in advance a written petition containing... The director must place any item of business requested by a timely petition on the agenda of the next regular meeting..."
I've omitted some of the specifics, but you get the idea. There appears to be an item in the state Law Enforcement Academy's regulations providing for accepting complaints from private citizens if they are presented correctly.
Mr. Chilton and others have gone to great lengths to present their cases correctly and in petition form. But the result is always the same. A letter from Arthur Ortiz, director of the Academy stating that the board does not accept complaints directly from citizens.
Additional letters from Chilton and others, ask Ortiz, Secretary of Public Safety John Denko and Attorney General Gary King to explain the contradiction between the regulation and the official position taken. Each reply is no more than the standard statement that the board does not take complaints from citizens.
I have read and heard the stories of many people who allege police brutality or other gross misconduct. I realize the incidence of such cases is extremely small. I can honestly say that in all the situations in which I have been involved with any member of law enforcement during my 70 years, I have never had a bad experience.
But that doesn't mean it doesn't happen. And it seems to be happening more often of late. One reason is the increasing popularity of SWAT teams. They are now used in situations in which they escalate hostilities that may not even have existed.
The other reason is the war on drugs, which among other things, has created snitches who identify wrong addresses for raids and the situation by which drug forfeitures are retained by the arresting agency.
The vast majority of law enforcement officers are good. But the bad ones should be banished and mistakes admitted. The present system merits an investigation and it's obvious no one wants to do it.
I'll be out of the office until Tues, 12/2.
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SANTA FE - Who investigates the government when it goes bad? We've had some experience with that. Two state treasurers and a state insurance deputy superintendent have gone to prison for crimes in recent years.
Add to that federal employee Wen Ho Lee a few years ago and people involved in the Albuquerque Metro Court scandal and one can see that our law enforcement agencies seem quite capable of tracking down on public officials who behave badly and bringing them to justice.
But then the question becomes one of who investigates the investigators? Recently citizen complaints have been made against police in Albuquerque, Santa Fe and Las Cruces, among others, for inappropriate behavior. But those complaints don't seem to have anywhere to go.
Taking complaints to the police chief, city councilors or the mayor are rebuffed. In Las Cruces, taking complaints to the district attorney has been completely unsuccessful.
So where does one go? The state level seems like the next step. How about the attorney general? But he testified to a legislative committee two weeks ago that his job is not to represent the people of the state, it is to represent the state to keep it out of trouble.
There also is a New Mexico Law Enforcement academy, charged with certifying and decertifying law enforcement officers. That sounds like the solution. But that has been tried and it doesn't work either.
Fred Chilton, from Las Cruces has tried often to get police misbehavior before the Academy Board because its regulations and statutes prohibit it and there is no was to change it other than the Legislature changing the statutes.
But Chilton has sent me a copy of the academy board's own regulation saying, "All persons, other than members of the board or its director, desiring to pace before the board any item of business for the board's consideration shall do so by submitting to the director as early as possible, and no later than eight days in advance a written petition containing... The director must place any item of business requested by a timely petition on the agenda of the next regular meeting..."
I've omitted some of the specifics, but you get the idea. There appears to be an item in the state Law Enforcement Academy's regulations providing for accepting complaints from private citizens if they are presented correctly.
Mr. Chilton and others have gone to great lengths to present their cases correctly and in petition form. But the result is always the same. A letter from Arthur Ortiz, director of the Academy stating that the board does not accept complaints directly from citizens.
Additional letters from Chilton and others, ask Ortiz, Secretary of Public Safety John Denko and Attorney General Gary King to explain the contradiction between the regulation and the official position taken. Each reply is no more than the standard statement that the board does not take complaints from citizens.
I have read and heard the stories of many people who allege police brutality or other gross misconduct. I realize the incidence of such cases is extremely small. I can honestly say that in all the situations in which I have been involved with any member of law enforcement during my 70 years, I have never had a bad experience.
But that doesn't mean it doesn't happen. And it seems to be happening more often of late. One reason is the increasing popularity of SWAT teams. They are now used in situations in which they escalate hostilities that may not even have existed.
The other reason is the war on drugs, which among other things, has created snitches who identify wrong addresses for raids and the situation by which drug forfeitures are retained by the arresting agency.
The vast majority of law enforcement officers are good. But the bad ones should be banished and mistakes admitted. The present system merits an investigation and it's obvious no one wants to do it.
I'll be out of the office until Tues, 12/2.
Access your email online and on the go with Windows Live Hotmail. Sign up today.
Thursday, November 20, 2008
11-28 The Most Dangerous Waters in the World
By JAY MILLER
Syndicated Columnist
Syndicated Columnist
SANTA FE -- The most dangerous portion of our Middle Eastern cruise last month turned out not to be the Strait of Hormuz, where Iranian gunboats and American war ships almost clashed early this year.
The problem was around the corner, where the Gulf of Aden narrows into a choke point entering the Red Sea. There, Somali pirates began plundering ships earlier this year as they slowed to await their turn to enter the Red Sea.
For several years, Somali pirates had been attacking ships along their eastern shore on the Indian Ocean. But then their attention turned to Somalia's northern border and the Gulf of Aden, which separates it from Yemen.
That's the short cut between Europe and Asia, where much of the world's oil and cargo is transported. The pirates have become increasingly sophisticated, using their plunder to buy equipment that enables them to rule the seas.
The scene was shifting to the Gulf of Aden as our cruise liner was leaving the Red Sea. But first, we had to stop and wait for traffic coming into the Red Sea from the Gulf of Aden.
As we lined up for our trip through the narrow strait, we were told over the sound system that the protocol was for warships to go first, followed by passenger ships, then cargo ships, oil tankers, ships over a certain tonnage, and finally boats.
When we began moving through the Strait of Bab el Mandeb (Gate of Tears) I noticed that just in front of us was a U.S. warship. I asked the cruise director if there was any significance, he said it was strictly coincidence because they mostly just cause us trouble.
For the next two days we sailed at 21 knots and it wasn't possible to get an Internet connection. The following day our speed slowed to 14 knots, the Internet came back on and all of us who had been inconvenienced were given 30 minutes of free Internet time.
Since then, piracy in the Gulf of Aden has increased to several ships a week. Ten nations have now sent military vessels to these, the most dangerous waters in the world.
As the pirates indiscriminately pick on whatever looks like an easy mark, more nations are being affected and it isn't taking long for them to start sending out their navies.
Nearby India is one of the latest nations to get involved. It has sent ships, helicopters and commandoes and last week became the first to sink a pirate ship.
The pirates, of course, say they are misunderstood. They actually are serving as the navy and coast guard for their nation, which has had 14 different governments in the past 17 years.
The pirates say they were once independent fishermen. But when their government became unable to protect its waters, other countries came in to take all their fish and dump toxic and nuclear waste.
Other nations denied any involvement but the 2006 Tsunami washed onto Somali shores the frightening evidence. The accused nations then said it must have been private companies they didn't know about.
Pirate leaders say with their fishing resources gone and their waters polluted they armed themselves and became vigilantes confronting the illegal fishing boats.
Soon many fishermen were trading their nets for machine guns and before long were hijacking any vessel they could catch. If they are caught, there isn't really any government to prosecute them.
And therein lies the problem. The nations of the world have given up on Somalia. And the deeper it sinks into anarchy, the worse the problem becomes.
With a $25 million demand for return of the Saudi oil tanker and its $100 million cargo, the pirates have entered the big time. The Italian mafia, which reportedly controls 30 percent of its country's waste disposal, already has been implicated in the illegal dumping.
And what about al Qaida? Wouldn't that be a nice revenue supply for them?
FRI, 11-28-08
JAY MILLER, 3 La Tusa, Santa Fe, NM 87505
(ph) 982-2723, (fax) 984-0982, (e-mail) insidethecapitol@hotmail.com
11-26 Be Careful About Wishes
By JAY MILLER
Syndicated Columnist
Syndicated Columnist
SANTA FE -- "Be careful what you wish." It's a popular warning these days because one never knows the form in which one's wish might come true.
When we planned a cruise through the Middle East many months ago, friends and loved ones cautioned us to be mindful of the dangers before we made a final decision. Some even pled with us not to go.
My usual response was that it might be exciting to be captured and held hostage for awhile. Think of the book I could write.
The big fear was the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow passage between Iran and Oman, where Iranian gunboats had harassed a U.S. Navy warship last summer. And then there was the matter of our docking in Iran and taking a tour.
We knew that Iran was trying to attract tourists and that the Silversea Cruise Line wouldn't take us anywhere we would be in peril. In fact, we were pleased the company was willing to take us to such exciting ports.
As it turned out, we passed through the Strait of Hormuz without incident. There wasn't another ship in sight, although my sight being what it is, we may have been surrounded. But there were no incidents as we passed through the Strait to journey up the Persian Gulf to Dubai, Qatar and Bahrain before looping back down to Bandar Abbas, Iran.
But we didn't get to set foot in Iran. While docked at Abu Dhabi, capital of the United Arab Emirates, my wife fell and broke her femur near the hip and had to be rushed off the ship to a hospital where we remained for 17 days.
It was a cutting edge medical facility, built by the government to convince all the oil-rich sheikhs to stay in the country for treatment instead of flying to a foreign hospital.
The only problem was that the hospital had only recently been opened to foreigners and few, if any, of those foreigners had been tourists with no local business or family connections.
Tourists don't go to Abu Dhabi. It doesn't encourage tourists. Abu Dhabi's business is oil. That's it. Dubai, just 90 minutes away, doesn't have much oil so its interests are trade and tourism.
But we were in Abu Dhabi. It was the first time the cruise line had docked there. The hospital staff had trouble believing it had happened. What were all those suitcases doing in our room, they asked. Abu Dhabi wasn't ready for us.
Because we knew no one within about 5,000 miles in any direction, we had great need to call home and let someone know of our predicament. But this beautiful hospital, staffed with nice people, had no way of allowing that to happen.
We could make all the local calls we wanted but there was no way we could call outside the emirate. We couldn't reverse the charges. We couldn't use an American credit card. And I couldn't get on the Internet.
I could have gone to the Hilton Hotel, but it was across town and there were enough unexpected happenings with my wife's care that I didn't want to leave the hospital for that long.
Let me interject at this time that the hospital did arrange for a private room for Jeanette and allowed me to stay there with her. Since we were in such an unfamiliar situation, we wanted to stay as close to each other as possible.
Thank goodness for the U.S. Embassy. That was a local call. They weren't particularly surprised at out situation and agreed to make any long distance calls to anyone we needed to contact. And we could receive long distance calls in our hospital room.
At about that time, it occurred to me how much this was like my idle wish to be held captive in an Arab country. What we hoped to be a quick stay kept getting lengthened.
Six days lapsed while tests were run prior to surgery because the medical staff wouldn't communicate with Jeanette's doctors back home. That lengthened rehabilitation after the surgery. And thank goodness for travel insurance, which paid for the trip home but Jeanette's medical needs required extra time for the company to make arrangements.
We began to feel trapped in a tiny room with only a view of a wall.
WED, 11-26-08
JAY MILLER, 3 La Tusa, Santa Fe, NM 87505
(ph) 982-2723, (fax) 984-0982, (e-mail) insidethecapitol@hotmail.com
Tuesday, November 18, 2008
11-24 Who Represents the People?
By JAY MILLER
Syndicated Columnist
SANTA FE -- What remedies do people have if they are mistreated by law enforcement officers? Last week an interim legislative committee considered the question and heard evidence that there isn't much that can be done under present law.
Testimony indicated that complaints to local officials seldom result in any action. Albuquerque has some police oversight mechanisms but no one present recommended them as being models others should use.
Generally, there appeared to be agreement that law enforcement misconduct should be handled at the local level but that most attempts to do so are not working because local officials tend to support each other.
Likewise, internal affairs investigations by police departments seldom result in any penalties against officers. According to testimony internal reviews protect law enforcement from the public and there is no mechanism for protecting the public from police misconduct.
The New Mexico Law Enforcement Academy trains and certifies law enforcement officers and can decertify them after receiving and investigating complaints. Typically it is a cumbersome, slow-moving process that doesn't result in many decertifications.
Arthur Ortiz, director of the academy, testified to the committee that he is speeding up the process but that failure of local sheriffs and police chiefs to report misconduct is his biggest problem.
Paul Borunda, a citizen from Las Cruces, presented the panel with numerous instances of police misconduct that have gone unpunished in Las Cruces because of interlocking relationships among local law enforcement officials. He recounted his efforts to find anyone at the local or state level to take any responsibility for overseeing law enforcement misconduct.
Borunda also spoke of efforts to get Attorney General Gary King involved in law enforcement misconduct but his reply was that his job is to protect the state and not the people.
King then told the committee that his client is the state and not its people. He said misconduct charges should be taken to local elected officials and if they aren't handled to the satisfaction of the public, they can be turned out of office at the next election.
Committee Chairman, Sen. Cisco McSorley, of Albuquerque, complimented Borunda on his tireless efforts doing what no local or state agencies do.
McSorley concluded that since law enforcement oversight is not working at the local level, an entity should be created at the state level to oversee, investigate and punish law enforcement misconduct. He asked King to compute the costs of establishing a state review board.
It seems as though our country is missing something if we can't protect our citizens from those few cases when law enforcement officers get out of hand. Our founding fathers knew the horrors of living in police states. They wanted to protect the public against such conditions.
They provided us with a judicial system to insure that protection but it is a very cumbersome and expensive process. And if local law enforcement violates a person's civil rights, redress can't be found in local or state courts. Only federal courts handle such charges.
It seems to me I have heard attorney general candidates run for office as the people's lawyer. It sounds good in campaign material. But it's not the truth. The attorney general defends the state against its people.
Have you noticed that when the governor takes an action requiring legal defense, he hires his own lawyers to defend him. Sometimes the attorney general is on the other side of the case. So who is representing the people? Both the governor and the attorney general would say they are. But are they really?
Bill White, a municipal judge from Edgewood, east of Albuquerque, told the panel that the biggest problem with police misconduct is that Congress has made surplus military equipment available to civilian police departments, which now use that equipment in a manner that has built a paramilitary culture within police departments. Police are supposed to serve and protect the people.
MON, 11-24-08
Syndicated Columnist
SANTA FE -- What remedies do people have if they are mistreated by law enforcement officers? Last week an interim legislative committee considered the question and heard evidence that there isn't much that can be done under present law.
Testimony indicated that complaints to local officials seldom result in any action. Albuquerque has some police oversight mechanisms but no one present recommended them as being models others should use.
Generally, there appeared to be agreement that law enforcement misconduct should be handled at the local level but that most attempts to do so are not working because local officials tend to support each other.
Likewise, internal affairs investigations by police departments seldom result in any penalties against officers. According to testimony internal reviews protect law enforcement from the public and there is no mechanism for protecting the public from police misconduct.
The New Mexico Law Enforcement Academy trains and certifies law enforcement officers and can decertify them after receiving and investigating complaints. Typically it is a cumbersome, slow-moving process that doesn't result in many decertifications.
Arthur Ortiz, director of the academy, testified to the committee that he is speeding up the process but that failure of local sheriffs and police chiefs to report misconduct is his biggest problem.
Paul Borunda, a citizen from Las Cruces, presented the panel with numerous instances of police misconduct that have gone unpunished in Las Cruces because of interlocking relationships among local law enforcement officials. He recounted his efforts to find anyone at the local or state level to take any responsibility for overseeing law enforcement misconduct.
Borunda also spoke of efforts to get Attorney General Gary King involved in law enforcement misconduct but his reply was that his job is to protect the state and not the people.
King then told the committee that his client is the state and not its people. He said misconduct charges should be taken to local elected officials and if they aren't handled to the satisfaction of the public, they can be turned out of office at the next election.
Committee Chairman, Sen. Cisco McSorley, of Albuquerque, complimented Borunda on his tireless efforts doing what no local or state agencies do.
McSorley concluded that since law enforcement oversight is not working at the local level, an entity should be created at the state level to oversee, investigate and punish law enforcement misconduct. He asked King to compute the costs of establishing a state review board.
It seems as though our country is missing something if we can't protect our citizens from those few cases when law enforcement officers get out of hand. Our founding fathers knew the horrors of living in police states. They wanted to protect the public against such conditions.
They provided us with a judicial system to insure that protection but it is a very cumbersome and expensive process. And if local law enforcement violates a person's civil rights, redress can't be found in local or state courts. Only federal courts handle such charges.
It seems to me I have heard attorney general candidates run for office as the people's lawyer. It sounds good in campaign material. But it's not the truth. The attorney general defends the state against its people.
Have you noticed that when the governor takes an action requiring legal defense, he hires his own lawyers to defend him. Sometimes the attorney general is on the other side of the case. So who is representing the people? Both the governor and the attorney general would say they are. But are they really?
Bill White, a municipal judge from Edgewood, east of Albuquerque, told the panel that the biggest problem with police misconduct is that Congress has made surplus military equipment available to civilian police departments, which now use that equipment in a manner that has built a paramilitary culture within police departments. Police are supposed to serve and protect the people.
MON, 11-24-08
JAY MILLER, 3 La Tusa, Santa Fe, NM 87505
(ph) 982-2723, (fax) 984-0982, (e-mail) insidethecapitol@hotmail.com
11-21 Beep Beep
By JAY MILLER
Syndicated Columnist
Syndicated Columnist
SANTA FE -- New Mexico's 2009 Rose Parade entry will be as much fun as this year's float was and maybe a little less controversial than the space aliens that inhabited the 2008 prize winner.
The idea of depicting our state as spacey didn't appeal to some New Mexicans or to the tourism heads of our larger cities. But the alien float attracted much attention in Southern California, along with the Grand Marshal's Award, one of the top three most prestigious.
The main characters on New Mexico's 2009 float will be Wile E. Coyote and the elusive roadrunner. To me, the terrain Wile E. chases the roadrunner through looks more like northern Arizona and southern Utah, but hey, the roadrunner is New Mexico's state bird.
It also doesn't hurt that Chuck Jones, the creator of coyote-roadrunner cartoons, happened to really like New Mexico and opened a gallery in Santa Fe. The Jones family and Warner Brothers gave permission for use of the characters on the float.
So once again New Mexico has a theme that should grab the attention of the 40 million Americans who watch the parade live. The Rose Parade is televised on nine national and international networks in 150 countries worldwide.
The primary audience that interests state Tourism Secretary Michael Cerletti, however, is in Southern California, where prospective tourists are plentiful but advertising is prohibitively expensive. California consistently ranks first or second in the number of domestic visitors to New Mexico annually.
The cost to New Mexico taxpayers of putting a float in the Rose Parade is somewhere around $170,000, far less than an ad in a major magazine. Another $50,000 or so is provided by sponsors who want to get their name before the large audience.
Sponsors participate in the state's promotional activities in the Los Angeles area during the week before the parade. They get to be at all the promotional events, have their name in every promotional publication, access to all media functions and other events connected with the parade plus, depending on the level of sponsorship, tickets to the Rose Parade and Rose Bowl game.
This year, new Deputy Tourism Secretary Jen Hoffman is in charge of sponsors. Anyone interested can contact her at 505-827-6674 or email her at Jennifer.hoffman@state.nm.us.
Volunteers also are needed to decorate on the float. That job begins the day after Christmas and continues until New Years Eve, capped by a volunteer party that night for everyone putting in at least two eight-hour shifts of work on the float.
Besides returning veterans who have worked on the previous two floats, many newcomers will join in this year's decorating. If you are interested in being a part of the effort and are willing to pay your own way, as all the volunteers do, contact Bobbi Baca at bobbibaca16@comcast.net.
Not everyone is happy with the float theme, of course. Traditionalists want to see adobe chapels, red chile and senoritas, similar to our first float, which won nothing.
Some Nortenos are upset because there aren't many coyotes or roadrunners in that part of the state. But there will be tall pines in the background. In the Acme rocket Wile E. is riding tree huggers sense toxic waste and shades of Los Alamos National Laboratory.
But you can't please everyone. Whimsical floats, such as New Mexico's, appear to win more than their share of prizes and, therefore, receive more publicity. And they are the ones viewers remember. So why not be remembered for something fun?
Last year, there were calls to scrap the alien theme and return to something more traditional. Although some on the state Tourism Board became a little queasy about the aliens, they couldn't have changed the theme anyway.
Rose Parade floats are a year-round business. Soon after each parade the concepts for the following year go on the drawing board and the building of superstructures begins. At that point, it's too late to change.
FRI. 11-21-08
JAY MILLER, 3 La Tusa, Santa Fe, NM 87505
(ph) 982-2723, (fax) 984-0982, (e-mail) insidethecapitol@hotmail.com
Sunday, November 16, 2008
11-19 U.S. Influence Stronger Than We Think
By JAY MILLER
Syndicated Columnist
Syndicated Columnist
SANTA FE -- "The whole world should get to vote in U.S. elections since the outcome affects the entire planet." That's a common theme among foreign leaders and journalists.
Until recently, I never had been particularly interested in the politics of other countries. Trying to keep straight the names of foreign leaders mentioned often in our news was about the extent of my awareness or interest.
I had been aware of escalating globalization and knew we are becoming an increasingly interdependent world. But I'd never figured the rest of the world had much more interest in us than I have had in them.
My wife and I have traveled to many countries since our retirements over a decade ago. Our interests have been historical and aesthetic rather than political. We couldn't escape noticing the impact of English and Western culture on the rest of the world because of the number of signs in English advertising American businesses.
But on our recent trip through the Middle East, I went with political interests in mind. We weren't sure what to expect. What we found at each stop were English language newspapers that gave broad coverage to the United States and especially to our presidential election.
Was that coverage intended just for people who read English? Maybe not, because it included statements from leaders and others within that country.
In the hospital room where we spent over two weeks, we watched English language news programs from Arab countries, England, France and Germany. They all covered our presidential election. The European stations also carried analysis.
It was obvious those parts of the world were fascinated with the possibility America might elect a minority to be our president. They seemed to be rooting for him and even though they weren't sure we would vote him in, they thought we had made a big step in the right direction.
The feelings on the European stations seemed somewhat paternalistic. America is coming of age, maturing, etc. The Muslim world appeared more excited as evidenced by the Al Jazeera station's poll of people from 22 nations who preferred Obama overwhelmingly as a minority African American from the Third World and as an underdog with whom they could identify.
We arrived home three days before the election so we didn't get to see foreign reactions first hand but I went online to read about them.
President Nicolas Sarkozy of France said Obama's election proves to the entire world the vitality of American democracy and raises the hope of the world.
India's president observed that Obama's youthful energy and forward mindset makes him much like the country of India.
Somalia's president said Obama's election is a great moment for America and Africa and will help end strife in his country.
The Philippine President Gloria Arroyo says Obama sparks hope for the world. Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd offered the same sentiments. We saw celebrations from around the world the next morning on television.
It certainly seems obvious that Obama's election has dramatically boosted the image of America around the world. There is a burst of optimism that relations with the United States will be better.
With a few notable exceptions the world does not hate America. Just as New Mexicans like to take shots at Albuquerque, many in the world like to taunt America, the big bully. But most of them do quietly root for us because they know their fates are tied to what happens here.
So now that the world has the U.S. president it wants, it must step up to the plate and help produce the change for which people voted.
Many countries have indicated an eagerness to get started but are having problems with the time lag between the November 4 election and the January 20 inauguration of our new president. Obama is wisely waiting while reminding the world that we have only one president at a time.
WED, 11-19-08
JAY MILLER, 3 La Tusa, Santa Fe, NM 87505
(ph) 982-2723, (fax) 984-0982, (e-mail) insidethecapitol@hotmail.com
Friday, November 14, 2008
Delaware
A reader just emailed that Joe Biden is from Delaware. In the last sentence of the fifth paragraph of today's column I said Connecticut has a relatively small population. Delaware is even smaller (45th in population). It would have made my point even better.
Sorry for the slipup. Most of you probably have run it already. But I know some of you don't stick exactly to my schedule -- which is completely OK. I date them so I can keep track of when I need to do a column.
Anyway, the accurate statement would be "Delaware is 45th in population." I'll likely mention it in a future column because I'm sure I will hear from more readers on this.
Things are beginning to settle a bit here on the home front. Jeanette is home from the hospital and starting to get around some.
Jay
Thursday, November 13, 2008
11-17 Can NM's 3 New U.S. Reps Survive Reelection?
By JAY MILLER
Syndicated Columnist
SANTA FE -- New Mexico's three new Democratic U.S. House members won election by solid margins. But can they all survive?
The representatives from Congressional Districts 1 and 2 took over seats that Democrats have not held in over 25 years. The 3rd Congressional District looks plenty safe for Rep. Ben Ray Lujan.
His most likely competition would likely come from another Democrat and that isn't probable as long as his father remains a power in state politics.
Freshman members of Congress are expected to sit on the back row and be seen, not heard. They are told not to expect any prime committee assignments until they accumulate some seniority.
But Martin Heinrich and Harry Teague might be able to expect a little better than that. Off-year elections normally don't go especially well for the administration in power. President-Elect Barack Obama's record in the next two years will have much to do with how Democrats from marginal districts fare in 2010.
But House Democrat leaders can provide help by giving some preferences to new members from shaky districts. Committee assignments will be the first order of business.
Assignments to committees with heavy impact on New Mexico, and the congressional district in particular, would be a big help. Keeping our national laboratories and military installations will be of prime importance.
Democrat leaders also can be of assistance in easing the way for bills introduced by Heinrich and Teague and seeing that they receive a nice share of pork projects for their districts.
Their predecessors, Reps. Heather Wilson and Steve Pearce both did well on committee assignments. Wilson landed the Armed Services Committee and Select Intelligence Committee.
Pearce was appointed to the Natural Resources Committee and during his second term advanced to chairman of the National Parks Subcommittee.
If Heinrich or Teague don't survive reelection to a second term, it will be unusual for New Mexico. Once elected to Congress, our senators and representatives typically stay as long as they want.
The only exceptions to an elected U.S. senator being reelected in the past 80 years have been when returning astronaut Harrison Schmitt, a Republican, beat Democrat Sen. Joe Montoya in 1976 and then was defeated by Jeff Bingaman in 1982.
Exceptions in the U.S. House in the past 55 years occurred in 1969, when Republican Ed Foreman won the Congressional District 2 House seat when it was created and then was beaten by Democrat Harold Runnels in 1971.
The other exception was in 1997 when Republican Bill Redmond won election to Rep. Bill Richardson's unexpired term when Richardson was appointed United Nations ambassador by President Bill Clinton. Redmond was then defeated by Democrat Tom Udall in 1999.
Another frequently asked question these days is whether Lt. Gov. Diane Denish would become the first lieutenant governor to move up to governor. The answer is that it hasn't happened in a long time. Two deaths early in our statehood moved up lieutenant governors who didn't win reelection.
If Denish successfully runs for governor in 2010, she will be only New Mexico's second lieutenant governor to ever to be elected governor.
Ezequiel C. de Baca was elected New Mexico's first lieutenant governor in 1912. In 1917, he was elected New Mexico's second governor but died only six weeks after being sworn in.
Is the lieutenant governor's office a political dead end? Yes, it has been. Many have tried. Lt. Gov. C. de Baca was the only one to succeed in moving up to governor. Lt. Gov. Joe Montoya became a U.S. representative and senator. Mack Easley became a Supreme Court Justice.
The only Lt. Gov. I can remember who had no future political ambitions was Jack Stahl, who served with Gov. Gary Carruthers in 1987 to 1990. He was happy being a one-term, part-time lieutenant governor.
MON, 11-17-08
Syndicated Columnist
SANTA FE -- New Mexico's three new Democratic U.S. House members won election by solid margins. But can they all survive?
The representatives from Congressional Districts 1 and 2 took over seats that Democrats have not held in over 25 years. The 3rd Congressional District looks plenty safe for Rep. Ben Ray Lujan.
His most likely competition would likely come from another Democrat and that isn't probable as long as his father remains a power in state politics.
Freshman members of Congress are expected to sit on the back row and be seen, not heard. They are told not to expect any prime committee assignments until they accumulate some seniority.
But Martin Heinrich and Harry Teague might be able to expect a little better than that. Off-year elections normally don't go especially well for the administration in power. President-Elect Barack Obama's record in the next two years will have much to do with how Democrats from marginal districts fare in 2010.
But House Democrat leaders can provide help by giving some preferences to new members from shaky districts. Committee assignments will be the first order of business.
Assignments to committees with heavy impact on New Mexico, and the congressional district in particular, would be a big help. Keeping our national laboratories and military installations will be of prime importance.
Democrat leaders also can be of assistance in easing the way for bills introduced by Heinrich and Teague and seeing that they receive a nice share of pork projects for their districts.
Their predecessors, Reps. Heather Wilson and Steve Pearce both did well on committee assignments. Wilson landed the Armed Services Committee and Select Intelligence Committee.
Pearce was appointed to the Natural Resources Committee and during his second term advanced to chairman of the National Parks Subcommittee.
If Heinrich or Teague don't survive reelection to a second term, it will be unusual for New Mexico. Once elected to Congress, our senators and representatives typically stay as long as they want.
The only exceptions to an elected U.S. senator being reelected in the past 80 years have been when returning astronaut Harrison Schmitt, a Republican, beat Democrat Sen. Joe Montoya in 1976 and then was defeated by Jeff Bingaman in 1982.
Exceptions in the U.S. House in the past 55 years occurred in 1969, when Republican Ed Foreman won the Congressional District 2 House seat when it was created and then was beaten by Democrat Harold Runnels in 1971.
The other exception was in 1997 when Republican Bill Redmond won election to Rep. Bill Richardson's unexpired term when Richardson was appointed United Nations ambassador by President Bill Clinton. Redmond was then defeated by Democrat Tom Udall in 1999.
Another frequently asked question these days is whether Lt. Gov. Diane Denish would become the first lieutenant governor to move up to governor. The answer is that it hasn't happened in a long time. Two deaths early in our statehood moved up lieutenant governors who didn't win reelection.
If Denish successfully runs for governor in 2010, she will be only New Mexico's second lieutenant governor to ever to be elected governor.
Ezequiel C. de Baca was elected New Mexico's first lieutenant governor in 1912. In 1917, he was elected New Mexico's second governor but died only six weeks after being sworn in.
Is the lieutenant governor's office a political dead end? Yes, it has been. Many have tried. Lt. Gov. C. de Baca was the only one to succeed in moving up to governor. Lt. Gov. Joe Montoya became a U.S. representative and senator. Mack Easley became a Supreme Court Justice.
The only Lt. Gov. I can remember who had no future political ambitions was Jack Stahl, who served with Gov. Gary Carruthers in 1987 to 1990. He was happy being a one-term, part-time lieutenant governor.
MON, 11-17-08
JAY MILLER, 3 La Tusa, Santa Fe, NM 87505
(ph) 982-2723, (fax) 984-0982, (e-mail) insidethecapitol@hotmail.com
11-14 Newest States Provided Majority of Presidential Tickets
By JAY MILLER
Syndicated Columnist
SANTA FE -- Barack Obama's victory produced many firsts, most of which have been discussed to death by national analysts.
One first that hasn't been discussed is the election of a president from our 50th state of Hawaii. President-Elect Obama is more closely identified with Illinois now but he grew up in Hawaii and, appropriately enough, he used a 50-state strategy to win his election.
The 50-state strategy is controversial. Targeting winnable states is more efficient and less costly. But Obama raised more money and could hire more campaign workers than any candidate ever has. That made possible a 50-state strategy, also used by Democratic National Chairman Howard Dean four years ago to raise big money.
It also seems significant that the Republican ticket was composed of candidates from the 49th state of Alaska and the 48th state of Arizona. Had Gov. Bill Richardson been selected by Obama as a running mate, that would have added the 47th state of New Mexico -- an almost unbelievable coincidence.
Conventional wisdom is that both candidates on a ticket need to come from large states that offer a big pool of electoral votes as a base. Although Joe Biden is from one of the original 13 colonies, Connecticut has a relatively small population.
So much for the big state theory. Not only can a black man now win the presidency in the United States, and maybe even a woman soon, but candidates from small states also have a chance.
Hispanics also overcame the conventional wisdom that their voter turnout marginalizes any advantage their increasing numbers might produce.
Gov. Bill Richardson and other Hispanic leaders have tried for years to increase Hispanic voter turnout. This year it worked despite worries that Hispanic and black communities have seldom worked well together.
This year, for the first time, Hispanic voters comprised a slightly higher percentage of the vote than their percent of the population. It was a blow to Republicans who have become branded as anti-Hispanic because of their positions on immigration.
Hispanics were the major factor in providing the Democratic margin of victory in New Mexico, Colorado, Nevada and Florida, all states that Republicans won four years ago. There are signs that without changes in views toward immigrants, Republicans may lose Texas and Arizona in 2012.
Obama prevailed by 15 points in New Mexico, turning the state from purple to bright blue. Hispanics' share of the New Mexico electorate from 32 percent in 2004 to 41 percent in 2008.
McCain didn't deserve what Republicans did to him on immigration. In previous years he fought for immigration reform in Congress. But in order to capture the GOP nomination, he had to sound tough. Afterwards he didn't run to the middle on any of the issues on which he previously held moderate views for fear of losing his base.
The real McCain has emerged again since his loss. He's been gracious, funny and self-deprecating. His concession speech was exactly what one would want to hear from a defeated candidate.
Let's hope he has many years left in his Senate career during which he can be the McCain of previous years and can exert some bipartisan leadership in the U.S. Senate.
The President George W. Bush we have seen since the beginning of the transition to an Obama administration has been the Bush of 2000, who promised to be a compassionate conservative.
He has conducted himself in a manner we expect of our president in turning over the reins of government to the other party.
This is in sharp contrast to the transition from President Bill Clinton to Bush. There was much vandalism in the White House offices. Admittedly it followed a rancorous two-month battle through the courts over the Florida vote count.
But such actions not only disappoint Americans, the horror stories follow that administration down through the years.
FRI, 11-14-08
Syndicated Columnist
SANTA FE -- Barack Obama's victory produced many firsts, most of which have been discussed to death by national analysts.
One first that hasn't been discussed is the election of a president from our 50th state of Hawaii. President-Elect Obama is more closely identified with Illinois now but he grew up in Hawaii and, appropriately enough, he used a 50-state strategy to win his election.
The 50-state strategy is controversial. Targeting winnable states is more efficient and less costly. But Obama raised more money and could hire more campaign workers than any candidate ever has. That made possible a 50-state strategy, also used by Democratic National Chairman Howard Dean four years ago to raise big money.
It also seems significant that the Republican ticket was composed of candidates from the 49th state of Alaska and the 48th state of Arizona. Had Gov. Bill Richardson been selected by Obama as a running mate, that would have added the 47th state of New Mexico -- an almost unbelievable coincidence.
Conventional wisdom is that both candidates on a ticket need to come from large states that offer a big pool of electoral votes as a base. Although Joe Biden is from one of the original 13 colonies, Connecticut has a relatively small population.
So much for the big state theory. Not only can a black man now win the presidency in the United States, and maybe even a woman soon, but candidates from small states also have a chance.
Hispanics also overcame the conventional wisdom that their voter turnout marginalizes any advantage their increasing numbers might produce.
Gov. Bill Richardson and other Hispanic leaders have tried for years to increase Hispanic voter turnout. This year it worked despite worries that Hispanic and black communities have seldom worked well together.
This year, for the first time, Hispanic voters comprised a slightly higher percentage of the vote than their percent of the population. It was a blow to Republicans who have become branded as anti-Hispanic because of their positions on immigration.
Hispanics were the major factor in providing the Democratic margin of victory in New Mexico, Colorado, Nevada and Florida, all states that Republicans won four years ago. There are signs that without changes in views toward immigrants, Republicans may lose Texas and Arizona in 2012.
Obama prevailed by 15 points in New Mexico, turning the state from purple to bright blue. Hispanics' share of the New Mexico electorate from 32 percent in 2004 to 41 percent in 2008.
McCain didn't deserve what Republicans did to him on immigration. In previous years he fought for immigration reform in Congress. But in order to capture the GOP nomination, he had to sound tough. Afterwards he didn't run to the middle on any of the issues on which he previously held moderate views for fear of losing his base.
The real McCain has emerged again since his loss. He's been gracious, funny and self-deprecating. His concession speech was exactly what one would want to hear from a defeated candidate.
Let's hope he has many years left in his Senate career during which he can be the McCain of previous years and can exert some bipartisan leadership in the U.S. Senate.
The President George W. Bush we have seen since the beginning of the transition to an Obama administration has been the Bush of 2000, who promised to be a compassionate conservative.
He has conducted himself in a manner we expect of our president in turning over the reins of government to the other party.
This is in sharp contrast to the transition from President Bill Clinton to Bush. There was much vandalism in the White House offices. Admittedly it followed a rancorous two-month battle through the courts over the Florida vote count.
But such actions not only disappoint Americans, the horror stories follow that administration down through the years.
FRI, 11-14-08
JAY MILLER, 3 La Tusa, Santa Fe, NM 87505
(ph) 982-2723, (fax) 984-0982, (e-mail) insidethecapitol@hotmail.com
Monday, November 10, 2008
THE DESK OF MR HOPE PUAL,
THE DESK OF MR HOPE PUAL,
BILL AND EXHANGE UNIT
BANK INTERNATIONAL DU BURKINA(B.I.B)
OUAGADOUGOU-BURKINA FASO.
URGENT ASSISTANCE IN TRANSACTION
BILL AND EXHANGE UNIT
BANK INTERNATIONAL DU BURKINA(B.I.B)
OUAGADOUGOU-BURKINA FASO.
URGENT ASSISTANCE IN TRANSACTION
I am the manager at the bill and exchange department at BANK INTERNATIONAL DU
BURKINA (B.I.B) here in Ouagadougou,Burkina Faso.
In my
department we discovered an abandoned sum of US$18.2m dollars ( USdollars)in an
account that belonging to one of our foreign customer.Who died along with his
entire family in monday, 31 july, 2000 in a plane crash in paris.Please visit
this site that is one of the evidence the directors brought in other to swallow
the money at the end of the day,
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/859479.stm
Since we got information about his death, we have been expecting his next of
kin to come over and claim his money because we cannot release it unless some
body applies for it as next of kin or relation to the deceased as indicated in
our banking guidlings and laws but unfortunately we learnt that all his
supposed next of kin or relation died alongside with him at the plane crash
leaving nobody behind for the claim. It is therefore upon this discovery that I
now decided to make this business proposal to you and release the money to you
as the next of kin or relation to the deceased for safety and subsequent
disbursement since nobody is coming for it and we don't want this money to go
into the bank treasury as unclaimed bill.The banking law and guidline here
stipulates that if such money remained unclaimed after seven years, the money
will be transfered into the bank treasury as unclaimed fund. The request of
foreigner as next of kin in this business is occassioned by the fact that the
customer was a foreigner and a Burkinabe cannot stand as next of kin to a
foreigner.
Upon receipt of your reply, I will send to you by fax or email the text of
the application . I will not fail to bring to your notice this transaction is
hitch-free and that you should not entertain any atom of fear as all required
arrangements have been made for the transfer. You should contact me immediately
as soon as you receive this letter. Trusting to hear from you immediately.
Please get in touch with me by email to enable us discuss further .
Please get in touch with me by email to enable us discuss further. you can
reach me on my alternative email address: E-mail(hopepual1@hotmail.fr)
Regards.
Dear p/s reply this email thanks
MR HOPE PUAL(B.I.B)
THE DESK OF MR HOPE PUAL,
THE DESK OF MR HOPE PUAL,
BILL AND EXHANGE UNIT
BANK INTERNATIONAL DU BURKINA(B.I.B)
OUAGADOUGOU-BURKINA FASO.
URGENT ASSISTANCE IN TRANSACTION
BILL AND EXHANGE UNIT
BANK INTERNATIONAL DU BURKINA(B.I.B)
OUAGADOUGOU-BURKINA FASO.
URGENT ASSISTANCE IN TRANSACTION
I am the manager at the bill and exchange department at BANK INTERNATIONAL DU
BURKINA (B.I.B) here in Ouagadougou,Burkina Faso.
In my
department we discovered an abandoned sum of US$18.2m dollars ( USdollars)in an
account that belonging to one of our foreign customer.Who died along with his
entire family in monday, 31 july, 2000 in a plane crash in paris.Please visit
this site that is one of the evidence the directors brought in other to swallow
the money at the end of the day,
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/859479.stm
Since we got information about his death, we have been expecting his next of
kin to come over and claim his money because we cannot release it unless some
body applies for it as next of kin or relation to the deceased as indicated in
our banking guidlings and laws but unfortunately we learnt that all his
supposed next of kin or relation died alongside with him at the plane crash
leaving nobody behind for the claim. It is therefore upon this discovery that I
now decided to make this business proposal to you and release the money to you
as the next of kin or relation to the deceased for safety and subsequent
disbursement since nobody is coming for it and we don't want this money to go
into the bank treasury as unclaimed bill.The banking law and guidline here
stipulates that if such money remained unclaimed after seven years, the money
will be transfered into the bank treasury as unclaimed fund. The request of
foreigner as next of kin in this business is occassioned by the fact that the
customer was a foreigner and a Burkinabe cannot stand as next of kin to a
foreigner.
Upon receipt of your reply, I will send to you by fax or email the text of
the application . I will not fail to bring to your notice this transaction is
hitch-free and that you should not entertain any atom of fear as all required
arrangements have been made for the transfer. You should contact me immediately
as soon as you receive this letter. Trusting to hear from you immediately.
Please get in touch with me by email to enable us discuss further .
Please get in touch with me by email to enable us discuss further. you can
reach me on my alternative email address: E-mail(hopepual1@hotmail.fr)
Regards.
Dear p/s reply this email thanks
MR HOPE PUAL(B.I.B)
11-12 Is the GOP Dead?
By JAY MILLER
Syndicated Columnist
SANTA FE -- Is the Republican Party dead? The question is being asked widely at the state and national levels. Some pundits are speculating that the GOP will go the way of the Whigs, who were replaced by the Republican party in 1856 as being outdated.
My answer is the same as it was last week. Republicans will come back. And if Democrats aren't careful it will be sooner rather than later. There was a similar euphoria 16 years ago after Bill Clinton won the White House.
The Democratic Leadership Conference, composed primarily of Southern governors and senators had forged a new Democratic Party based on centrist positions that would attract Democrats and Republicans alike.
Clinton had won his share of the Deep South and Border States plus four Rocky Mountain states. His message was compelling and he delivered it masterfully.
But in the first two years of his administration, the Clintons overstepped their bounds so far that Newt Gingrich was able to put together a new platform for the GOP that swept Republican majorities into both houses of Congress and kept them there for 12 years.
Now that the tide has turned the other direction, some Republicans are suggesting that Gingrich be asked to lead another countercharge. At 65, Gingrich still has the energy and enthusiasm to take on the task but he may not be the person for the job this time.
Republicans have long been the party of old white men and that's not selling well outside the Deep South, Appalachia, the Great Plains and some of the Rockies. It's not enough for a winning coalition.
Although some of the states are growing, the influx from the Northeast and the Rust Belt don't usually vote the same way. And these states don't have the large population centers and big electoral votes of the Blue States.
The soccer moms in the suburbs are changing their minds and beginning to vote more Democrat. The young never were with the Grand Old Party but most of them didn't vote so it didn't matter. But this time they voted. So did Hispanics -- the fastest-growing minority.
One can argue rural over big city values but the population is headed the other direction. The GOP must broaden its tent in order to continue winning elections. The focus this time was on appealing to its base, an idealistic group, unwilling to accept anyone but true believers.
Use of the term "the base" may not be wise either. The term has long been used by political scientists but a group of uncompromising Muslims has chosen the same name. My historical mentor, Dave Clary of Roswell, points out that al-Qaida translates into English as "the base."
Republicans don't have many new faces in the party who can equal the appeal of an Obama. Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal is perhaps the brightest of the stars. Others include Sarah Palin, Mitt Romney and Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty.
But Republicans like to nominate familiar names for president. Since 1952, every winning Republican ticket has included Richard Nixon or a Bush. That's nine presidential terms for a total of 36 years. And there are more Bushes out there in the shrubs.
Republicans don't have much time to turn the tide. Redistricting of state legislatures and Congress takes place in 2011. State legislatures will do the redistricting for both.
The New Mexico senators we elected on Nov. 4 will participate in that redistricting. State House members will stand for election in 2010. If it remains solidly Democratic and another Democratic governor is elected, Democrats will be in position to strengthen election chances for the next decade.
New Mexico Republicans faded big time in 1930, after the stock market crash. No Republican governor was elected again until 1950 and the GOP didn't make a comeback in the Legislature until the late 1960s.
But they came back.
WED, 11-12-08
Syndicated Columnist
SANTA FE -- Is the Republican Party dead? The question is being asked widely at the state and national levels. Some pundits are speculating that the GOP will go the way of the Whigs, who were replaced by the Republican party in 1856 as being outdated.
My answer is the same as it was last week. Republicans will come back. And if Democrats aren't careful it will be sooner rather than later. There was a similar euphoria 16 years ago after Bill Clinton won the White House.
The Democratic Leadership Conference, composed primarily of Southern governors and senators had forged a new Democratic Party based on centrist positions that would attract Democrats and Republicans alike.
Clinton had won his share of the Deep South and Border States plus four Rocky Mountain states. His message was compelling and he delivered it masterfully.
But in the first two years of his administration, the Clintons overstepped their bounds so far that Newt Gingrich was able to put together a new platform for the GOP that swept Republican majorities into both houses of Congress and kept them there for 12 years.
Now that the tide has turned the other direction, some Republicans are suggesting that Gingrich be asked to lead another countercharge. At 65, Gingrich still has the energy and enthusiasm to take on the task but he may not be the person for the job this time.
Republicans have long been the party of old white men and that's not selling well outside the Deep South, Appalachia, the Great Plains and some of the Rockies. It's not enough for a winning coalition.
Although some of the states are growing, the influx from the Northeast and the Rust Belt don't usually vote the same way. And these states don't have the large population centers and big electoral votes of the Blue States.
The soccer moms in the suburbs are changing their minds and beginning to vote more Democrat. The young never were with the Grand Old Party but most of them didn't vote so it didn't matter. But this time they voted. So did Hispanics -- the fastest-growing minority.
One can argue rural over big city values but the population is headed the other direction. The GOP must broaden its tent in order to continue winning elections. The focus this time was on appealing to its base, an idealistic group, unwilling to accept anyone but true believers.
Use of the term "the base" may not be wise either. The term has long been used by political scientists but a group of uncompromising Muslims has chosen the same name. My historical mentor, Dave Clary of Roswell, points out that al-Qaida translates into English as "the base."
Republicans don't have many new faces in the party who can equal the appeal of an Obama. Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal is perhaps the brightest of the stars. Others include Sarah Palin, Mitt Romney and Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty.
But Republicans like to nominate familiar names for president. Since 1952, every winning Republican ticket has included Richard Nixon or a Bush. That's nine presidential terms for a total of 36 years. And there are more Bushes out there in the shrubs.
Republicans don't have much time to turn the tide. Redistricting of state legislatures and Congress takes place in 2011. State legislatures will do the redistricting for both.
The New Mexico senators we elected on Nov. 4 will participate in that redistricting. State House members will stand for election in 2010. If it remains solidly Democratic and another Democratic governor is elected, Democrats will be in position to strengthen election chances for the next decade.
New Mexico Republicans faded big time in 1930, after the stock market crash. No Republican governor was elected again until 1950 and the GOP didn't make a comeback in the Legislature until the late 1960s.
But they came back.
WED, 11-12-08
JAY MILLER, 3 La Tusa, Santa Fe, NM 87505
(ph) 982-2723, (fax) 984-0982, (e-mail) insidethecapitol@hotmail.com
Thursday, November 06, 2008
11-10 What Happens Now?
By JAY MILLER
Syndicated Columnist
Syndicated Columnist
SANTA FE -- So, what happens now? Americans got the change they were looking for. There will be change at our state, national and international levels. But what sort of change will it be?
Change in New Mexico will be dictated largely by what President-Elect Obama offers and what Gov. Bill Richardson is willing to accept. Our governor has been mentioned prominently in national news as a top candidate for secretary of state. But others appear to be ahead of him.
The word around Santa Fe is that our governor would like to get out and that many would love to see him gone. One clue is that he has shaved the beard he has been sporting the past 10 months.
Blogger Joe Monahan brings word that Obama has asked Richardson what four positions he would take. Richardson chose secretary of state, secretary of commerce, president of the World Bank and ambassador to China.
Of those four, China appears by far the most likely. For a month before the election, I was stuck in an Abu Dhabi hospital reading Middle Eastern newspapers and watching European TV. They were very interested in how an Obama victory might affect their world.
Bill Richardson's name received more mention there than it had in this country during the month before I left. The world knows him through his United Nations and back-channel diplomatic missions. Many sources predicted a major ambassadorial assignment.
If Richardson decides to stay in New Mexico, a appointment as a roving ambassador and diplomatic troubleshooter directly under the president would be possible two years from now or at any other time.
Richardson would love the flexibility of such a position and an opportunity to stay in touch with the world. That is completely conjecture on my part and it may be that President Obama would not want to give anyone that long a leash.
But then we really don't know what Obama will want. Judging from his extremely cautious speech pattern, one would guess he will want a lot of control. And judging from his frequent modification of views, we might guess that he can be flexible and pragmatic upon listening to others' views.
Obama definitely doesn't appear to be an ideologue. The superior organization of his campaign indicates he is a practical politician with an eye on voters' desires and getting reelected four years from now.
His quick action in appointing a transition team and forming a cabinet, which he says will be based on excellence regardless of party, gender or race, may indicate the appointment of Richard Holbrooke, a respected career diplomat, as secretary of state.
That transition team, by the way, does not seem to include Gov. Richardson. It does include Gov. Janet Napolitano, of Arizona, who has been prominently mentioned for attorney general.
Napolitano also has been Arizona attorney general but despite those qualifications, she is unlikely to move to Washington. The Albuquerque Sandia graduate has led a Democratic resurgence in our neighboring state that likely wouldn't be the same without her.
As for change at the international level, the world doesn't know Obama well but they've heard his story. They know he's more a citizen of the world than we ever have elected. And they seem ready to push the reset button on the empathy they had for us following 9-11.
During the eight months following the trade center and Pentagon attacks, we took two long foreign trips because of the great prices on travel at the time.
In so many countries we visited people said "We are all Americans now." At the gate of U.S. embassies were tributes and many flowers. Three years later we took a European river cruise. The memorials had been replaced by armed guards.
That we have elected a president, who is a minority and is not pro-war, has won the hearts of many in the world and has maybe softened the hearts of some others.
MON, 11-10-08
JAY MILLER, 3 La Tusa, Santa Fe, NM 87505
(ph) 982-2723, (fax) 984-0982, (e-mail) insidethecapitol@hotmail.com
Wednesday, November 05, 2008
11-7 Expect the Unexpected
By JAY MILLER
Syndicated Columnist
Syndicated Columnist
SANTA FE -- Moments after Barack Obama was declared to be our next president, at 9 p.m. Tuesday, all power in my house went out.
As I listened for explosions outside, I wondered about my frequent predictions that the sun would come up tomorrow regardless of who won the presidency.
Maybe my friends, who warned that Obama's election would mean the end of the world as we know it, were correct. Seconds later, as suddenly as they had gone off, the lights flashed back on.
It gave me pause to reflect on the other unexpected experiences of the past few weeks. We had been on a month-long cruise tour of ancient and religious sites of the Middle East.
A little over halfway through the voyage, my wife Jeanette fell and broke her femur just below the hip. We were hustled off the ship to an Abu Dhabi hospital where we spent the next 17 days getting Jeanette's leg repaired and in good enough condition for a 30-hour journey home.
It was a cultural shock such as neither of us had ever experienced. And, would you believe it, the attending physician in the emergency room was Dr. Hussein. More on those adventures and insights in later columns.
Suffice it to say, we have come to expect the unexpected. And that is the position most Americans have been in for the past year. A year ago, no one expected a skinny, black kid with a funny name to have a chance at beating the presumed Democratic presidential nominee, Hillary Clinton.
A year ago John McCain had been counted out of the GOP presidential race and few outside Alaska had ever heard of Sarah Palin. That included John McCain.
Polls ranged all the way from a slight lead for McCain to a big lead for Obama. But analysts, including myself, noted Obama's underperformance inside the voting booth in those states having primary elections, as opposed to caucuses.
We figured Obama would need a big lead in the polls in order to pull off a narrow victory on election day. But that's not what happened. Obama won by a spread bigger than any of the polls had predicted. And his coattails were very long, extending through Congress down to state legislatures.
What does that mean for the future? We don't know that either. President-elect Obama is mostly an unknown quantity. Supporters can only hope he will be the kind of change they want. Many McCain supporters likely felt the same way, hoping that once he got in office he might surprise his party by becoming the McCain of the 2000 GOP primary.
Congress could be a surprise too. With solid majorities and a block of new members in each house, changes could be in store for Democrat leaders and policy. . The same is true for the New Mexico Legislature where new Democrats have been added in both houses.
And what of Gov. Bill Richardson? Will he stay or take a post in the Obama administration? If he stays, will the more Democratic House and Senate join with the Governor to push through legislation that hasn't passed before?
If he goes, where will it be? Who will Lt. Gov. Diane Denish appoint as a lieutenant governor? And what will her style of governing be? Will it be a big shift from the Bill Richardson style?
And what of the Republican Party in New Mexico? Some say it is dead and must be resurrected in a different form, without the present cliques that divide it. New faces are needed with new ideas. It will be a big job, but they'll be back.
Even a bigger job is in store for Democrats, who must deliver on their campaign promises. The same voters who threw Republicans out will expect great things from the Democrats they elected.
If they don't get them, Republicans will be back very soon.
FRI, 11-07-08
JAY MILLER, 3 La Tusa, Santa Fe, NM 87505
(ph) 982-2723, (fax) 984-0982, (e-mail) insidethecapitol@hotmail.com
Monday, November 03, 2008
11-5 Emirates column
FRI, 10-17-08
THE EMIRATES - These next 10 days are going to be quite an experience. During the first 15 days of this cruise, we saw some of the standards everyone who travels to this part of the world should see - Athens, Rhodes, the Suez Canal, pyramids, Valley of the Kings, Mt. Sinai and Petra, Jordan.
During the next 10 days, we will see countries seldom entered - three of the United Arab Emirates, three towns in Oman, and one in Qatar, Bahrain and Iran. Yesterday an official on this ship confessed our local guides will not be particularly knowledgeable or speak much English. Today the same official admitted we might not get much out of these shore tours except to be able to say we'd been there.
Personally, I'm hoping to do a little better than that. I can surf the Internet and scour the ship's library and visit with a lecturer on board,
The Emirates are a group of small nations on the Arabian side of the Persian Gulf. They gained their independence from England in 1971. Seven of them voted to become the United Arab Emirates. Oman, Bahrain and Qatar decided not to join but to work with the UAE in some areas. One of those projects is Emirates Airlines, which we will inaugurate a flight from Dubai to New York next week.
Best known of the United Arab Emirates are Dubai and Abu Dhabi. They both are large, industrial cities. Dubai has modernistic skyscrapers not seen in the United States. They have embraced western culture in many ways, but still find bare arms and legs offensive. Crooked buildings, however, are not offensive to their eye. Some American architects chuckle at their inability to sell such concepts in the United States.
Like Beijing, Dubai and Abu Dhabi have made the choice to sacrifice their environment to industrialization. Their air pollution falls somewhere between Los Angeles and Beijing.
At least there is some awareness. Abu Dhabi is building a $22 billion zero-carbon city on its outskirts. We chose not to take a helicopter tour over Dubai after being advised that there is much we would not be able to see through the smoke.
The Emirates became rich as trading centers down through the millennia. The discovery of oil only made them richer. Those riches are shared only by the royal families.
There is a well-paid middle class composed of foreign technicians, professionals and managers. But they all know they are only in the country until members of the elite (about 20 percent of the population) can be trained to take over those jobs.
The remainder of the population are dirt-poor immigrants who perform manual labor and send everything they can to their families in poorer countries. At the point they are no longer able to perform, they are deported.
I am told that 50 percent of the world's economy is based on these remittances from people working in rich countries back to their families. It is a worldwide phenomenon and is more effective than foreign aid because it reaches the people who need the help.
Dubai is called the city of cranes. It is said that there are 300 new buildings in the city, 300 more being built and 300 on the drawing boards. Dubai claims it has 15 percent of the world's tallest buildings and the tallest enables a view of the curvature of the earth.
CAUTION: A word of warning about these dispatches from foreign countries. They are written by someone with a keen interest, but not complete knowledge, about the subject. They are based on personal observation, limited research and discussions with guides, lecturers, locals and fellow travelers.
I am sometimes challenged by readers who know more about a situation than I and who have different impressions. I like to think my reports are at least as accurate as travel articles I see about Santa Fe. But please don't use any of this material for your term paper.
You live life beyond your PC. So now Windows goes beyond your PC. See how
THE EMIRATES - These next 10 days are going to be quite an experience. During the first 15 days of this cruise, we saw some of the standards everyone who travels to this part of the world should see - Athens, Rhodes, the Suez Canal, pyramids, Valley of the Kings, Mt. Sinai and Petra, Jordan.
During the next 10 days, we will see countries seldom entered - three of the United Arab Emirates, three towns in Oman, and one in Qatar, Bahrain and Iran. Yesterday an official on this ship confessed our local guides will not be particularly knowledgeable or speak much English. Today the same official admitted we might not get much out of these shore tours except to be able to say we'd been there.
Personally, I'm hoping to do a little better than that. I can surf the Internet and scour the ship's library and visit with a lecturer on board,
The Emirates are a group of small nations on the Arabian side of the Persian Gulf. They gained their independence from England in 1971. Seven of them voted to become the United Arab Emirates. Oman, Bahrain and Qatar decided not to join but to work with the UAE in some areas. One of those projects is Emirates Airlines, which we will inaugurate a flight from Dubai to New York next week.
Best known of the United Arab Emirates are Dubai and Abu Dhabi. They both are large, industrial cities. Dubai has modernistic skyscrapers not seen in the United States. They have embraced western culture in many ways, but still find bare arms and legs offensive. Crooked buildings, however, are not offensive to their eye. Some American architects chuckle at their inability to sell such concepts in the United States.
Like Beijing, Dubai and Abu Dhabi have made the choice to sacrifice their environment to industrialization. Their air pollution falls somewhere between Los Angeles and Beijing.
At least there is some awareness. Abu Dhabi is building a $22 billion zero-carbon city on its outskirts. We chose not to take a helicopter tour over Dubai after being advised that there is much we would not be able to see through the smoke.
The Emirates became rich as trading centers down through the millennia. The discovery of oil only made them richer. Those riches are shared only by the royal families.
There is a well-paid middle class composed of foreign technicians, professionals and managers. But they all know they are only in the country until members of the elite (about 20 percent of the population) can be trained to take over those jobs.
The remainder of the population are dirt-poor immigrants who perform manual labor and send everything they can to their families in poorer countries. At the point they are no longer able to perform, they are deported.
I am told that 50 percent of the world's economy is based on these remittances from people working in rich countries back to their families. It is a worldwide phenomenon and is more effective than foreign aid because it reaches the people who need the help.
Dubai is called the city of cranes. It is said that there are 300 new buildings in the city, 300 more being built and 300 on the drawing boards. Dubai claims it has 15 percent of the world's tallest buildings and the tallest enables a view of the curvature of the earth.
CAUTION: A word of warning about these dispatches from foreign countries. They are written by someone with a keen interest, but not complete knowledge, about the subject. They are based on personal observation, limited research and discussions with guides, lecturers, locals and fellow travelers.
I am sometimes challenged by readers who know more about a situation than I and who have different impressions. I like to think my reports are at least as accurate as travel articles I see about Santa Fe. But please don't use any of this material for your term paper.
You live life beyond your PC. So now Windows goes beyond your PC. See how
11-5 Emirates
Oops. I already had sent the column I attached to my message earlier today. I have a later one on my laptop, but can't get it connected with the Internet right now. Still having jet lag problems, I guess. I'll ge that column sent later today.
I'm gaining an appreciation of everything Jeanette did when we returned from previous trips -- plowing thru the mail, dirty clothes, bill paying, etc. We all know men don't multi-task as well as women but I'll try to keep up.
10-15 Into the Persian Gulf
WED, 10-15-08
TOWARD THE PERSIAN GULF - We seldom are out of sight of an oil tanker as we move from the Arabian Sea into the Gulf of Oman and head toward the Strait of Hormuz, the gateway to the Persian Gulf.
Security gets a little tighter at each port and the ship's crew is never quite sure what to expect. From this point forward, except for Dubai, the ports are all new for SilverSea Cruise Line, which is one of the few that has been willing to venture into these waters.
These emerging gulf states don't care much for Western culture but they like our money and they know that tourism is a great backup when oil prices tank.
Each shore tour promises to be a challenge, with inexperienced guides taking us to places only tourists from their own country usually witness. It appears we will be visiting a mosque, a palace, a souq (market) and a Portuguese fort at each stop. Portugal took over this area for trading purposes when it was king of the sea.
With so much sameness, we may skip a few shore tours. The bus drivers are crazy, the guides barely speak our language and think we should be much more interested in what they are showing us. And the weather still is unbearably hot.
We had experiences with new guides and old buses on our World War II 60th anniversary cruise in the Pacific three years ago. But those guides and locals were so appreciative to see us and thanked us for liberating them all those years ago.
I imagine our government was expecting to see the same appreciation after we invaded Iraq. But it's a different deal here. We are told dress codes for going ashore have become more conservative. Arms and legs must be fully covered in most countries. It's somewhat of a relief not seeing fat legs and muscle shirts, but in 100-degree heat, the attire is a bit uncomfortable.
We are told that despite the Middle East being hit the hardest economically by the world financial downturn, plans are going ahead for multi-billion-dollar new buildings throughout the area and for complete new towns costing hundreds of billions of dollars. The message is that oil and gas needs of emerging nations, such as China and India, are not going away. So there will not be a long-term slide in oil prices as we saw in the early eighties.
New Mexicans remember those days well. From 1975 to 1982, Govs. Jerry Apodaca and Bruce King presided over a rapidly expanding New Mexico economy. In November 1982, Toney Anaya was elected governor amid promises of tax cuts and program improvements.
The week following the election, Anaya and his family vacationed on the island of Kauai. Hurricane Iwo directly hit the island at the fancy hotel where Anaya was staying.
The following day, after moving on from the devastation of his vacation paradise, Anaya learned that the price of oil had suddenly nose-dived and New Mexico was in deep financial trouble. Anaya spent the next four years proposing tax increases, with which even Republicans had to cooperate to keep the state afloat.
New Mexico will recover, but this downturn is more than just oil. Because banks lend to banks internationally, everyone will be hit. The news almost totally dominates BBC and CNN International, which we receive on the ship.
I had expected to hear a fair amount of recrimination over here against the United States for getting this started. But that hasn't been the case. The European Union talks about trying to work something out.
The scariest news is that Russia, although being hit very hard economically, is depending on its huge oil and natural gas reserves to emerge as the world's financial superpower. It is offering to help bail out other countries in a manner that reminds some European commentators of our post-World War II Marshall Plan.
We're finally home. Actually Jeanette is currently in St. Vincent Hospital as a physical rehab patient but she feels much better about life than she did for over two weeks in an Abu Dhabi hospital with a broken femur.
I hope all of you got the message from our daughter that we were unable to call outside the country or access the Internet from the hospital. The local American consul there was good enough to initiate any contacts we needed to make.
Attached is the column I was rushing to get sent as Jeanette was being hustled off the ship before it left Abu Dhabi that aternoon. I didn't quite make it. I'm sorry I didnt get back in time to do a pre-election wrap up but I'll try to get a post-election column to you for Friday revealing some of the impressions we got on the other side of the world about this election.
Store, manage and share up to 5GB with Windows Live SkyDrive. Start uploading now
TOWARD THE PERSIAN GULF - We seldom are out of sight of an oil tanker as we move from the Arabian Sea into the Gulf of Oman and head toward the Strait of Hormuz, the gateway to the Persian Gulf.
Security gets a little tighter at each port and the ship's crew is never quite sure what to expect. From this point forward, except for Dubai, the ports are all new for SilverSea Cruise Line, which is one of the few that has been willing to venture into these waters.
These emerging gulf states don't care much for Western culture but they like our money and they know that tourism is a great backup when oil prices tank.
Each shore tour promises to be a challenge, with inexperienced guides taking us to places only tourists from their own country usually witness. It appears we will be visiting a mosque, a palace, a souq (market) and a Portuguese fort at each stop. Portugal took over this area for trading purposes when it was king of the sea.
With so much sameness, we may skip a few shore tours. The bus drivers are crazy, the guides barely speak our language and think we should be much more interested in what they are showing us. And the weather still is unbearably hot.
We had experiences with new guides and old buses on our World War II 60th anniversary cruise in the Pacific three years ago. But those guides and locals were so appreciative to see us and thanked us for liberating them all those years ago.
I imagine our government was expecting to see the same appreciation after we invaded Iraq. But it's a different deal here. We are told dress codes for going ashore have become more conservative. Arms and legs must be fully covered in most countries. It's somewhat of a relief not seeing fat legs and muscle shirts, but in 100-degree heat, the attire is a bit uncomfortable.
We are told that despite the Middle East being hit the hardest economically by the world financial downturn, plans are going ahead for multi-billion-dollar new buildings throughout the area and for complete new towns costing hundreds of billions of dollars. The message is that oil and gas needs of emerging nations, such as China and India, are not going away. So there will not be a long-term slide in oil prices as we saw in the early eighties.
New Mexicans remember those days well. From 1975 to 1982, Govs. Jerry Apodaca and Bruce King presided over a rapidly expanding New Mexico economy. In November 1982, Toney Anaya was elected governor amid promises of tax cuts and program improvements.
The week following the election, Anaya and his family vacationed on the island of Kauai. Hurricane Iwo directly hit the island at the fancy hotel where Anaya was staying.
The following day, after moving on from the devastation of his vacation paradise, Anaya learned that the price of oil had suddenly nose-dived and New Mexico was in deep financial trouble. Anaya spent the next four years proposing tax increases, with which even Republicans had to cooperate to keep the state afloat.
New Mexico will recover, but this downturn is more than just oil. Because banks lend to banks internationally, everyone will be hit. The news almost totally dominates BBC and CNN International, which we receive on the ship.
I had expected to hear a fair amount of recrimination over here against the United States for getting this started. But that hasn't been the case. The European Union talks about trying to work something out.
The scariest news is that Russia, although being hit very hard economically, is depending on its huge oil and natural gas reserves to emerge as the world's financial superpower. It is offering to help bail out other countries in a manner that reminds some European commentators of our post-World War II Marshall Plan.
We're finally home. Actually Jeanette is currently in St. Vincent Hospital as a physical rehab patient but she feels much better about life than she did for over two weeks in an Abu Dhabi hospital with a broken femur.
I hope all of you got the message from our daughter that we were unable to call outside the country or access the Internet from the hospital. The local American consul there was good enough to initiate any contacts we needed to make.
Attached is the column I was rushing to get sent as Jeanette was being hustled off the ship before it left Abu Dhabi that aternoon. I didn't quite make it. I'm sorry I didnt get back in time to do a pre-election wrap up but I'll try to get a post-election column to you for Friday revealing some of the impressions we got on the other side of the world about this election.
Store, manage and share up to 5GB with Windows Live SkyDrive. Start uploading now
