Monahan Ignores Realities, Sticks to Spinning for Old Guard; AG King Now Issuing Threats in Blogosphere

I wonder if Joe Monahan gets paid on the side by the forces of darkness that are gathered together in unity to keep the voting records of legislators a secret from their constituents, or if he merely kisses their bottoms so he can be privy to "insider" leaks. You know -- so he can continue to be a member in good standing in the good ol' boys club, enjoying grand entrances into dark lounges and sleazing along Roundhouse hallways to get the "inside scoop." Well, somebody's inside scoop anyway -- with that somebody almost always being a politico out to protect his or her hold on big campaign cash and all the other perks of old guard turf control.

Lately, I haven't had much time to think about the travesties of the political shill who calls himself -- with a straight face -- the best political blogger in New Mexico, but this post at m-pyre got me back in the swing of things. Marjorie rightly points out the selectiveness (and oily language) with which Monahan reports on issues to do with ethics, campaign finance reform, the power of incumbency and the right of nonprofits to educate the public.

Monahan Ignores Lawsuit Dismissal
I've been wondering myself why Joe's readers were never alerted to the fact that the juvenile, poorly written lawsuit filed by fallen Dem incumbents Sen. Shannon Robinson, Sen. James Taylor and Rep. Dan Silva against certain nonprofits and the winning Dems had been dismissed in its entirety. After all, the suit was a laughing stock in both the legal and political communities, even though Joe and way too many of his alligators thought it was peachy keen for the vanquished to try and get their primary contests overturned on the basis of, well, nothing that makes sense.

These old school types have a habit of foaming at the mouth in reptilian excitement whenever the forces of darkness try to hold back reform and renewal in the Legislature. They are that into protecting the cozy and lucrative relationships that have long made it worthwhile for some of them to stay in the game in Santa Fe -- representing monied interests to the detriment of the needs of ordinary people in the state.

The Voter Awakening
The enemies of reform (and their mouthpieces) have been more than a bit upset of late because voters seem to be catching on that they do, indeed, have the power to get rid of out-of-touch incumbents and elect lawmakers who will represent their interests -- not merely those of big donors. It helps that the public is getting more and more access to info on how the lawmakers are behaving in the Roundhouse, and why. The voter awakening means that reformers are starting to come into their own in the New Mexico Legislature -- so much so that the old guard is petrified they're losing their clout, and may soon lose their power perches.

The last straw was probably the November 4th election. It must have been frightening for the powers that be to witness the defeat of Senate Minority Whip Leonard Lee Rawson, along with other status-quo defenders like Sen. Diane Snyder and Sen. Steve Komadina, both Republicans -- especially after three Dem reformers won seats in the June primary. Some in the old guard also seem alarmed that Senate Pro-Tem Democrat Tim Jennings is being called on the carpet for publicly supporting Republican Sen. Rawson in his losing race against reform Dem Stephen Fischmann. This bunch was no doubt upset that the word got out to voters that Rawson arranged a tasty appropriation to pave a road outside his business, located in a district other than his own.

Monahan to the Barricades with AG King
Enter Joe Monahan, who can always be counted on to defend the cronies and leak their spin about those who dare to take them on. Unfortunately, it seems that our (now) nominally Democratic Attorney General, Gary King, may well be in on the action in the darkness in some way, and is willing to do his part to keep the lights out. King, you may recall, issued a secretive opinion to the Secretary of State about the actions of the nonprofit New Mexico Youth Organized, which had sent out info on legislator voting records two months or more before an election.

The only public info we have on King's basis for claiming NMYO is a PAC is his now infamous declaration to the media that, "If it walks like a duck and talks like a duck, it's a duck." Classy. King avoids questioning from the media or the public, yet is perfectly comfortable commenting about the official business of his office via wacky press releases and ... Joe Monahan?

Monahan was cranking away in spin mode today, revealing that King is going to "act" on the "nonprofit mess" by year's end. Monahan claimed that NMYO has "refused" to register as a PAC, as directed by the Secretary of State. Well, except that the last anyone heard, NMYO had been informed they didn't have to comply with that demand by the stated deadline because common sense negotiations would be undertaken between the parties. You can read Monahan's blather here, but I can't give you a direct link to the post because Joe evidently hasn't learned how to set up his "blog" in the proper manner yet.

AG King Now Announcing Legal Intentions Via Political Blog
Anyway, Monahan reported that AG King "told" him the $21,000 in fines that were levied by the Secretary of State on PRC candidate Jerome Block Jr. for his violations of public campaign finance law should be seen as an example of the kinds of fines King "has in mind" for nonprofits if he decides their actions violate state laws. That kind of statement sounds more like it originated in a mob den than in a New Mexico Attorney General's office.

First of all, am I the only one that finds it odd -- and unacceptable -- that our Attorney General is using a blog known for rumor-mongering to reveal his views on a legal matter currently being considered by the Attorney General's Office and the Secretary of State? Secondly, since when does the Attorney General levy fines? It's my understanding that the Secretary of State's office levies fines in cases like this, not the AG. Gary must either be feeling his oats -- or is so scared he doesn't have a leg to stand on that he's sunk to issuing threats in the blogosphere to try and put a "chill" on efforts to educate voters. Either way, this is getting more like a bad melodrama by the week -- pumped up by the well-placed leaks and "hit list" language of Joe Monahan.

Worries Plague "Pro-Business" Lawmakers
Monahan also "reveals" that certain lawmakers with what he calls a "pro-business bent" are worried about whose voting records and campaign contributions will be outed next by issue advocates. Joe predicts that Senate Majority Leader Michael Sanchez will be a "key player" in some kind of "action" to ice the nonprofits that dare to do the job they're legally sanctioned to perform. This I want to see. Democrats and voters in general have had it with the old, business-as-usual ways of doing things -- and the damage that is done by public servants using government to serve the wealthy elites and increase the profit margins of corporate interests. We're having some eureka moments out here in little-people land, and we've only just begun. Wait and see. And time -- and younger voters -- are on our side.