Democracy for New Mexico

(Updated) Three Kennedys Endorse Obama

UPDATE: Add them to the list: Author and 60's activist Tom Hayden endorsed Obama.
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There was another time, when another young candidate was running for President and challenging America to cross a New Frontier. He faced public criticism from the preceding Democratic President, who was widely respected in the party. Harry Truman said we needed “someone with greater experience”—and added: “May I urge you to be patient.” And John Kennedy replied: “The world is changing. The old ways will not do…It is time for a new generation of leadership.” So it is with Barack Obama. He has lit a spark of hope amid the fierce urgency of now. -- Sen. Ted Kennedy endorsing Obama

So I’m asking for your hands. I’m asking for your help. And I’m asking for your hearts. And if you will stand with me in the days to come - if you will stand for change so that our children have the same chance that somebody gave us; if you’ll stand to keep the American dream alive for those who still hunger for opportunity and thirst for justice; if you're ready to stop settling for what the cynics tell you you must accept, and finally reach for what you know is possible, then we will win these primaries, we will win this election, we will change the course of history, and light a new torch for change in this country – and “the glow from that fire can truly light the world."  -- Barack Obama, accepting the Kennedy endorsements, January 28, 2008, at American University in Washington

Text and video clips of the endorsement speeches of Caroline Kennedy and Sen. Ted Kennedy, and acceptance speech by Barack Obama here.

Note: President John F. Kennedy gave one of his most notable speeches at American University in November 1963, regarding nuclear disarmament and peace.

For our previous coverage of the 2008 Presidential primaries and caucuses, visit our archive.

(Updated) Dem Prez Campaigns Focus on New Mexico

Standing for Change in the Land of Enchantment

Lots of rumors and incomplete data are circulating about possible visits to New Mexico this week by Dem presidential candidates or their surrogates ahead of our February 5th caucus.

Barack Obama
The only semi-confirmed event so far is an appearance by Barack Obama in Santa Fe on Friday that appears on an event notice here for car pooling from Albuquerque to Santa Fe. Obama may also appear at an event in Albuquerque. Word is that Sen. Ted Kennedy, who's officially endorsing Obama today, will visit New Mexico on behalf of the campaign later this week. Keep checking the Obama New Mexico page, where you can also sign up to volunteer and receive emails.

According to the Santa Fe New Mexican,

Obama also will receive "a slew of new endorsements" from black, American Indian and other political leaders during a Tuesday news conference at the state Capitol, Fitzgibbon said. On the same day, Las Cruces Mayor Ken Miyagishima and other mayors and state representatives from Southern New Mexico plan to endorse Obama at a news conference in Las Cruces, he said.

Last Wednesday, more than a dozen prominent New Mexicans endorsed Obama at a news conference in Santa Fe.

According to Trevor Fitzgibbon, who's a state campaign organizer for Obama, "More than 100 campaign workers canvassed about 8,000 voters in Santa Fe and 16 other cities across the state during the weekend. It has been just a flurry of activity."

Hillary Clinton
Nothing firm yet but rumors that Hillary and/or Bill Clinton will pay a visit to New Mexico before the caucus, perhaps on Friday or sometime next weekend.

UPDATE: Bill Clinton will be here Thursday to campaign for Hillary. Hillary herself may also visit Friday or over the weekend.

New Mexicans who have endorsed Clinton include Lt. Gov. Diane Denish, Albuquerque Mayor Martin Chávez, former Gov. Bruce King, State Auditor Hector Balderas and former Democratic Party of New Mexico Chairman John Wertheim. The campaign reportedly will hold a news conference later this week to announce further local endorsements. You can join the Clinton campaign's New Mexico effort here.

John Edwards
I haven't heard anything yet about an Edwards event here before the caucus. The only prominent New Mexican I've heard of that's backing Edwards is former Attorney General Patricia Madrid. You can sign up with New Mexico for Edwards here.

Last Day to Mail Absentee Ballots for 2008 NM Prez Caucus

If you requested and received an absentee (mail-in) ballot for the February 5, 2008 NM Presidential Preference Caucus, today is the deadline for mailing your completed ballot to the Democratic Party of New Mexico (DPNM). Completed absentee ballots must be returned by mail and postmarked by midnight tonight, January 28th, 2008 in order to be counted.

If you don't mail in your absentee ballot for some reason, you can still vote in person at a Caucus site on February 5th according to this FAQ posted on the DPNM website:

If I request a ballot and don't return it, can I still vote at the Caucus site?

Yes. Only voters who request a vote-by-mail ballot and return it to the Democratic Party of New Mexico will be ineligible to vote again at a Caucus site. A voter's vote-by-mail ballot is not cast until it is received by the Democratic Party of New Mexico. If a voter requests a vote-by-mail ballot, but does not return it, she/he will still be able to cast a ballot in person on Caucus Day. However, vote-by-mail ballots post-marked by January 28th but received after Caucus Day will be checked against the records of people who voted on Caucus Day to ensure that only one vote is counted per voter.

If you have questions, contact the DPNM at 505-830-3650; 1-800-624-2457 (toll-free); 505-830-3645 (fax) or email info@nmdemocrats.org.

Ted Kennedy Coming to NM to Stump for Obama?

According to the Boston Globe:

Kennedy plans to campaign actively for Obama, an aide said, and will focus particularly among Hispanics and labor union members, who are important voting blocks in several Feb. 5 states, including California, New York, New Jersey, Arizona and New Mexico.

NM GOP: We've Got a Secret (Or Two)

Coco over at Duke City Fix takes up the continuing saga of the privatized Repub Congressional candidate debate held on Saturday morning at JB's restaurant in Albuquerque. The story's been bouncing around since Friday.

Although initially billed as a public event, the GOP decided to ban the media and anyone other than Repub insiders from the scene. Since the secret nature of the forum was revealed, Bernalillo County Sheriff Darren White (above right) has remained firmly in the keep 'em out camp, while perennial candidate Joe Carraro, a State Senator, has come out against the ban:

"I invited the press," Carraro told the crowd. "I have nothing to hide."

Monahan reported on Friday that Rory Ogle was the guy who decided to exclude all media, angering KOB-TV and other local media. Rory also claimed both Carraro (left) and White agreed to the media ban before the event, explaining that the candidates would be more "candid" that way. I guess whenever cameras are around they intend to morph into evasive double-talkers. Remember that when these candidates emerge from their secret cocoons and into full campaign mode.

Who is GOP spokesman Rory Ogle? A blogger on Clearly New Mexico fills us in:

A curious aspect of this story is that it highlights the increasing visibility of Ogle, a former Republican state representative (District 28, Bern) as a spokesman for GOP party insiders.

Many will recall that it was Ogle who resigned from the legislature in 2004 after being arrested and charged with aggravated battery on a household member and domestic violence. It was reported that he picked up a twin bed headboard and threw it at his wife, seriously injuring her right hand.

When you have a past like that, as significant numbers of Repub politicos do these days it seems, you tend to get attached to secrecy and avoiding the press at any cost. Of course, this kind of paranoid strategizing can make it difficult for candidates to reach voters. Apparently the NM GOP is content to have their candidates preach only to the choir right now.

Come to think of it, it might not be a bad idea to keep their real views hidden from voters until the election. When you've uttered the kind of nonsense that often issues from Carraro, and you're connected at the hip to Bush-Cheney like White -- who chaired their campaign in the county in 2004 -- I imagine it might be considered prudent to keep them under wraps as long as possible.

An Antidote to Secrecy
As an antidote to all this right-wing spin, I suggest you sign up to support the campaign of Martin Heinrich, who's running on the Dem side in NM-01. He's for transparency in government, not secrecy. Martin needs donations of time and money FROM YOU to win this race. Visit his website to learn more, and/or contribute some bucks via the NM netroots True Blue New Mexico project.

You can also run to be a delegate to the Democratic Pre-Primary Convention set for February 7, 2008, and vote for Martin there. Here's how.

For our previous coverage of the 2008 NM-01 Congressional race, visit our archive.

Obama More Than Doubles Hillary's Vote Totals in SC Primary

Quite a victory for Mr. Obama yesterday in South Carolina. That's his spine-tingling celebration speech above. At the county level (see map), Edwards won only his county of birth in the NW corner of South Carolina and Clinton won only the seaside county that encompasses Myrtle Beach and other resort towns. Obama won all the rest.

Exit polling results provide detailed voter profiles. Obama won every age group, a majority of both males and females, those with college degrees and without, in every income level and within every political philosophy category. He won 78% of African-Americans and 24% of white voters in a Southern state that still flies the flag of the confederacy on its statehouse grounds. Voter turnout was about 532,000, compared with 290,000 who voted in the state's 2004 Dem primary. Obama's vote total was larger than that of the top two Repub candidates combined -- McCain and Huckabee -- in this year's Repub SC primary. And Obama received more votes than all Democrats in the 2004 South Carolina Democratic Primary. I guess Howard Dean's 50-state strategy (mocked by the Clinton wing) is working.

Ted & Caroline Kennedy
Today's spine-tingling New York Times op-ed by Caroline Kennedy endorsing Obama is the icing on the cake. Excerpt:

I have never had a president who inspired me the way people tell me that my father inspired them. But for the first time, I believe I have found the man who could be that president — not just for me, but for a new generation of Americans.

And today it was reported that Sen. Ted Kennedy will appear tomorrow morning at American University in Washington with his niece Caroline Kennedy to endorse Obama. According to an aide, Kennedy will campaign actively for Obama and will focus particularly among Hispanics and labor union members in states like California, New York, New Jersey, Arizona and New Mexico. It's powerful that Barack is getting endorsements from both Red and Blue State politicos.

Clinton's Rush to Leave SC
Very telling that Hillary Clinton decided to diss the results and flee to a rally in Tennessee without bothering to offer Obama (or those who labored in the trenches for her campaign) a traditional concession speech. Clinton's clumsy two-for-the-price-of-one campaign has repeatedly demonstrated it's not going to follow the rules or any of the niceties of Democratic politics. When you have someone like slithery Mark Penn calling the shots, that's not unexpected.

Did anyone else see any of Bill Clinton's speech last night in Independence, Missouri -- given at the same time Obama was addressing his supporters? Bill spent significant verbiage carrying on about himself and his achievements as President. It can be hard to decipher for whom he's campaigning. Sometimes I think his mind shifts back to 1996 or so when he gets up on a dais.

The Clinton campaign may have a difficult time in Missouri, one of the February 5th Super Tuesday states. Former Sen. Jean Carnahan (widow of highly popular Missouri Gov. Mel Carnahan) and current Sen. Claire McCaskill have both endorsed Obama (and been outspoken about Bill Clinton's shading of the truth about Obama) -- just for starters.

Punditry
Odd how the media pundits are now questioning whether Obama can win over sufficient numbers of white voters. Wasn't it just the other day they were asking whether he was "black enough" to capture African-American voters? Well, so far he's won in the lily-white state of Iowa, as well as in South Carolina, where 50%+ of the Dem primary voter pool is African-American. Quite a range.

No Action on NM House Health Coverage Reform Bills Today

I just got a report phoned in by Terry Riley, who was up at the Roundhouse today monitoring progress on health care reform. This post is based on my understanding of what he communicated.

The NM House Health and Government Affairs Committee decided to put off action on the single-payer-type Health Security Act (HB214) and other health care reform measures until next Tuesday, after spending hours yesterday and today discussing their options. The committee seriously considered passing on the bills to the House Judiciary Committee without recommendation. Eventually, however, they decided to hold off -- primarily to see what happens in the Senate Public Affairs Committee that will be taking up companion bills and other reform proposals tomorrow.

The other major bill in the mix is Governor Richardson's Health Solutions Act (HB62), a complex bill that would set up a sort of public-private health care system. The bill also includes creation of a Health Care Authority appointed mostly by the governor. An alternative Authority act (HB147) sponsored by Rep. Danice Picraux m, which would give more power over the Authority to the legislature, is also being discussed.

Proposed Compromise
Much consideration is being given to passing a compromise bill that would set up only a Health Authority of some sort, which would be charged with studying the issues AGAIN and making recommendations to the Legislature in the future. Governor Richardson has signaled that he's open to compromising on the membership and scope of such an Authority. However, it would take 6-9  months after passage of the bill to get the Authority up and running. The fear is that the Authority would not be ready to make any viable recommendations to the legislature at its 60-day Session in 2009. That would mean action on health care reform would be delayed until at least 2010 -- and maybe years longer -- depending on how such reform would be implemented.

Tired of Waiting
Bottom line? The thousands of New Mexicans who currently lack health care coverage or have only inadequate policies can keep holding their breath while the government dithers. In the meantime, sick people will continue to go untreated and some of them will certainly die. Apparently too many legislators still haven't gotten the message that our health care system is broken and in urgent need of comprehensive reform right now. I imagine there's not one legislator, insurance lobbyist or provider rep at the Roundhouse who lacks ready access to quality health care and a top notch insurance policy to pay for it. Wouldn't it be satisfying if we had the power to cancel all their policies and force them to experience personally the kind of insecurity and suffering people put up with who must function in the world without any health care coverage whatsoever?

Not surprisingly, the forces fighting against the Health Security Act at today's hearings were either members of Governor Richardson's staff or paid lobbyists for the insurance industry and others who like things just as they are, uninsured and underinsured people be damned. Those attending the hearings as supporters of the Health Security Act, on the other hand, were almost all unpaid citizen lobbyists. You get the picture. Once more it's the people against the vested interests. Who do you think will win?

More detailed info on the particulars of the array of healthcare reform bills now being considered and who's backing each one can be found here, as explained by the Health Security for New Mexicans campaign. Remember to attend Sunday's committee action in the NM Senate on health care reform.

Today: South Carolina Dem Primary (With Updates)

UPDATE 6:49 PM: Has been projected the winner by MSNBC and CNN:

	Obama	218,963	54%	7	81% reporting
	Clinton	109,577	27%	1
	Edwards	75,453	19%	0
	Kucinich	443	0%	0

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UPDATE 5:24: CNN projects Obama will win based on exit polling.
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The first Democratic presidential primary in the South is being conducted today from 7:00 AM to 7:00 PM EST in South Carolina. The results will begin to roll in at 5:00 PM MST right here at the SC Dem Party website, when the polls close. Cable outlets CNN and MSNBC will also be posting results online, and will begin TV coverage at 6:00 PM MST. Brave New Films will have live, online coverage.

At stake are 54 pledged delegates, out of 2025 total delegates needed to win the nomination. Unlike most Repub primary contests, Dem primaries and caucuses produce proportional allocation of delegates rather than winner take all. If you get a third of the vote, you get a third of the delegates, and the delegates are allocated by congressional district. On Super Tuesday, delegates will be up for grabs in 16 Dem primary states, including New Mexico, including 183 separate congressional districts. The way in which the delegates are allocated means it's important to win votes in every district, not just in major urban centers with large populations.

Battle for Delegates
Even if one of the Dem contenders happened, by some miracle, to win every single February 5th Super Tuesday contest, that candidate would still not have enough pledged delegates to the DNC Convention in August in Denver to be declared a winner. This is gonna be a long slog. If the delegate race stays close, the power of the so-called Superdelegates grows. Superdelegates are automatic delegates to the national convention, and consist of Dem elected officials and other party powerhouses like former presidential candidates. The may support any candidate they fancy. In a tight race, they may well make the difference in putting a candidate over the top.

Candidate endorsements from big-name Democrats often don't mean much in terms of primary votes. In a normal year, when the nominee becomes apparent early, the Superdelegates usually throw their votes to the winner at the convention, even if they had previously supported someone else. This year, however, they may have a chance to make or break a nominee at the convention.

At the moment, the pledged delegate count among the top three is Obama 38, Clinton 36, Edwards 18. If you count Michigan's delegates, which the DNC has ruled will not be counted because the state ignored party rules to move their primary up before Nevada, Hillary has 109. A total of 55 unpledged delegates have been elected so far, mostly the remnants from precincts in caucus states where candidates didn't achieve the "viable" percentage of votes -- usually 15 % -- and those voters didn't choose to switch to a candidate who had achieved viability.

Michigan and Florida
Until recently, Clinton was perfectly fine with the DNC's decision not to recognize primaries in Michigan and Florida because they broke party rules to move their elections into earlier than allowed time slots. Now that the race is coming down to a fight for delegates rather than a quick sprint to early victory, Clinton is whining publicly about the poor delegates in the two states who won't get seated at the national convention. Just so happens that Clinton was the only Dem who's name appeared officially on the Michigan ballot, and she's ahead in Florida, where none of the Dems has campaigned.

Now that there's a long battle brewing over delegates, Clinton has her surrogates out there bashing Chairman Howard Dean and the DNC for having the nerve to follow the rules and put some teeth behind them. Of course the Clinton bunch has always detested Dean for his emphasis on party building over wining and dining corporate hot shots, not to mention his willingness to criticize DLC Dems for their triangulating, spineless maneuvering to avoid taking a position that might draw criticism from Repubs.

The Dean attacks from the likes of Terry McAuliffe, Bruce Reed, Al From and others in the "centrist" Clintonista realm have been coming hot and heavy since 2003, and they continue today. The thought of this group being back in the limelight if Clinton wins is enough to make my hair stand up on end. How about you?

At any rate, if the race continues to be close in the delegate count, there may well be a floor fight in Denver over seating the delegations from Michigan and Florida -- delegates who might be able to put one of the contenders in the driver's seat, most likely Clinton. Should be a long, hot summer.

You can find our previous coverage of the 2008 presidential primaries in our archive.

Saturday: Obama Campaign to Canvass in Seven NM Locations

I keep hearing rumors that Obama will visit Albuquerque on February 1st, perhaps at a rally at UNM. Nothing firm yet, but it's on good authority.

From the Obama '08 Campaign:
Volunteers for the Obama campaign will go door to door in seven cities across New Mexico this Saturday to sign up new supporters for Barack Obama before the February 5th caucus and bring even more people into our movement for change. Canvasses will take place in Albuquerque, Santa Fe, Las Cruces, Gallup, Roswell, Silver City, Taos.

The Obama grassroots organization has been active in New Mexico for months.  The campaign has offices in Santa Fe, Albuquerque, and Las Cruces, and has been running television ads in markets across the state. If you would like to participate in a canvass, contact one of the Obama campaign offices in New Mexico:

Albuquerque Office
1000 2nd Street NW
Albuquerque, NM 87102
505-205-5629
Email
View map

Las Cruces Office
212 W Hadley Avenue
Las Cruces, New Mexico 88005
505-205-6689
Email
View map

Santa Fe Office
347 East Palace Avenue
Santa Fe, New Mexico 87501
505-235-5416
Email
View map

Noon Saturday: Insight New Mexico Radio

Insight New Mexico's second show of the year will be aired on Albuquerque's Progressive Talk Radio 1350 AM from Noon to 1:00 PM on Saturday, January 25, 2008. Cohosted by Heather Brewer and Javier Benavidez and produced by Suzanne Prescott, the weekly show covers the latest happenings at the Legislative Session and other local political news. You can call in live during the show with your questions and comments at 338- 4090. This week (pending what's going on in Santa Fe during showtime):

• Steve Terrell returns with another of his Roundhouse Roundups
• Rep. Gail Chasey will discuss HB 244, pro-choice legislation
• Laura Sanchez, Executive Director of the Democratic Party of New Mexico will discuss the February 5th Presidential Preference Caucus and provide some insight into what it means in terms of the presidential election
• Sandy Buffett of League of Conservation Voters will give an update of pending environmental legislation

Support Insight New Mexico
If you'd like to help defray the costs of by becoming a sponsor or supporter, contact Suzanne Prescott at 505-304-3960 or Heather Brewer at 505-310-5957. Let's help keep the show on the air!