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New ruling by federal judge could end over half of U.S. abortions

5 Comments / National, New Mexico, News, Politics / By

A new ruling Friday by U.S. District Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk of Amarillo, Texas, suspended the Federal Drug Administration’s (FDA) approval of the abortion pill mifepristone.

Kacsmaryk “said in a 67-page ruling that the FDA made a series of legal errors in approving the pill for sale in the U.S. The judge suspended approval of the pill but delayed the impact of his decision for a week to give the Biden administration a chance to appeal,” according to the Wall Street Journal.

“The Court does not second-guess FDA’s decision-making lightly,” Kacsmaryk wrote.

“But here, FDA acquiesced on its legitimate safety concerns — in violation of its statutory duty — based on plainly unsound reasoning and studies that did not support its conclusions.” He noted how the agency faced “significant political pressure” to “increase ‘access’ to chemical abortion.”

“In 2000, the FDA approved the drug mifepristone, which is also known by the brand name Mifeprex and is sold by Danco Laboratories LLC. The agency said studies had found its use safe and effective. A generic version is made by GenBioPro Inc.”

The order now halts the use of the drug most commonly used to abort children, with the WSJ report noting, “More than half of abortions in the U.S. now use it.”

The lawsuit was filed last November by the American Association of Pro-Life Obstetricians & Gynecologists (AAPLOG) and other physicians. They are being represented by the group Alliance Defending Freedom, which helped take down Roe v. Wade in the 2022 Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health decision.

The doctors argued that the FDA did not have the authority to authorize mifepristone “under a pathway for drugs treating serious and life-threatening conditions,” the report noted. 

The new lawsuit could halt abortions in states such as New Mexico, where they are aborting many children via medication abortions, including women traveling from pro-life states such as Texas and Oklahoma that do not permit most or all abortions.

A ruling made late Friday in a different case in Washington, D.C., by U.S. District Judge Thomas Rice ordered the FDA to preserve “the status quo,” which could fast-track the litigation due to the dueling nature of the separate rulings.

GOP ex-candidate takes consultants to court over botched campaign rollout

12 Comments / New Mexico, News, Politics / By

On Thursday, it was revealed that former gubernatorial and U.S. Senate candidate Mark Ronchetti, a Republican, had filed a lawsuit against his former consultant, Virginia-based GoBigMedia. He is being represented by former Republican Gov. Susana Martinez’s general counsel Jessica Hernandez.

Ronchetti claims the firm botched the launch of his campaign websites during both the 2022 gubernatorial and 2020 U.S. Senate elections. He says the second fail by the company cost him his job as a meteorologist at KRQE 13 News. 

The lawsuit alleges that Ronchetti made an agreement with the television network to leave on January 6, 2020 for the Senate race, but GoBigMedia put the campaign website live that evening, which was “leaked” to the media. 

The lawsuit states, “The second leak also occurred before Mr. Ronchetti had announced his candidacy, and in fact before he had made his final decision whether to run,” adding, “As a result of this leak, Mr. Ronchetti was forced to resign immediately and without warning from his job at KRQE-TV.”

The botched website operations by the firm caused “financial losses, loss of reputation, damage to his campaign, damage to his employment prospects, and other economic and noneconomic damages,” as the lawsuit reads.

“Filed in Albuquerque during February, the lawsuit does not specify how much money Ronchetti is seeking from Go Big Media but seeks compensatory and punitive damages, accusing the company of unfair or deceptive trade practices, breach of contract and negligence,” noted the Santa Fe Reporter. 

Ronchetti signaled a possible new run for office late last month by writing on Facebook, “Thank you all for your kind comments, Krysty and I and the girls appreciate it. There’s a lot of stuff we’ve been working on behind the scenes. We’re announcing one of those things here soon. So stay tuned. And don’t worry…my sleeves are still rolled up.”

Trump responds to arraignment: ‘This is a persecution, not an investigation’

7 Comments / National, News, Politics / By

On Tuesday, President Donald J. Trump traveled from his Mar-a-Lago home in Palm Beach, Florida, to New York City to attend an arraignment hearing on charges by partisan Democrat District Attorney Alvin Bragg. 

At the hearing, the president did not speak or show emotion, according to reports. Television cameras were not allowed in the courtroom, but pool cameras were allowed to take photos, such as this one:

Trump pleaded not guilty to all 34 counts lobbed against him by the partisan district attorney, who, before taking office, threatened to go on an unending, merciless witch hunt against President Trump.

Following the hearing and after arriving back at Mar-a-Lago, Trump addressed supporters.

He said, “They want to settle the case, but I want no part of that,” adding, “This is a persecution, not an investigation.”

“The criminal is the district attorney because he illegally leaked massive amounts of grand jury information for which he should be prosecuted, or at a minimum, he should resign.” 

He also noted, “Various prosecutors in the DA’s office also quit because they thought President Trump is being treated very unfairly. Oh, I love that. I’d like to meet them.” 

In an email statement released following his remarks, President Trump wrote, “EVERY American who believes in justice and the rule of law must stand against this witch hunt. These tyrants cannot be rewarded. They must be completely and unconditionally defeated. Once their hatred and division are stopped, we will find that we have much more in common than we thought. We will be one country again. Together, we will deliver a great rebirth of American freedom. Pray for me. Pray for my family. Most importantly, pray for our country.”

Following the president’s arraignment, the Republican Party of New Mexico chairman, former Congressman Steve Pearce, wrote, “The charges released today only add more questions about the credibility of this indictment. No new information was given in the unsealed documents. Federal and district prosecutors previously decided not to charge the same allegations made against former President Trump almost seven years ago. Prosecuting district attorney Alvin Bragg was rightfully asked today, ‘Why now?’ We all know why.”

Buttigieg visiting NM as part of Biden’s ‘Investing in America’ tour

24 Comments / New Mexico, News, Politics / By

It was announced by Joe Biden that his secretary for the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Tom Vilsack, and Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, will be visiting New Mexico. The visit is planned as a part of Biden’s new “Invest in America” tour.

The White House wrote in a press release that the tour would tout legislation pushed during Biden’s tenure that the administration claims is “lowering costs for hardworking families” despite, under the administration, inflation rising to record levels, making the cost of living increase for American families.

“Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack will travel to New Mexico to highlight how the President’s Investing in America agenda is providing a historic $65 billion to ensure every single American has access to affordable, reliable, high-speed internet,” wrote the White House.

The press release added, “Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg will travel to New Mexico to highlight infrastructure projects that are protecting the health and safety of communities and reducing traffic deaths.” 

“Pete Buttigieg will be in Albuquerque on Tuesday before heading down to Las Cruces on Wednesday,” one report noted.  

Buttigieg previously visited Albuquerque last November to push for his climate change agenda on tribal nations. 

NM’s all-Dem congressional reps. vote against lower energy prices

8 Comments / New Mexico, News, Politics / By

This week, the U.S. House of Representatives passed H.R. 1, which would lower American energy costs “by increasing American energy production, exports, infrastructure, and critical minerals processing, by promoting transparency, accountability, permitting, and production of American resources, and by improving water quality certification and energy projects, and for other purposes,” according to the U.S. House GOP.

The Republican-led effort received bipartisan support, with four Democrats voting in favor of the proposal. 

According to Axios, “The past four H.R. 1 bills received entirely partisan votes. Democrats’ H.R. 1 bill for the past two Congresses was a sweeping election reform package known as the ‘For the People Act,’ which didn’t receive a single Republican vote.” 

“Ironically, since Biden took office, his radical climate agenda has led to MORE emissions up to 6% higher than the previous administration. His anti-energy agenda is creating worse emissions while simultaneously pushing Americans into energy poverty,” wrote the Republican Party of New Mexico, adding, “​​It’ll create good-paying American energy jobs for workers producing the cleanest energy in the world. For comparison, America’s natural gas is 40% cleaner than Russian gas.”

However, all three of New Mexico’s congressional representatives, all Democrats, voted against the commonsense bill to lower Americans’ cost of living and restore U.S. energy independence.

Despite representatives like Gabe Vasquez of the Second Congressional District claiming to “stand by New Mexico’s energy workers,” he joined Reps. Teresa Leger Fernandez (D-NMCD-3) and Melanie Stansbury (D-NMCD-1) in opposing the bill. 

In subsequent defensive Twitter posts, he tried to justify the anti-energy worker vote by claiming oil and gas CEOs in “glamorous out-of-touch mansions” were making him their “number one target.” 

The Second District encompasses the state’s energy-rich oil patch, which is responsible for New Mexico’s economic stability. Vasquez’s vote against energy workers and industry will likely not fly in his attempt at reelection in 2024.

Former Congresswoman Yvette Herrell, a Republican, is set to announce her 2024 campaign in early April to reclaim the district.

NM House GOP leaders want feds to intervene on DD waiver claims

4 Comments / New Mexico, News, Politics / By

This week, House Republican leaders requested that the Inspector General for the US Dept. of Health and Human Services initiate an investigation into the NM Department of Health. The call for independent investigation arrives amidst reporting from the Santa Fe New Mexican detailing what the Governor calls a “horrific case of abuse.”

House Republican Leader Ryan Lane (Aztec), Republican Whip Greg Nibert (Roswell), and Republican Caucus Chair Gail Armstrong (Magdalena) wrote to HHS Inspector General Christi Grimm asking for an independent investigation into the disturbing disclosure of “at least thirteen cases of possible abuse, neglect, and exploitation of developmentally disabled individuals.”

In the letter, House Republican Leadership states, “A federally sanctioned, independent investigation conducted by your office will ensure complete transparency regarding these suspected and unacceptable incidents. Your investigation will also preclude the inevitable possibility that the New Mexico Department of Health will fail to take necessary steps to prevent such cases in the future.”

The New Mexico DOH DD waiver program is partially funded by HHS. Republican Leadership is seeking an independent investigation in order to ensure transparency and justice for the victims and their families.

The letter continues, “Unfortunately, the State of New Mexico has a rather dismal record of protecting vulnerable populations who are under the care of state agencies and who receive needed services through state administered programs. These recently discovered cases of alleged abuse, neglect and exploitation create a new round of questions and concerns.”

NM Supreme Court rules on judicial pandemic emergency protocols

10 Comments / New Mexico, News, Politics / By

As New Mexico’s COVID-19 pandemic emergency is set to end on Friday, the state Supreme Court has just ruled that face masks will no longer be mandated in courthouses statewide. 

“Face masks will no longer be required in [New Mexico] courthouses after March 31, under [a] decision by state Supreme Court. Jurors will also not have to complete health screening,” wrote Dan Boyd of the Albuquerque Journal.

The decision “comes as pandemic-related public health order set to expire after three-plus years,” he added. 

Earlier in March, Democrat Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham’s New Mexico Department of Health announced the end of the emergency declaration. However, the governor continued to urge residents to get jabbed with the COVID-19 inoculation.

“I urge all New Mexicans, and particularly those who are older or who have compromised immune systems, to get vaccinated or get their booster shots if they have not done so already,” she said at the time.

“New Mexico declared a public health emergency at the outset of the COVID-19 pandemic on March 11, 2020. Since then, the State of New Mexico has aligned its emergency orders with the federal government to ensure every available resource was utilized in the state’s COVID-19 response,” wrote the Department.

Under Lujan Grisham’s strict pandemic emergency orders, around 40 percent of small businesses in the state shuttered, according to the New Mexico Department of Tourism.

After Vasquez’s pro-criminal vote, top GOP PAC launches billboard campaign

14 Comments / New Mexico, News, Politics / By

On Wednesday, the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) announced it is launching a nationwide billboard campaign targeting vulnerable House Democrats who have embraced pro-criminal policies. 

Rep. Gabe Vasquez of New Mexico’s Second Congressional District is a name included on that list, who recently voted to reduce penalties for violent criminal offenders. Vasquez is a freshman won by a little over 1,000 votes in the November 2022 election.

“Crime is surging in these vulnerable Democrats’ backyards and they are signaling they don’t care,” NRCC Chairman Richard Hudson said. “A slap on the wrist for violent criminals is too extreme even for President Biden, but not extreme enough for these Democrats.”

Other House Democrats being focused on include Reps. Abigail Spanberger of Virginia and Susan Wild of Pennsylvania. 

The move comes as a crime wave has bludgeoned New Mexico, specifically Albuquerque, which Vasquez partially represents. 

2022 was the deadliest year on record in Albuquerque, with 121 homicides. New Mexico was ranked the state with the highest kidnapping rate in the nation. Businesses are also closing due to the crime epidemic plaguing the state.

Walmart shuttering crime-ridden ABQ location after nearly 40 years in business

37 Comments / New Mexico, News, Politics / By

The violent wave of crime plaguing New Mexico, specifically in Albuquerque, is forcing Walmart at 301 San Mateo Boulevard Southeast to close its doors after nearly 40 years in business at the location. The store is located in the War Zone, also known as the “International District,” known for its crime epidemic.

Walmart spokeswoman Lauren Willis said the store, which has 287 employees, was first opened at the location in 1985 — 38 years ago. The employees will be given the option to transfer to other locations in the city.

Business Insider recently reported, “Walmart did not answer questions about whether crime rates at the Albuquerque location were responsible for the decision to close it. But Albuquerque police officers had their hands full with the store in the past year. The Albuquerque Journal reports that 708 calls were made requesting police service at or near the store in 2022.” 

According to a KOB 4 report, “Police were called to the Walmart at San Mateo near Central more than 1,400 times for various calls in 2019. That’s almost four calls every day.”

The closure of the Albuquerque location, as well as locations across crime-ridden states, came after Walmart President and CEO Doug McMillon warned last December that certain “stores will close” if high theft rates didn’t slow down.

Cleveland.com reported that the total number of Walmart location closures are as follows: “Arkansas (1 store), Georgia (2), Florida (1), Hawaii (1), Illinois (3), Indiana (1), Minnesota (1), New Mexico (1), Oregon (2), Texas (1), Washington (1), Washington, D.C. (1) and Wisconsin (1).” 

Reports note how the shuttering of the Albuquerque Walmart “will impact lower-income residents,” as KRQE 13 reported. 

Resident Gabriel Sena told the outlet, “It’s gonna be sad for them, you know, because some people don’t have cars, and this is where they go, and all they have is Smith’s now down on Yale, but that might be out of the way too.” 

Exclusive: NM School Boards Assoc. responds to leaked conference audio

19 Comments / New Mexico, News, Politics / By

Over the past week, Freedom Families United released an undercover video appearing to show a 2022 New Mexico School Boards Association conference training where the trainer, Andrew Sanchez, made remarks that “parental rights end when you send your kids to public school.” 

After the Piñon Post’s request for comment to the New Mexico School Boards Association (NMSBA), the organization’s executive director, Joe Guillen, a former Española School Board member, has issued a response, decrying the video as “clearly mischaracterized” and affirming that the NMSBA has not “advocated for a diminished role of local control or parental rights in determining local educational policy and content.”

The full response from Mr. Guillen is as follows:

Thank you for your message and for sharing the subject YouTube video. Let me begin by assuring you the New Mexico School Boards Association (NMSBA) values and recognizes the important role parental participation and engagement play in the success our schools and students in New Mexico. We encourage our members to make parent involvement a central part of their community outreach efforts to help ensure their policies and programs reflect and meet the needs of their students.

A little background on the process we utilize in selecting breakout sessions at each of four major conferences. Prior to each conference we issue a request for presentation proposals which is distributed to numerous officials, agencies and law firms involved in public education. Upon receipt of presentation proposals we select approximately 18 and place them in three concurrent time slots allowing school board members to pick and choose those to attend among the various topics. See the attached listing of training sessions for our Annual Conference held in Albuquerque last December where the subject session was presented. You will note the wide range of training topics we attempt to offer.

Andy Sanchez, is a well-known and longtime school attorney with over 25 years of experience with the Cuddy & McCarthy Law Firm and more recently with the Himes, Petrarca & Fester Law Firm. He has presented at our conferences regularly on a host of school related topics. We felt the topic of his presentation was very timely given the recent adoption of new social studies standards by the NM Public Education Department.

The presentation, which the website video clearly mischaracterized, focused on the current federal and state laws and the court cases on the role of local control and parents in the curriculum development and review process. The presentation did not discount the role or value of local control or parents in the educational process. To be clear, neither NMSBA or the presenter advocated for a diminished role of local control or parental rights in determining local educational policy and content. Many of those in the audience who were present for the entire session, were complimentary of the information presented. While the session lasted approximately 60 minutes, the website video picked 2.5 minutes of the presentation to attempt to make a point clearly unrelated to the purpose and content of the presentation.

NMSBA remains focused on the topics that most impact students and teachers—ensuring every classroom is staffed with a highly qualified teacher; increasing broadband internet access to close the ‘homework gap;’ supporting historically disadvantaged students; supporting students with disabilities and mental health needs; and addressing the learning loss stemming from the COVID-19 pandemic.

Sanchez’s talk appears to have come from a 9:45 a.m. to 10:45 a.m. slot on December 3, 2022, at the conference titled “Parent Attempts to Opt-Out of Curriculum and Teachers, including a Review of CRT and Parent-rights.” According to the conference schedule, around 80 people were in attendance. The full schedule for the conference was provided by Mr. Guillen, which is linked here. 

NM school board trainer on hot mic: ‘Parental rights end’ in public school
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