Inside the Capitol

Tuesday, March 05, 2013

3-8 You aren't going to believe this

30813 crazy

SANTA FE – The world is going crazy folks. I don't know how else to explain some recent occurrences.
The most unbelievable event was basketball star Dennis Rodman's two-day visit with North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un. Rodman was the bad boy of basketball while he played in the NBA. The United States has had no contact with North Korea, the bad boys of the world, for 15 years or so except for a few ill-fated secret talks.
That is why the U,.S. State Department was so upset when Bill Richardson accompanied the head of Google to North Korea a few weeks ago. Richardson & Co. never got close to Kim Jong Un. But Rodman and a basketball team arrived in town and had Un hugging and kissing Rodman during two days of basketball games.
Evidently Rodman has been a favorite of Un's for many years. Un likes basketball and especially likes Rodman's style. Could the reason be that they both are bad boys?
Back during the "ping pong diplomacy" with China in the early 1970s, it was frequently said that only Richard Nixon could go to China. It is highly unlikely that anyone is going to venture that only Rodman could go to North Korea.
U.S. officials certainly aren't saying it. Rodham came home to tell President Barack Obama that all Kim Jong Un wanted was for Obama to call him. It wouldn't be especially wise for Mr. Un to sit by his phone hoping President Obama will call.
Just a few days after the last talks between the two countries, North Korea fired off another missile. It could happen again.

And then there is Gov. Susana Martinez's $2,200 coffee pot that reportedly makes one cup at a time. This column wrote five months ago about many needed repairs being made to the kitchen of the governor's residence. It started with a leaky gas stove that couldn't be fixed. Removal revealed a kitchen floor that was close to falling into the basement.
The kitchen is part of the public area of the residence so it sees constant traffic from caterers and many others. One thing led to another and much of the kitchen ended up being repaired. No problem with that.
For years, the kitchen had three coffee pots on the countertop – a large, medium and small. Caterers complained that they had to set trays of food on the floor because the coffee makers took up so much counter space. So a coffee maker was built in that would not get in their way.
The story of why the high cost for a coffee maker that won't take care of hundreds hasn't been told yet but otherwise the governor has been as frugal as she promised.
That, of course, has not stopped people who remember the Susana battle cry "Sell the jet" to making T-shirts saying "Sell the coffee pot."
Gov. Martinez also surprised many by voicing support for background checks of people who buy from gun shows. That won't please many of her base who reveled in the film clip of her nailing every target in her concealed carry gun test.
It may be that she is getting ready for her 2014 reelection in a state that appears to be getting bluer.

Another event that made New Mexicans shake their heads was Sen. Pete Domenici's surprise announcement that he fathered a son out of wedlock over 30 years ago. For those of us who follow Washington dongs closely, sexual misbehavior is old hat. All that power coupled with people climbing the ladder creates an enticing atmosphere.
I can tell you stories of many others in New Mexico's congressional delegation, who have done worse while doing great things for our state.
My only lament is the number of members of Congress who voted to impeach President Clinton for a similar offense, without taking a look at their own life.

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