9-8 Wonder Woman's Race to Lose

By JAY MILLER
Syndicated Columnist
SANTA FE -- New Mexico's gubernatorial contest has become Susana Martinez's race to lose. Lt. Gov. Diane Denish can still win it but unless Martinez stumbles over a pile if kryptonite, she's the favorite.
Yes, I said kryptonite. I realize that is Superman's nemesis but I can't recall what weakens Wonder Woman. And Wonder Woman is what I am christening Susana Martinez.
Why? Because she's faster than light, bulletproof and invisible. During the Republican primary election campaign she seemed to be in all places at once, lining up delegates in every county while still being district attorney out of her Las Cruces office.
All that time, former state GOP chairman Allen Weh was publicizing his travels to every county to line up delegates. But when the state party convention came along, Martinez swamped Weh and her three other opponents, garnering as many delegate votes as the rest of her opponents combined.
It was the same story in the June primary as it had been at the GOP convention in March. Martinez again licked the field with one arm tied behind her. The day after her primary election victory, Martinez took on the mighty lieutenant governor and her $2 million bankroll.
Lt. Gov. Denish immediately began a barrage of negative campaign ads aimed at Martinez. With her campaign account nearly depleted by a bruising primary, Martinez was at a sizeable disadvantage. But amazingly she rebounded and took on her adversary with a vengeance.
Martinez took hits for a sweetheart contract with an employee to supply office equipment and large raises to top staff paid from border security funds. But the shots bounced off her like bullets off Wonder Woman.
Then came word that Wonder Woman was not of this planet but had been born in the evil empire of Texas. Efforts to verify her background information seem to disappear into thin air.
Despite Lt. Gov. Denish's overwhelming advantage in experience and resources, Martinez managed to pull ahead in internal polls conducted by other candidates throughout the state all summer long.
In more good news for Martinez, Rupert Murdock's News Corp,, the parent company of Fox News, has just contributed $100 million to the Republican Governors Association. Martinez should get a generous chunk of that because the governors' group is one of the primary forces said to be behind Martinez's superhuman powers.
What a come-down it has been for the star-crossed lieutenant governor. Less than two years ago she was poised to prematurely enter the governor's high office, thereby obtaining an overwhelming advantage on her journey to power.
But then Gov. Bill Richardson announced he wouldn't be relinquishing his throne for a position in President Obama's cabinet.
The situation still looked good for Lady Di, however. She had close to $2 million in her war chest. And potential Democratic opponents fell by the wayside until there were none left.
That was followed by the decision of the only two Republicans with experience in statewide campaigns to not run for governor. That left five no-name GOP candidates to fight a bruising battle for the honor of opposing the lieutenant governor.
But then came more bad news. Republicans began tying the increasingly unpopular governor to his lieutenant governor. They became like a hyphenated marriage -- the Richardson-Denish administration.
So Denish is down. She's not out. She has been in many tough statewide battles before. But this time is different. She has an opponent who is younger, peppier, more animated than any she has ever faced.
The Democratic Governors Association, knowing that the Republican Governors Association is deeply into the Martinez campaign, now has its own attack ad running against Martinez. This will be one of the major battles in which those two giants will face off.
Both houses of Congress are up for grabs this year but gubernatorial races also are of extreme importance because governors can veto state and congressional redistricting plans.
WED, 9-08-10

JAY MILLER, 3 La Tusa, Santa Fe, NM 87505
(ph) 982-2723, (fax) 984-0982, (e-mail) insidethecapitol@hotmail.com

 

SPECIAL NOTE: 9-6 Battleship NM Present at Japanese Surrender

By JAY MILLER
Syndicated Columnist

SANTA FE -- On September 2, 1945, a formal surrender was signed by the Japanese, aboard the USS Missouri, in Tokyo Bay. This year marks the 65th anniversary of that event ending World War II.
The Japanese delegation, unable to find any vessel seaworthy enough to take them into the bay, boarded an American destroyer to take them on the 16-mile journey.
An impressive 258 Allied warships filled the bay, making it one of the most formidable displays of naval power ever assembled in one anchorage. Many more could have joined them, but it was an invitation-only event for warships that had distinguished themselves in Pacific battles.
The Battleship New Mexico was there, honored for her service in the Gilberts, Marshalls, Solomons, Marianas, Philippines and Okinawa. In her last two battles, she suffered three kamikaze hits, killing a total of 83, including the commanding officer, and injuring 206.
Also present was Gen. Jonathon Wainwright, the beloved commanding officer who remained in the Philippines after MacArthur left.
Wainwright, who had endured all the prison camp atrocities experienced by his troops and looking like a skeleton, was quickly rescued from a prison camp in China and brought to the ceremony.
He took a place of honor, near MacArthur and reportedly received the first ceremonial pen when MacArthur signed the surrender document as the Supreme Commander of Allied Powers in Japan.
The Navy was not impressed that MacArthur became supreme commander or that he would conduct the surrender ceremonies. MacArthur's promotion made it appear that the Army had won the war in the Pacific and not the Navy.
Obviously, it took both But neither wanted to admit it because the two services were completely separate entities. Had Japan not created the same problems for itself, our divided command would have caused us even more problems.
And the only reason the Air Force wasn't part of the argument was that it wasn't created until 1947.
The solution to the Navy's displeasure was to have MacArthur conduct the ceremony aboard a Navy ship. And to get President Harry Truman's cooperation in the deal, the vessel chosen for the surrender ceremony was the Battleship Missouri.
Instead of being conducted on the broad fantail of the Missouri, the signing took place on a narrow quarterdeck, around a worn table from the ship's galley, covered by a coffee-stained green tablecloth. The ceremony was short, which pleased both MacArthur and the Japanese.
Another indication of evident downplaying of the ceremony was that the American officers wore khaki uniforms. The British wore shorts. Our other allies wore dress uniforms. The Japanese wore top hats and tails. That's an interesting progression from those who had the most to do with winning the war to those who lost.
Although the ceremony was simple and understated, it was followed by a massive show of strength, as 1,900 Allied aircraft came roaring overhead.
Following the August 15 surrender declaration by Emperor Hirohito, it took two weeks before the first American soldiers landed in Japan. Air drops to prison camps, containing New Mexico troops, had been occurring and agents from the Office of Strategic Services had parachuted into prison camps to keep order until troops arrived.
One of the first tasks of the soldiers who landed was to get to the airfields to remove propellers from Japanese aircraft. There still was unrest among many of the military and a fear that mutinous kamikaze pilots might make a last-minute bid for immortality during the surrender ceremonies.
The first stage of the occupation was to provide for the care of Allies who had been held captive. It was accomplished as quickly as possible because our troops were clamoring to get out and families back home wanted to know of their loved ones.
The Battleship Missouri can be visited in Honolulu by going to Pearl Harbor and taking a shuttle. Tours are conducted of various parts of the ship. Or one may go directly to view the surrender location and listen to a recording of MacArthur's words.
FRI, 9-02-05

JAY MILLER, 3 La Tusa, Santa Fe, NM 87505
(ph) 982-2723, (fax) 984-0982, (e-mail) insidethecapitol@hotmail.com

SPECIAL NOTE:  Sorry I didn't get this to you sooner. You may want to run it closer to Sept. 2.

9-3 Udall Making Splash in D.C.

By JAY MILLER
Syndicated Columnist

SANTA FE -- For a freshman senator, New Mexico's Sen. Tom Udall is making a big splash in Washington. Brand new members of the nation's most exclusive club are supposed to sit quietly on the back bench until they are spoken to.
But this freshman class is a little different. It is large. Most are Democrats who rode the tide of change into office and are wanting to fulfill some of those promises.
Like Udall, some of the new members have been in the U.S. House previously and know it is possible for a congressional body to move business along at a much faster pace. Others have been in state legislatures.
Udall also has spent many years living in Washington. He lived there as a child while his father spent six years in the House and eight more as secretary of the Interior under John Kennedy and Lyndon Johnson. Udall also lived in Washington during his 10 years in the House.
Most U.S. House members do not live in Washington. They rent an apartment, often with several colleagues, or live in their office during the three nights a week when most House members are in town.
The House normally recesses Thursday afternoon and goes back into session the following Tuesday morning. Most House members, especially those with young families, come home nearly every weekend. Most of that time is spent campaigning since House members have to run constantly.
First Congressional District Rep. Martin Heinrich does that. So did his predecessor Heather Wilson. Udall and Rep. Steve Pearce, from the 2nd Congressional District stayed in Washington and reaped some of the benefits of doing so.
Pearce became a subcommittee chairman during his second term in office. Udall garnered a seat on the powerful House Appropriations Committee much sooner than House members normally do.
Pearce's predecessor in the 2nd Congressional District, Rep. Joe Skeen, also stayed in Washington and became a prestigious cardinal -- the chairman of the Agriculture Subcommittee.
So the message is to stick around Washington as much as possible, getting to know your colleagues on both sides of the aisle. Another advantage enjoyed by Udall, Pearce and Skeen was that they represented districts that were much easier to win than New Mexico's 1st Congressional District
Senators, with their six-year terms, mostly stay in Washington or nearby. The Udalls will do that, giving Tom the opportunity to lead his freshman class in trying to change some Senate rules that currently hamstring the body.
One of the biggest concerns of the freshmen senators is the filibuster, which has a long and colorful tradition in the Senate. It can stop all proceedings indefinitely until it is ended.
Sixty votes are required to end a filibuster. That means 41 senators can block the will of 69 senators. Today just the threat of a filibuster can block any action.
Some feel the Senate Democratic leadership shouldn't cave as soon as Republicans threaten to filibuster. They should require Republicans to actually conduct filibusters, which are taxing ventures.
But Udall and many of his fellow freshmen want to change the rules. The Constitution says both houses of Congress can establish their rules at the beginning of each two-year session.
The House does that. The Senate, in 1959, passed a rule saying rules carry over from session to session. And it takes a two-thirds vote to change them.
That's a mighty tall order, considering that the Democratic leadership opposes the move since Democrats filibuster when Republicans are in power.
But Udall and friends say they are looking not to help their party but the Senate and country as a whole.
Some of the other changes Udall and others want are eliminating "holds" in which a single senator can secretly prevent action on legislation or nominees, banning earmarks for private companies, and restricting congressional pay raises.
FRI, 9-03-10

JAY MILLER, 3 La Tusa, Santa Fe, NM 87505
(ph) 982-2723, (fax) 984-0982, (e-mail) insidethecapitol@hotmail.com

 

9-1 Primaries Lasting Nearly All Year

By JAY MILLER
Syndicated Columnist

SANTA FE -- Does it seem to you that the primary election season is a year-long affair this time around? It's probably because it just about is. Political primaries began Feb. 2 in Illinois and end Oct. 2 in Louisiana.
New Mexico's June 1 primary elections were right about in the middle of the calendar. August was the most popular month for primaries. September will see 11 more of them.
General election campaign strategies vary widely depending on when a primary occurs. New Mexico's November gubernatorial election campaign began hours after the polls closed on June 1 with much negativity. Can you imagine starting all that on February. 2?
With voter anger at a high pitch, negative campaigning has been rampant throughout the nation. The joke among political operatives everywhere this year has been that if you are planning a positive campaign ad, don't bother. Just donate the money to charity.
This year's primary election campaigns have been highly intense. Angry Tea Partiers have been going after GOP establishment candidates with some success. Three Republican senatorial incumbents already have gone down to defeat and there may be more.
In addition, the super rich have been jumping into the primaries of both parties and upsetting apple carts. The most extreme example was conservative Republican Rick Scott spending over $20 million of personal funds to defeat the party favorite in the Florida governor's race.
Scott says he'll spend $50 million in the general election. He made that money in the health insurance business.
In the Florida gubernatorial primary, $20 million wasn't enough for Democrat Jeff Greene to win against the party favorite. Greene made his money betting against the failing real estate market in Florida.
Another unusual feature of the 2010 primaries has been the influence of Sarah Palin. She has flitted about the country, endorsing mostly Tea Party candidates against party favorites and coming out with about an even record, which is great for betting on long shots.
Palin made an exception in endorsing John McCain in his Arizona Senate race. Guess she wanted to show there weren't too many hard feelings about the slams she received from McCain staff in 2008. McCain's prospects appeared shaky when she endorsed him but that and $21 million gave him a huge victory.
Presidential primaries are completely different events. Few of them are held at the same time as primary elections for state offices because of the rush to stage early primaries that will have more influence.
Both national political parties are upset that the situation has gotten out of hand. Two years ago the season began the first week of January, which meant heavy campaigning during the Christmas holidays.
Plans have been made to stop that silliness by pushing the start back to February for a few states and March for the rest. Parties still can't force states to comply. Their only sanction is to allocate fewer convention votes to renegade states, which then threaten to not support the party in November.
For 2012, Republicans have adopted "The Ohio Plan" that allows the traditional states to go early, followed by small states, with big states bringing up the rear.
One feature that likely will not change is the winner-take-all rules of some state Republican parties. That rule results in the party usually having its candidate chosen very early in the process. Democrats require proportional representation.
Another primary election change may be on the way. California voters have approved a ballot measure that will end party primaries for all offices and substitute a "top two" nominating system in which all candidates will appear on the same ballot. The two most favored, regardless of party, will go on to the November election.
Reformers, led by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, are frustrated by the polarization that hobbles their legislature and Congress. This enables all voters to screen all candidates during the primary. The hope is that it will lead to more moderate candidates.
WED, 9-01-10

JAY MILLER, 3 La Tusa, Santa Fe, NM 87505
(ph) 982-2723, (fax) 984-0982, (e-mail) insidethecapitol@hotmail.com

 

8-30 A Promise May Not Be a Promise

By JAY MILLER
Syndicated Columnist

SANTA FE -- When is a promise not a promise? That is what Gov. Bill Richardson needs to decide as he debates whether to fulfill the promise of a pardon former Gov. Lew Wallace may have made to Billy the Kid.
First, a promise isn't worth much if it isn't in writing. Otherwise it is just one person's word against the other's. No record exists of any written promise by Wallace.
The Kid claimed to have something written by Wallace that Wallace would not want others to see. If so, Billy never played that card even after he was sentenced to hang.
There are no written documents pertaining in any way to a pardon in the archive of Wallace's papers maintained by the Indiana Historical Society. Staff members of the archive have sent an e-mail and a letter to Gov. Richardson notifying him of that fact.
New Mexico state historian Rick Hendricks says he has no documentation of a pardon promise by Gov. Wallace. William N. Wallace, 86, of Westport, Connecticut, says he sees no historical foundation for Richardson to offer a posthumous pardon for the Kid.
Wallace, a great grandson of Gov. Wallace, says nothing in his lifetime knowledge ever suggested his great grandfather ever intended to give the Kid a pardon and he has notified Gov. Richardson.
Fredrick Nolan, the leading Lincoln County War historian, says to the best of his knowledge no contemporary of the Kid's ever mentioned his "deal" with Wallace -- nothing even in the extensive interviews with the Coe brothers by Evetts Haley.
Twenty years later, when Wallace was a famous author on speaking circuits, he would entertain his audiences with stories of Billy the Kid.
Lengthy newspaper interviews of Wallace in 1900 and 1902 contained fanciful recollections that bore little resemblance to what had actually happened 20 years earlier.
William Wallace, the great grandson, says he questions the accuracy of those accounts because so many facts were wrong, including Jesse James being part of Billy's gang.
Doug Clanin, a former editor of the Wallace papers for the Indiana Historical Society says Wallace was adept at improving on old stories for entertainment value.
One of Wallace's stories on the lecture circuit was that Billy, while in the Santa Fe jail, threatened to release a letter from Wallace. But Wallace said he preempted the Kid by taking the letter to the Santa Fe New Mexican along with his explanation of the meaning. He said he showed the newspaper clipping to Billy, who dropped the subject.
Historian Mike Pitel says Wallace never visited Billy in jail and no such letter appeared in the New Mexican during that period.
Second, an unwritten promise is not a promise if it is never acknowledged. Wallace never responded in any way to Billy's claims that they had a deal. Billy never used the word pardon in describing the deal.
Obviously Wallace said something to the Kid during their one meeting that made Billy think if he testified about killings he had witnessed, he could walk free.
In arranging his one meeting with the Kid, Wallace told Billy: "I have the authority to exempt you from prosecution if you will testify."
Obviously Billy took that to mean he wouldn't be prosecuted but that's not what Wallace said. Wallace was a top notch lawyer and is said to have used trickery in court. He also was a great writer, careful of his words.
Combine those with the skills of a politician and diplomat and Wallace had Billy at a disadvantage. Historians have assumed there was a deal. But the likelihood is that Wallace had made no deal on which to renege. He simply outsmarted his opponent.
Despite his courtroom trickery, Wallace was an honorable man. If he had made a deal, in all likelihood he would have fulfilled it. But Wallace knew Billy would go back to a life of crime after their clandestine meeting, which he did, and that the situation would never be right for a pardon or anything short of it.
MON, 8-30-10

JAY MILLER, 3 La Tusa, Santa Fe, NM 87505
(ph) 982-2723, (fax) 984-0982, (e-mail) insidethecapitol@hotmail.com

 

8-27 Pork Getting a Little Smelly

By JAY MILLER
Syndicated Columnist

SANTA FE -- Bringing home the bacon is a sure way to win reelection. That has always been a firmly-held belief among New Mexico incumbent lawmakers.
Occasionally it doesn't work because other factors outweigh it. But in Congress this year, bringing home the bacon can cause enough of a stink to be fatal to an incumbent's career.
In Utah, earlier this summer, longtime Sen. Bob Bennett was kept off the ballot by Tea Party and other conservative groups because he is a big spender. One of the charges concerned the large amounts of money he brings to Utah for special projects.
Bennett is a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, a prime position for getting earmarks to his state. Earmarks are what we call pork in New Mexico.
Last January President Barack Obama proposed the discontinuance of NASA's Constellation space exploration program which was to take us back to the moon. Bennett has been one of the key players in trying to get the program back into the budget. It means thousands of jobs in Utah.
Bennett's Republican opponent promised to fight to keep the Constellation program in Utah. Bennett pointed out the inconsistency in promising to stop bringing federal money back to the state while also pledging to keep the money coming. It didn't work.
Bennett isn't the only U.S. senator to suffer the wrath of primary election voters for bringing home the bacon. Sens. Arlen Specter (D-Pa.), Alan Mollohan (D-W. Va.) and Carolyn Kilpatrick (D- Mich.) have all lost primary elections despite being big providers for their home states.
U.S. House members are getting nervous about anti-earmark fever getting to them also. Both the Democratic and Republican caucuses have adopted measures to voluntarily restrict or ban the use of earmarks for the present fiscal year.
Legislation has been introduced in the U.S. House to scrap all earmarks in favor of a system of competitive grants. A similar system has been discussed in New Mexico that would create an agency to evaluate and rank capital outlay needs around the state. They would then be funded with money already appropriated by the Legislature.
The idea has been discussed but never has reached the point of being introduced as legislation. And it won't be. New Mexico lawmakers are too convinced that their pork victories will keep getting them elected.
It's a shame because that money could be used for budget balancing. It is severance tax income that occurs every year. The amount fluctuates yearly depending on the amount of minerals severed from our land and their value.
The body of the Severance Tax Permanent Fund is intended for use when the state faces difficult economic times. Since the state's Permanent Fund, created decades before the Severance Tax Permanent Fund, is designated for the same type of purpose, it might be assumed that the severance tax fund might be for days that aren't quite as rainy.
But until New Mexicans get as tough on their legislators as residents of some other states are beginning to get, New Mexico legislators will continue to put pet projects ahead of fiscal responsibility.
For New Mexico, now would be a good time for Congress to do away with earmarks. Four out of five members of our congressional delegation are rookies in their positions.
They replace some of the state's members of Congress who were masters of bringing money to New Mexico. Former senators Dennis Chavez and Clinton Anderson brought tons of money to our state, especially for military bases and national labs.
Former Sen. Pete Domenici saw to it that those sources of money for New Mexico continued.
And former Rep. Joe Skeen added quite nicely to the pot with his subcommittee chairmanship on the House Appropriations committee. Those positions are so powerful, the chairmen are called cardinals.
FRI, 8-27-10

JAY MILLER, 3 La Tusa, Santa Fe, NM 87505
(ph) 982-2723, (fax) 984-0982, (e-mail) insidethecapitol@hotmail.com

 

8-25 Why Are NM Test Scores So Low?

By JAY MILLER
Syndicated Columnist
SANTA FE –- Why do New Mexico students score so low on national tests? It is an age old question casting a big shadow on our otherwise enchanting land.
Try as we may, we've never been able to solve the problem. Eight years ago, Bill Richardson recognized the problem as he campaigned for office.
New Mexicans responded by electing him governor and less than a year later passing a constitutional amendment diverting some of the state permanent fund into education.
Say what you will about some of Gov. Richardson's bold initiatives, his emphasis on improving student achievement was right on. His primary goal for New Mexico was economic development, an area in which we always have been lacking.
Richardson knew that good schools and a well educated work force is a key in attracting industry. So he put significant resources into improving education.
He raised teacher salaries from some of the lowest in the nation. He created a program encouraging parents to become involved in their children's education.
Other programs encouraged students not to drop out. He made kindergarten full day and funded pre-kindergarten programs for the underprivileged to better prepare those students for school.
But it hasn't worked. In fairness, students in the first pre-kindergarten programs are just now beginning to reach fourth grade where the testing programs begin. Early childhood education has been demonstrated to improve student learning so we may see some results there soon.
In my opinion, parental involvement in a child's education is by far the most important factor. I taught school 50 years ago in Albuquerque's Northeast Heights.
When a student got a grade of B or lower, I would expect that mother to be at school the next morning wanting to know how she could help her child raise that grade.
It's not just upper middle-class families where that interest in education exists. We see newspaper stories of single mothers working two jobs so they can give their children all the educational advantages they can.
But all too often, among the underprivileged, we see a lack of concern about children's education. It is possible for children to succeed educationally on their own. But it is much harder.
Too often there is peer pressure to just hang out after school instead of studying -- or to ditch school or even to drop out. The only hope for many of these students is some other adult taking an interest in the child. Programs have now been designed to recruit adults and pair them with a student at risk of dropping out.
There is concern that minority students score lower on tests and are more at risk of dropping out of school. An Hispanic Education Act was passed by this year's Legislature to take a close look at those problems and determine whether there are cultural traits that need addressed.
But it isn't just poor and minority students who are underachieving. Studies show American students, in general, lag behind much of the rest of the world.
In underdeveloped countries, students wake up every morning knowing the only way to get out of their cycle of poverty is through education. So they put all their energies into learning as much as they possibly can.
And much of what they are studying is math, science, engineering and technology. It is estimated that close to 90 percent of earth's people in these fields now live in Asia. The best schools in these fields are in Asia.
While those students yearn for the good life, American youth expect it. Math and science are too hard. Just give me my cell phone and all the upgrades and I'll be happy.
The future does not look good for America continuing to sit on top of the world. We must find some answers. In New Mexico, at least we may be starting to look in some of the right places.
WED, 8-25-10

JAY MILLER, 3 La Tusa, Santa Fe, NM 87505
(ph) 982-2723, (fax) 984-0982, (e-mail) insidethecapitol@hotmail.com

 

8-23 Will Vegas Bet on Billy the Kid's Pardon?

By JAY MILLER
Syndicated Columnist
SANTA FE -- Did former New Mexico Territorial Gov. Lew Wallace offer Billy the Kid a pardon? And if he did, why didn't he follow through? Inquiring minds want to know. And that includes current Gov. Bill Richardson.
The most recent installment in The Kid's saga saw five descendants of Sheriff Pat Garrett visit Gov. Richardson to express concern that their grandfather is being maligned by unfounded conjecture that he really didn't shoot Billy.
As a result of the meeting, Gov. Richardson sent a letter to the Garrett family stating that he has no doubt that Sheriff Pat Garrett killed Billy the Kid.
That assurance meant the world to the Garretts because every newspaper story about the current controversies includes a section about the rumors that Garrett shot someone else and the Kid lived a long life elsewhere.
Seven years ago, Gov. Richardson supported an investigation by three lawmen down south into whether Garrett killed the right man. Although that investigation hasn't reached a conclusion, Richardson says he has.
That gubernatorial assurance was greeted with cheers from the many Billy the Kid buffs who were appalled at the gullibility of people prone to believe made-up history.
Gov. Richardson also made it clear that he may still consider a pardon but that if he does, it will focus on the alleged promise that Territorial Gov. Lew Wallace made to the Kid and that he will be fair in his review of the historical record.
That should strip away the fears that Gov. Richardson has something else up his sleeve. It now comes back to the request Gov. Richardson made to me last April to sample Billy the Kid historians to determine their thoughts about granting a pardon.
The response I received from most historians was support for the pardon consideration if it could conducted in a scholarly and dignified manner. It was when the word got around to others that most of the controversy started.
There will still be controversy. Gov. Wallace didn't say much about his deal with the Kid. And some of that was two decades later when he was in a very romanticized frame of mind.
Also at issue is the propriety of second guessing a governor's actions of 130 years ago. What Richardson proposes is legal. The question now is propriety and the historians can discuss it from an historical basis.
Here's what we know about Gov. Wallace and the pardon promise. The only meeting between Wallace and the Kid was in Lincoln in a house owned by Squire Wilson.
We know Wilson was present at the beginning of the meeting. We don't know if he stayed or participated in any discussion. Wallace never said anything about the meeting. Neither did Wilson.
After the meeting, neither Wallace or Billy ever turned to Wilson for verification of anything said during the meeting.
Billy spoke and wrote often about the deal but he never called it a pardon. Billy said he upheld his end of the deal by testifying against the murderers of attorney Houston Chapman.
It was during the period following Billy's testimony and his conviction for killing Sheriff Brady that a pardon would have been expected. But none ever came.
Following the Kid's conviction, Wallace was asked by a reporter for the Las Vegas Gazette whether he would pardon Billy. Wallace answered that Billy should expect no clemency. That evening, the Kid escaped from the Lincoln County jail, killing two deputies and all bets were off.
Speaking of bets, Hollywood film maker Joe Micalizzi, creator of "Billy the Kid's New Mexico," suggests that with stories about a pardon for Billy spread across newspapers throughout the country and world, how long is it going to be before Las Vegas gets involved and starts making book on when and whether Gov. Richardson will issue a pardon for the Kid?
MON, 8-23-10

JAY MILLER, 3 La Tusa, Santa Fe, NM 87505
(ph) 982-2723, (fax) 984-0982, (e-mail) insidethecapitol@hotmail.com

 

8-20 Gov's Past Beyond Belief

By JAY MILLER
Syndicated Columnist
SANTA FE -- If you think Gov. Bill Richardson has done some pretty weird things the past seven years, wait until you hear what he did 40 years ago as he began his career in government.
According to Andrew Basiago, Richardson was a young staff member for a secret federal government agency called Project Pegasus. The project teleported, Star-Trek style, child test subjects from New Jersey to the grounds of the New Mexico state capitol complex in the late 1960s and early 1970s.
According to Basiago, former Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, now a Taos-area resident, headed the program. All we're told about Richardson is that he took roll for the adolescent astronauts in New Jersey.
Basiago has appeared on at least one late-night national radio show telling his strange story. Evidently it was through this project that Richardson and Rumsfeld became attached to New Mexico.
Something about Project Pegasus seemed vaguely familiar to me so I googled it. It's straight out of Captain Marvel comics.
* * *
That casino Jemez Pueblo wants to build between Las Cruces and El Paso is back in the news. It seems the Barack Obama administration is taking a second look at some of the Indian gaming proposals rejected by the Bush administration.
This will make big Bill Richardson contributor Gerald Peters very happy. And it would be very bad news for Sunland Park racing owner Stan Fulton, who has gone to great lengths to keep competition out of the area.
Besides Santa Fe businessman Gerald Peters, Ruidoso Downs owner R.D. Hubbard has looked longingly at the area's big population base.
Also casting an eye on the area is the Fort Sill Apache Tribe from Oklahoma. The tribe has tried to start gambling operations at Akela, between Las Cruces and Deming.
That used to be the tribe's homeland back in the days of Geronimo before it was relocated to Florida and then Oklahoma. Don't be surprised to see the tribe make another effort.
The Fort Sill tribe isn't as tied to New Mexico, however, when it comes to the attempt by some of its members to move Geronimo's remains back to New Mexico.
* * *
When I first got into this business 23 years ago, Main Street New Mexico was just getting started. I was impressed with the program because communities around the state were so enthusiastic about its possibilities.
Back then, Ursula Boatright ran the program out of Lt. Gov. Walter Bradley's office. Now it is 25 years old and has helped create more than 2,700 new businesses and over 9,300 jobs across the state.
The program celebrated its Silver Anniversary last week with an awards banquet in Albuquerque. All 23 Main Street communities were present to see Silver City, Las Cruces, Artesia, Portales, Las Vegas, Clovis, Corrales and Nob Hill Albuquerque receive awards for outstanding efforts.
Twenty years ago the office was moved from the lieutenant governor's office to take advantage of the resources and clout of the Economic Development Department.
* * *
Think New Mexico, a results-oriented think tank is getting an early start at influencing the next administration. It is asking its members to begin trying to influence the two gubernatorial candidates to support the organization's legislation if they are elected.
Think New Mexico's three policy reforms are smaller public schools, barring political contributions from lobbyists and major government contractors and preventing the return of the food tax.
Small schools improve learning and they also happen to cost less than large schools. That seems counterintuitive but they have studies to prove it. They've also picked up support from the conservative Rio Grande Foundation based solely on the money-saving feature.
FRI, 8-20-10

JAY MILLER, 3 La Tusa, Santa Fe, NM 87505
(ph) 982-2723, (fax) 984-0982, (e-mail) insidethecapitol@hotmail.com

 

8 18 Lawmakers Cede Authority to Gov.

By JAY MILLER
Syndicated Columnist
SANTA FE -- We learned a lot from the latest round of state budget cuts. The biggest discovery was that the Legislature ceded more authority to the governor than ever before in the state's history.
The legislative and executive branches of government normally are extremely jealous of their powers. They don't want anyone snatching any power from them. Former Gov. Gary Johnson tried to cut his departments once and the Legislature went to court and stopped him.
Now the situation is reversed. Lawmakers gave Gov. Richardson not only the power to cut his own departments but also everything else in the state budget.
The governor's part of the budget actually is very small. Public schools and higher education eat up well over half the budget Then there are the other two branches of government and all the other elected executive agencies.
So this year's Legislature gave the governor the poser to cut everybody in state government. Is that because lawmakers like Gov. Richardson so much and trust him fully? Is it a good idea to get in a snowball fight with Randy Johnson?
The only answer has to be that everyone was in a huge hurry to get out of town from that special session that gave up its power. House Speaker Ben Lujan had a wedding to attend the next day. Other house members were worried about primary election challenges.
Actually Mr. Speaker had a very tough primary election challenge of his own. He just didn't know it at the time.
So everyone raced out of town. But not before clamping one restriction on the governor. All cuts had to be the same. After looking at the early August revenue forecast, Gov. Richardson decided on a 3.2 percent across-the-board cut.
The Legislative Finance Committee seemed all right with that and the state Board of Finance accepted it. Another revenue forecast will be made in November, which might trigger more gubernatorial cuts.
Public schools caught a break. Congressional action approving stimulus funds to prevent teacher layoffs just as school starts prompted a gubernatorial decision not to apply the cut to schools, which would have forced layoffs now that would be reinstated in a month or two.
In other education news, the interim Legislative Finance Committee has determined that New Mexico spends more per capita on higher education than all but one other state. And we don't seem to be getting much for our money.
For the last few years, the Legislature has been looking at the large number of higher education institutions in the state. Arizona, for instance, has fewer higher educations than New Mexico despite having over four times as many students.
Our state's large number of community and junior colleges have been seen as a way to bring higher education to more students since they do not have to travel as far.
But Legislative Finance Committee vice-chairman John Arthur Smith of Deming says it is not paying off in graduation rates or other indicators.
New Mexico public schools ranked in the 40s for decades in terms of expenditure per child. Often we were close to last. During Gov. Richardson's seven years in office, that ranking has climbed into the 30s. Unfortunately we haven't seen test score or graduation rate improvements as a result of that increased effort.
If New Mexico were second in the nation in public school expenditures, would we be seeing an improvement? Probably so, but it is not going to happen. Affluent states pour very large amounts into their schools. Their results are good and they do well at attracting employers to their states.
Research on the effectiveness of providing incentives for economic development indicates that it isn't always the money-saving inducements that attract employers. Often outweighing tax breaks are the ability of schools to provide an educated work force and a quality education for workers' families.
WED, 8-18-10

JAY MILLER, 3 La Tusa, Santa Fe, NM 87505
(ph) 982-2723, (fax) 984-0982, (e-mail) insidethecapitol@hotmail.com

 

8-16 Many Days to Remember in August

By JAY MILLER
Syndicated Columnist
SANTA FE -- August holds no holidays for New Mexicans. Heck, even members of the U.S. House of Representatives have to give up their traditional August recess to work on the ambitious agenda of Speaker Nancy Pelosi.
But August has many days to remember, especially for New Mexicans. We just don't celebrate them because they're all tinged with some bad memories.
Every elementary school child knows Christopher Columbus arrived in the New World on October 12, 1492. But he set sail on August 3 of that year.
They still are teaching elementary students that Columbus was the guy who figured out the world is round. But we have learned over the years that when he set sail, he had no doubt he wasn't going to fall off the edge of the earth.
Many people already knew the world was round and some even knew others had already explored new lands to the west. The only question was how far west.
It was August 1598 when Juan de Onate and his colonists reached Northern New Mexico.
It was August 10, 1680 when the Pueblos, with the help of Apaches, decided they didn't like Spanish rule. Some 400 colonists and 21 Franciscan missionaries were killed.
The rest fled down the Rio Grande to south of El Paso. It is said to be the first and only instance of Native Americans overthrowing their conquerors.
It was August 1846 when U.S. troops, under the command of Gen. Stephen Watts Kearny, invaded New Mexico. On August 22, Kearny declared all residents to be American citizens.
On August 6 and 9, Little Boy and Fat Man were dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, assuring a quick end to the war. The dates are not celebrated in the United States. They are mourned by the Japanese and American peace activists.
At the time, it seemed to our leaders like the thing to do. High school graduates were being drafted and quickly sent to the Pacific to prepare for a land invasion expected to take a million lives.
Scientists and engineers from Los Alamos were sent to the island of Tinian in the Northern Marianas, near Guam and Saipan, to prepare the bombs and the modified B-29s that would carry them.
We knew that American prisoners held in Japan, including 900 members of the New Mexico National Guard, would be shot as soon as a land invasion commenced. But when the two big ones dropped, prison guards throughout Japan ran for their homes and never returned.
Even before the two bombs dropped, Japan had been making efforts toward ending the war. But there were still holdouts in the Japanese high command that either wanted to fight to the end or to bargain for keeping the lands they had taken.
The bombs hastened the decision to surrender. Six days after the second bomb was dropped, Japan surrendered. It was high noon, August 15 in Tokyo and 6 p.m. the day before in Washington, D.C.
There was great rejoicing nationwide. Next to the photo of the Iwo Jima flag raising, the picture of a sailor sweeping a nurse off her feet on Times Square is probably the most beloved in American history. I was a seven-year-old in Las Cruces watching the celebrating.
But the yearly celebrations didn't last. Although the bombs killed no more than our nightly saturation bombings of Japanese cities, the radiation deaths and illnesses that followed insured that nuclear devices have not been used in warfare since.
August also is the anniversary of New Mexico native Smokey Bear being adopted as our national forest fire prevention symbol in 1944. Even Smokey had a war connection.
All our able-bodied men were fighting elsewhere. And Japan was tying small bombs to gas balloons and launching them into the winds headed for our West Coast forests. Some of them made it. So the American public was alerted to fight forest fires.
MON, 8-16-10

JAY MILLER, 3 La Tusa, Santa Fe, NM 87505
(ph) 982-2723, (fax) 984-0982, (e-mail) insidethecapitol@hotmail.com

 

8-13 Those Pesky Lieutenant Governors

By JAY MILLER
Syndicated Columnist
SANTA FE -- Lt. Gov. Diane Denish is getting tied so closely to Gov. Bill Richardson that one might think Denish is Richardson's last name.
The Richardson-Denish or Richardson/Denish administration is being blamed for the ills of the past seven and a half years, thereby making the lieutenant governor equally responsible or at least a knowing accomplice in all the governor's actions.
Two salient examples of this phenomenon have occurred since I wrote about Democratic lieutenant governor candidate Jerry Ortiz y Pino's observance that the duties of the lieutenant governor make it the dullest job around.
The lieutenant governor's duties consist of presiding over the Senate, breaking ties and being governor when the chief executive is out of state.
Then 40 years ago, a lieutenant governor was elected who needed a job. He was a former House member so his old colleagues gave him a break and passed legislation making the post full time if desired.
The problem was that no new duties were specified. If they had been, any governor might have vetoed it because the duties would have been carved out of his authority.
The primary duty of lieutenant governors since then has been to stay out of the governor's way and not be a pest. They can't be trusted with anything because they are elected public officials not under the authority of the governor.
If they displease the governor, they can't be fired. The governor has a full staff to carry out his or her directives. He/she appoints them and can remove them at any time.
When an emergency occurs while the governor is out of state, the governor's staff handles it, not the lieutenant governor. Lt. Gov. Casey Luna learned that, much to his chagrin, during the third Bruce King administration.
Luna challenged King in the next Democratic primary. Roberto Mondragon, lieutenant governor during King's first two administrations, challenged King in the general election that same year as a Green Party candidate.
Yes, governors and full-time lieutenant governors have never been close. So why should one assume that Richardson and Denish have been? And why should one assume that if Susana Martinez and John Sanchez are elected in November, they will be close?
But in a July guest commentary column Sanchez wrote for several newspapers around the state, he defends Martinez's comprehensive budget plan to solve problems created by the Richardson/Denish administration.
In the commentary, Sanchez often refers to what "we" are going to do. It seems Sanchez assumes he will be an integral part of the Martinez administration. And maybe he will break some new ground.
An even more salient example of assuming governors and lieutenant governors are a team occurred in an interview of former Gov. Gary Johnson by Rob Nikolewski of New Mexico Watchdog.org.
Johnson says Lt. Gov. Denish reminds him of a school bus driver who takes her students to a 7-11, where they pilfer the store and bring all the stolen items back on the bus and Denish drives them away.
Johnson's obvious point is that Denish enabled crimes by others while she was lieutenant governor. He should know better than that because he did not include Lt. Gov. Walter Bradley in his internal meetings.
Bradley complained to me that the back door of his offices opened into the governor's suite of offices but it was always locked from the other side so he had to walk all the way around the top floor of the Roundhouse to get to the governor's office. And he had to have an appointment.
I am disappointed in Johnson, who has been one of my heroes because of his libertarian leanings, unless he knows something I don't know about the Richardson administration.
As for Denish, one of her campaign ads says, I have never been part of the good old boys club -- and never wanted to be.
FRI, 8-13-10

JAY MILLER, 3 La Tusa, Santa Fe, NM 87505
(ph) 982-2723, (fax) 984-0982, (e-mail) insidethecapitol@hotmail.com

 

8-11 Who Did Tax Holiday Really Help?

By JAY MILLER
Syndicated Columnist
SANTA FE -- Who did last weekend's back-to-school sales tax holiday really help? We know it helped shoppers to the tune of seven to eight cents on the dollar that they saved on sales tax on school-related items.
Merchants said they were happy with it too. They said people could afford to buy more items because of the tax money they were saving. Gov. Richardson called it a win-win situation.
But, as always, there is a cloud on the horizon. In January, state lawmakers will be taking a close look at all the tax breaks the state offers. That includes exemptions, deductions, credits, rebates, loopholes and tax holidays in order to balance their budget. .
The back-to-school sales tax holiday is about the only tax break that benefits real people. Most of the breaks benefit corporations and the wealthy that have the lobbyists to assure their tax breaks stay put. So we little guys could lose out.
Sixteen states currently have back-to-school tax holidays and all are taking a hard look at whether they should continue. Georgia has canceled its tax holiday for this year.
In a well-researched article, the New Mexico Independent.com presents the results of some think tank studies of the 16 states with a tax holiday.
The conclusion of these think tanks, which rang from conservative to liberal, is that they don't work. They are an expensive and ineffective gimmick according to several think tanks.
These think tanks contend that consumers simply buy the same items on different days to avoid taxes. They are a costly item for state government and a headache for business and government.
But Albuquerque merchants who were interviewed contended sales were up and didn't complain about having to separate the items that qualify for not being taxed.
The liberal Citizens for Tax Justice disputes the claim that tax holidays benefit working-class and poor families because very low-income people usually don't have the flexibility to shift their spending to take advantage of the holiday. It concludes that money saved by eliminating the tax holiday could go to state programs for the poor.
Pew Charitable Trusts contends that retailers sometimes hike prices during the tax holidays. But we don't hear those kind of charges in New Mexico. In fact, two years ago, Gov. Richardson tried to get the three tax holidays extended to seven days.
A possibility exists that some families may travel from neighboring states to take advantage of tax holidays, especially if they were planning a vacation or a visit to grandma anyway. Texas is the only neighboring state with a similar tax holiday but their provisions don't seem to be as generous as New Mexico's.
The yearly loss to state and local governments is around $5 million. Cities and counties absorb about 40 percent of that loss so they might lobby for discontinuance of the holiday.
It appears very likely that a legislative interim committee will want to look at the holidays this fall along with all the other myriad tax exemptions.
Many other exemptions certainly take much more than $5 million out of state revenue but it is definitely within the range of other cuts lawmakers are considering. The holidays' popularity with the public may argue for keeping it around.
Just as we may be getting some shoppers from neighboring states that don't have a sales tax holiday or don't have a generous a holiday, we need to look at what other states offer in terms of other exemptions we may want to cut.
Any one of them could take us from a competitive position to a non-competitive one and negatively affect our economy.
Both of our gubernatorial candidates have pledged to take a look at tax breaks. So we know it will be a hot topic. The problem is, however, that tax policy is a terrifically complicated subject that can activate the law of unintended consequences very quickly.
WED, 8-11-10

JAY MILLER, 3 La Tusa, Santa Fe, NM 87505
(ph) 982-2723, (fax) 984-0982, (e-mail) insidethecapitol@hotmail.com

 

8-9 Johnson Inching Toward Presidential Bid

By JAY MILLER
Syndicated Columnist

SANTA FE -- Gary Johnson is looking more like a presidential candidate every day. The former New Mexico governor has now visited 22 states, appeared on a multitude of radio and TV talk shows and was included in the most recent GOP presidential poll.
That poll was conducted by Public Policy Polling and had five choices: Mike Huckabee, Mitt Romney, Newt Gingrich, Sarah Palin and Gary Johnson.
Gov. Johnson had the lowest name recognition but still did better against President Barack Obama than the other four did. GOP leaders are beginning to sit up and take note.
Several months ago, Johnson founded a non-profit called Our American Initiative to promote his ideas. Because of his non-profit's tax status, Johnson cannot announce for the presidency but he has done just about everything else.
Two Web sites have now been set up by others to encourage Johnson to run for president. The Web sites are attracting considerable interest from Libertarians and Ron Paul Republicans.
How far can Johnson expand that base? Many 2008 supporters of Rep. Ron Paul, a Republican congressman from Texas, think Johnson has what it takes to go farther. Paul did a fantastic job raising money over the Internet but had trouble taking advantage of it.
Those jumping on the Johnson bandwagon see him as being much more of a fighter. Having been a governor also makes a difference to many because it means proven administrative experience. And Johnson has much to sell based on his eight years as governor.
But Johnson will be hurt within the Republican Party because of some of his libertarian beliefs. Opposition to the war on drugs is his biggest problem. Remember, Johnson did not win either of his two election victories in New Mexico while supporting drug legalization.
Johnson took that stand soon after his second victory. That was followed by close to four years of turmoil in the state GOP as Republicans chose sides concerning Johnson's attempts to push various drug bills through the Legislature.
Gov. Johnson gradually scaled back his position on drug legalization to one supporting the decriminalization of Marijuana. That is where he stands now
Nationally, the attitude about drugs and the continued war on them has gradually changed Some of that change has been brought about by economics and notions about legalizing marijuana and then taxing it.
Also hurting Johnson with conservatives he needs to attract is his desire to get out of the military wars we are in. He might pick up some votes from the peace movement but his opposition to war is mainly its tremendous expense.
Johnson's pro-choice stance also will hurt him with most Republicans although supporters note that as governor Johnson consistently supported pro-life legislation.
And Johnson's view that people should be able to live where they want is scary to many in today's anti-immigrant atmosphere.
But any group that truly wants to see less government spending has a proven champion in Johnson. He did it in New Mexico, mainly with his veto pen, and can do it on the federal level even with a Democratic Congress.
The Tea Party movement likes him for that reason but Sarah Palin may be even more attractive to them.
Johnson could have the Libertarian Party presidential nomination for the asking but, like Ron Paul, he knows the time has not yet come for a minor party to win. So he continues to run as a conservative with libertarian leanings rather than what he really is -- a libertarian with conservative leanings.
Libertarians believe in a much more limited government than conservatives do. Johnson sees a little more need for government than libertarians do.
Gary Johnson is seen by many Libertarians as the ideological successor to Ron Paul. While it is true Paul never has gotten far, he has blazed a trail that should make it easier for those who follow.
MON, 8-09-10

JAY MILLER, 3 La Tusa, Santa Fe, NM 87505
(ph) 982-2723, (fax) 984-0982, (e-mail) insidethecapitol@hotmail.com

 

8-6 Getting Our Money's Worth From State Lawmakers

By JAY MILLER
Syndicated Columnist

SANTA FE -- Are New Mexicans getting their money's worth out of our 112 state legislators? A recent report indicates we may be getting a very good deal indeed.
The Illinois Policy Institute looked into the range of salaries paid to state legislators across the country and found that the states that pay their lawmakers the most also have the highest budget shortfalls.
The average budget shortfall for the states with the top 10 salaries is over 30 percent. The average for the bottom 10 states is under 19 percent.
Data used for this study is for the fiscal year that ended June 30, 2010. I reported to you recently on data ending June 30, 2009. California ended its 2009 fiscal year with a 49 percent budget gap. This year, it was 65 percent. New Mexico's figures were a 6.3 percent gap last year and 22 percent this year.
California pays the highest legislative salaries in the nation at $95,291. Other states in the top 10 are Michigan, New York, Pennsylvania, Illinois, Massachusetts, Ohio, Alaska, Wisconsin and New Jersey, which pays a salary of $49,000.
The bottom 10 in legislative compensation are New Mexico, Utah and Texas with no salary. They are followed by Mississippi, South Carolina, Nebraska, North Carolina, Rhode Island, Arkansas and Louisiana, with a salary of $16,800.
New Mexico, Utah and Texas all pay mileage and per diem to their lawmakers but so do many states that pay salaries.
Other factors also enter into the correlation of legislative pay with budget deficits. The states that pay the highest salaries also have the longest legislative sessions, many lasting for most of the year.
How much more work and higher quality work does this produce? Maybe not much because there is no incentive to finish their work until the final days when they hold lengthy sessions on nights and weekends just as New Mexico does.
New Mexico's 90 days of regular sessions over a two year period make almost every minute count. Our lawmakers find it necessary sometimes to hold special sessions but so do the legislatures that meet for longer.
If a legislature is going to meet almost year round, it becomes necessary to pay a salary since its lawmakers can't hold a regular job. That has become a problem in at least one state (New York) with one of the biggest budget shortfalls in the nation. It has suspended its own pay since April, forcing many members to borrow money in order to survive.
One other factor relating to the correlation of pay and budget deficits is that the 10 states with the highest legislative pay also are some of the wealthiest in the nation in terms of household income. Evidently the wealth of a state has an effect on how far it can fall during a recession.
New Mexico's good sized budget shortfall has caused both gubernatorial candidates to stop banging on each other and come up with some plans to plug our budget hole.
Both have promised to reduce the number of political appointees That is the most popular budget cutting device currently mentioned. Reportedly, cutting back to the level of exempt employees at the end of the Gary Johnson administration is most often mentioned. That is said to save about $8.8 million a year.
Another popular cut is the sale of the state jet, purchased in 2005 for $5.5 million. Martinez is for it. Denish says this is a bad time to sell because so many similar jets currently are on the market.
Here's an idea. We could sell the jet and maybe the turbo props too and charter flights when absolutely necessary. Former GOP gubernatorial candidate Allen Weh has a very successful worldwide charter service I'm sure they could use.
But then, Weh aired a campaign ad during the primary indicating he would use his pick up to get around the state.
FRI, 8-06-10

JAY MILLER, 3 La Tusa, Santa Fe, NM 87505
(ph) 982-2723, (fax) 984-0982, (e-mail) insidethecapitol@hotmail.com