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MLG’s strict face mask requirement discriminates against low-income workers, people of color

4 Comments / News, Opinion, Politics / By

Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham, who claims to be a supporter of the poor and downtrodden, commanded in her latest edict that “essential workers” must wear masks or face coverings.

According to her edict, “All employees must wear their face coverings in the workplace at all times when in the presence of others.” She made sure to add a condescending statement belittling New Mexicans, many are people of color, saying, “If New Mexicans don’t behave safely, we won’t be able to reopen more than we have. Every single one of us has to do their part.”

The requirement adopted by her and many Democrat governors may disproportionately affect people of color and the poor, who cannot afford face masks. Business owners, many of them owning small businesses, cannot afford to buy face masks, which have become a hot commodity amid the pandemic. It’s difficult to find any at reasonable prices, with some being sold for as much as $20 apiece. 

So, who will provide these face masks required by Lujan Grisham’s edict? Small business owners and workers, that’s who. But price gouging is causing low-income individuals to not be able to afford masks. One report states the gouging has caused such a difficult market, allowing “only the more affluent can afford masks.” According to the latest statistics, people working in the restaurant industry were the most common group of low-income workers, 7.76% of the workforce, a group specifically singled out in the Governor’s edict., Also, over half of all jobs (49,249, or 53.0 percent) were held by ethnic minorities.

But regarding a different issue, Voter ID laws that secure American elections, Lujan Grisham claimed that having an ID to vote is “burdensome.” She also said such laws “disproportionately impact poor, elderly, disabled & Americans of color.”

The same tired argument can be made for requiring face masks, and we actually have a case, since a face mask can only be bought from select vendors, they are in low supply, and a burden to obtain. Getting an ID, which is required for everything from checking into a hotel to cashing a check, is not an undue burden.

Lujan Grisham’s discriminatory face mask order not only undermines her credibility as a leader, it hurts small businesses and working families who will have to go out of their ways to obtain face masks. The only people who will be hurt by Lujan Grisham’s requirement are the poor, who she seems to not give two thoughts about. 

NM GOP Chairman Pearce to MLG: ‘You’re driving a stake into the heart’ of our state

5 Comments / New Mexico, News, Politics / By

On Wednesday morning, Republican Party of New Mexico Chairman and former Congressman Steve Pearce joined Steve Ducey on Fox News to speak about Democrat New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham’s response to the coronavirus, which is hitting small business owners and working families hard.

During the interview, Ducey asked Pearce to explain Lujan Grisham’s logic behind the closure of small mom and pop businesses while corporate big box stores such as Walmart are allowed to stay open. Pearce responded, “I can’t explain her logic. It’s totally unfair, it’s discriminatory.”

Pearce then laid out the situation in the state, saying, “New Mexico is big and rural. We have a couple of population centers, but everything else is sparsely populated. Mom and pops drive the state, and so the initial order weeks ago, the Governor said the big box stores can open, no restrictions on them. The small mom and pops had to shut down. Many of them are just going to be forced into bankruptcy and will not be open.”

“In the meantime, counties [that] do not even have one case — the residents of those places — no big box stores are there. They’re having to drive into Albuquerque or Santa Fe or Las Cruces in order to hit a big box store. That puts them closer to people who might have the virus, and it just has never made any sense. But mostly it’s just the patented unfairness that drives our money into the big box stores. They ship it out of New Mexico at the close of the business day. They don’t use local banks, so we’re robbing the state for capital into the future.” 

“We’ve been saying, ‘wait, it’s got to be an even playing field. There has to be competition from both sides. There have to be choices. Local businesses, mom, and pop should have the same rights as the out-of-state giant corporations.’”

When asked about a Grants pawnshop facing a $60,000 fine from Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham, Pearce said, “Your average business may make ten percent. That means you have to have $600,000 worth of products in order to get to $60,000. They’re just going to be thrust into bankruptcy. The veteran is disabled. His wife is going to have to close the business, and the Governor is coming in and making an example of them. Five or six uniformed state police officers circled around the building, slapped the notice on the building. 

Pearce continued, “The fine is just devastating to that small community because it’s made up totally of small businesses. Even the local sheriffs and police officers are having to drive into Albuquerque to get ammunition that [the local pawn shop] sold there.”

Steve Ducey wrapped up the segment asking what message Chairman Pearce had for Gov. Lujan Grisham. Pearce answered, “The small business owners throughout New Mexico — they’re the heart and soul of our state, and I would just say to the Governor, “you’re driving a stake into the heart and the spirit and the soul of our state. The small communities depend on local business owner…. They’re the ones who support the basketball team and the football team. They’re the ones who are there for the Rotary Clubs and the Kiwanis Clubs. Give them a fair chance.”

On Wednesday, Pearce sent a letter to U.S. Attorney General William Barr requesting his help in stopping Gov. Lujan Grisham’s unconstitutional orders barring citizens from work and crippling New Mexico’s state economy.

‘Libel’: Claire Chase plants false story with out-of-state, expletive-laced source hitting Yvette Herrell

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On Tuesday, Russell Contreras from the Associated Press, a clear ally of Claire Chase’s campaign, published a blatantly false story about the contentious 2nd Congressional District race, in which an out-of-state resident, Florida’s Jared Richardson, claims Yvette Herrell spoke to him about Chase’s past divorce. 

“She called on two different occasions to spread these (expletive) rumors,” said Richardson in an interview with the AP.

The false story coincidentally dropped the same day absentee voting begins, and as Herrell is being supported with $100,000 from an independent, pro-Trump group, the House Freedom Action Super PAC, which is backed by Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH), President Trump’s Chief of Staff former Rep. Mark Meadows (R-NC), and Rep. Scott Perry (R-PA). Herrell has also been running an ad with Chase’s words read verbatim, calling President Trump an “a**hole unworthy of the office,” and “super offensive.” 

“[Herrell] said she called on April 8 to discuss her run for the seat in 2018 — Richardson has supported another GOP candidate — and said Richardson later called her back and accused her of spreading the Chase rumor. ‘His allegation is 100% false,’” according to the AP report. 

The story also tries to link violent provocateur “cartoonist” Roger Rael with Herrell’s campaign, despite Rael targeting Herrell, among other pro-Trump Republicans, such as “Pro-Gun Women” leader Stefani Lord, pro-Trump conservative talk radio host Eddy Aragon “The Rock of Talk,” Republican Party of New Mexico Chairman, former Congressman Steve Pearce, Republican Party of New Mexico Executive Director Anissa Ford Tinnin, and other Republicans in his libelous internet graphics. Rael has attacked conservatives in the state, both verbally and physically, with sexist, homophobic, and false character assassinations, which Chase apparently looks to seize upon for political gain.

A slanderous cartoon by Roger Rael slamming Herrell and other pro-Trump conservatives.

“‘I have never attempted to use personal rumors about Claire in this race, and will never do so. Neither has my campaign,’ said Herrell, who has been divorced twice. ‘I will take any legal steps necessary to protect myself against libel.’”

The nasty attacks by Claire Chase, her out-of-state source, and the help of a violent cartoon artist appear to be desperate attempts to slander Herrell since her previous attacks on the New Mexico lawmaker don’t appear to stick.

Liberals are looking to capitalize on Chase dividing Republicans in Southern New Mexico, delivering a re-election win for incumbent Democrat Xochitl Torres Small. The AP report proved this with a quote from leftist UNM professor Gabriel Sanchez, saying “the nastiness of the GOP primary will leave the eventual winner so battered and bruised that Republicans will have a hard time going up against Democratic incumbent U.S. Rep. Xochitl Torres Small of Las Cruces in the general election.”

CNN floats MLG as Biden’s VP with ‘health care experience’ despite her company ripping off the sick

2 Comments / New Mexico, News, Politics / By

On Sunday, CNN posted an op-ed touting Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham (D-NM) as the “less obvious” choice for Democrat presumptive nominee for president, Joe Biden’s vice-presidential pick.

The piece touts Lujan Grisham’s alleged “health care experience” as what qualifies her to be Biden’s running mate, touting her past as the cabinet secretary for the New Mexico Department of Health under former Gov. Bill Richardson, which she resigned from.

But skeletons in her closet, which came out during her 2018 run for governor, reveal her company Delta Consulting, made a fortune from ripping off New Mexico taxpayers and sick patients with New Mexico’s “virtually obsolete” high-risk insurance pool, charging “10 percent higher” than another available program. 

Another report by Politico shows that Lujan Grisham underestimated her income on required House of Representatives disclosures by as much as $88,000. 

Lujan Grisham has come under harsh scrutiny from New Mexicans regarding her response to COVID-19, in which she has punished citizens with $60,000 fines, blocked off rural roads necessary for many in the Navajo Nation to get water and food, and punished counties whose elected officials are working to safely reopen small businesses. Despite the pandemic, Lujan Grisham has allowed pot dispensaries and abortion mills to stay open.

On April 30, Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham rolled back some harsh restrictions, giving a bread crumb to angered citizens under lockdown despite the low risk of coronavirus.

The CNN article also touts Lujan Grisham’s Hispanic race as another plus in her being picked by biden, labeling the Governor as “Latinx.”

During an Easter Sunday interview on CNN, Lujan Grisham kissed up to Biden, telling Jake Tapper, “I think that you want a vice president who was much like former vice president Biden. He knew how to govern, he had done a ton of work as a senator and in local government as well, and I think those are incredible attributes.”

Amy Klobuchar has endorsed Luján and Torres Small, signaling more out-of-state cash into NM

1 Comment / New Mexico, News, Politics / By

On Friday, failed presidential candidate Sen. Amy Klobuchar announced endorsements through her initiative, the “Win Big Project” of Rep. Ben Ray Luján (D-NM) for U.S. Senate, and Rep. Xochitl Torres Small for reelection to the U.S. House of Representatives.

The move by the possible vice presidential contender to endorse the two candidates may show a sign of more out-of-state money being thrown into the Land of Enchantment to support far-left Democrats like Luján and Torres Small. According to Politico, Win Big Project is “a joint effort of her PAC, Follow the North Star PAC, and her reelection committee, Klobuchar for Minnesota,” meaning there is likely lots of money involved in the backing of the two Democrats.

Luján praised the endorsement, saying in a tweet, “Americans know & trust leaders like Sen. Klobuchar to end division & get things done. I’m proud to join a slate of #WinBig leaders who will restore common sense to the Senate in 2020.” The tweet featured a photograph of Luján wearing an apparently brand new Carhart jacket and full hair and makeup.

Xochitl Torres Small has not commented on the endorsement yet, possibly in a strategic move to distance herself from Klobuchar or Luján, despite her campaign still sending out a fundraising email not mentioning the endorsement Saturday. 

Xochitl Torres Small has earned the endorsements of the abortion up-to-birth and infanticide group EMILY’s List, the extremist enviro-militant group League of Conservation Voters, among other out-of-state D.C. based dark money groups.
Ben Ray Luján has been endorsed by Mike Bloomberg’s far-left anti-gun group “Moms Demand Action,” radical population control group “Population Connection Action Fund,” among other groups.

MLG punishes Cibola County after Grants Mayor disobeys: pawnshop fined $60k, county shut down

45 Comments / New Mexico, News, Politics / By

On Friday, it was announced that Papas Pawn & Gun in Grants, New Mexico was fined a hefty $60,000 fine, which appears to be the highest amount any business has been fined for defying Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham’s strict orders during COVID-19.

But according to the pawnshop, they have been practicing social distancing with their business and got fined regardless. According to pawn shop owner Diane Row, “On Monday, six or seven State Police officers surrounded my small shop, and it was really upsetting.” She continued, “That was a total show of force. They came to give me a court summons, treated me like I was a criminal, not a shop owner. Later I got a notice from the State that I was being fined $60,000. My husband is a veteran who is disabled and we don’t have any employees. This fine will kill us. It’s the end. I don’t know what to do.”

The Republican Party of New Mexico responded on Friday afternoon, writing, “This was a violation of Rowe’s civil rights and Constitutional rights and another unjust action against businesses trying to survive, both as a result of policies decreed by Gov. Lujan Grisham. Rowe believes her treatment is disgraceful and says other businesses who depend on local consumers will soon be obsolete.”

“The governor continues to show favoritism for big box stores, taking millions of New Mexico dollars out of state, and neglecting the little guy, local businesses who keep our local economies humming. The governor refuses to acknowledge that small businesses, like Papas Pawn & Gun, can provide and maintain social distancing and other health measures just like the national chains, that are packing shoppers in their aisles daily. This is blatant preferential treatment by the Lujan Grisham Administration.”

The news comes one day after Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham relaxed some restrictions on New Mexicans, but the news of Papas Pawn & Gun store refutes any progress the Governor may have made in easing New Mexicans’ fury with her administration and their handling of the COVID-19 pandemic.

On Friday, Gov. Michele Lujan Grisham ordered a lockdown of McKinley County, San Juan, and interestingly, Cibola County also. McKinley and San Juan are being hit hard by COVID-19, but Cibola, with only 52 positive COVID cases. Cibola, where Papas Pawn is located in Grants, seems to be directly targeted by the Governor. Grants Mayor Martin “Modey” Hicks previously rebuked her strict stay-at-home orders, which appears to be adding to her retribution.

MLG caves to public fury—rolls back some restrictions

4 Comments / New Mexico, News, Politics / By

At 3:00 p.m. on Thursday, Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham delivered Republicans and the conservative media in new Mexico a massive win with a few rollbacks of her extreme restrictions. The announcement came during her COVID-19 update, where she caved to many demands.

One of the loosened restrictions the Governor announced included the reopening of “nonessential” retailers beginning Friday. During the new restrictions, they can operate with curbside pickup and delivery, if permitted by their licenses.

State parks are reopening, gun stores are open by appointment, golf courses are open for recreation. Mass gatherings are still prohibited.

The Governor announced on Thursday that there are 11 new deaths and 198 new COVID-19 cases, bringing up the state’s death total to 123 and infection total to 3,411.

As of Thursday, there are 760 COVID-19 cases designated as having recovered by the New Mexico Department of Health.

Despite some restrictions remaining, the loosened orders are the closest thing to Gov. Lujan Grisham saying “uncle,” and kowtowing to media outlets such as the Piñon Post and KIVA’s “The Rock of Talk,” Eddy Aragon, who have kept heavy pressure on the Governor. 

It is also a significant win for countless New Mexicans who have reached out to Gov. Lujan Grisham’s office and even taken to the streets to organize against her, as seen in cities such as Albuquerque, Santa Fe, Los Alamos, Grants, and others. 

Republicans in the New Mexico House of Representatives also sent a letter to the Governor asking her to modify her public health order.

MLG’s scapegoat? Finance chief resigns as NM bleeds cash after Dems’ irresponsible spending

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Late Tuesday, it was reported that Democrat Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham’s Secretary of the Department of Finance and Administration, Olivia Padilla-Jackson, will be stepping down from her post as the state bleeds cash due to a sharp fall in oil production. 

According to the New Mexico Oil and Gas Association, the oil and gas industry contributes 39% to the state’s general fund, and the industry is hurting due to the impact of an oil price war with the Russians and Saudi Arabia amid the COVID-19 pandemic. 

The news comes as Lujan Grisham will be forced to deal with the implications of the crisis after she signed a bloated budget of $7.6 billion, which passed on strictly party-lines through the state House, while some fair-weather Republicans voted for it in the Senate. The budget is a 7.5% increase from the previous year’s budget, despite calls of irresponsible spending by Republicans, looking to set aside money for the state’s savings account.

“Because of our undisciplined and reckless spending, the oil and gas industry will collapse and we’ll be in here and it will be even more painful than it was six years ago,” said Rep. Jason Harper (R-Rio Rancho), predicting the inevitable fall of the oil boom, which came not months after the wreckless budget passed.

Now, it appears Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham may be pushing finance chief Olivia Padilla-Jackson out of her role, as the scapegoat for the Governor’s “irresponsible” budget has come back to bite her. The Governor’s office did not comment on Padilla-Jackson’s resignation but did comment on the person she appointed to fill the post in the interim. 

Debbie Romero, who is deputy secretary and a longtime department official, will replace Padilla-Jackson as acting secretary, who Lujan Grisham’s press secretary Norma Meyers Sackett said is “eminently qualified.” 

In recent weeks, the Governor has been increasingly hostile to the press asking questions to her cabinet secretaries, even the extremely liberal Santa Fe New Mexican, which was scolded for reaching out for a comment. Meyers Sackett emailed to the liberal paper, “Media inquiries should be directed straight to me. Do not email cabinet secretaries.” 

In 2019, Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham pushed out her then-education secretary Karen Trujillo, Ph.D. not six months into her job, who said the firing came out of nowhere. The “Governor’s Office hadn’t raised any issues with her job performance that would make [her] think [her] employment was in jeopardy,” said Trujillo. 

Michelle Lujan Grisham may now be calling a special session to fix her budget woes, as Republicans are ready to work with her in fixing her mess, caused by irresponsible budgeting by Democrats and the Governor’s Administration.

Ronchetti’s NeverTrump ‘Orange One’ jab reveals slew of unearthed comments bullying Trump, GOP

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On Monday, it was revealed that Republican candidate for U.S. Senate Mark Ronchetti had attended a far-left symposium by climate change alarmists and gave his support for the theory of “man-made climate change.” But that is not what is irking Republicans in the Land of Enchantment.

While speaking at the event, Ronchetti lambasted the “Orange One” President Trump claiming he drove him to leave the Republican Party. He said, “I’m afraid that that has taken a part of my soul.”

Conservative Republicans warned early-on about Ronchetti’s anti-Trump sentiments, as well as his hiring of the most divisive political strategist in the state, Jay McCleskey. But upon hearing the questions by pro-Trump Republicans, Ronchetti violently lashed out, claiming they are “little Facebook trolls who are in their parents’ basement with their Cheeto-stained fingers.”

Now, even more, information has come to light showing Ronchetti mocking President Trump, including laughing at a comment that Trump is a “brushfire” and making fun of the President’s hairstyle on-air while working as a weatherman for KRQE News 13. He also made fun of a leaked photograph of Melania Trump, saying it was “unbelievable” to a comment that she could be the future First Lady of the United States. But that’s not all — Ronchetti revealed his deep admiration and “friendship” with notorious Trump-hating comedian George Lopez.

Lopez faced harsh criticism on both sides of the aisle in January 2020 when now-deceased Iranian terrorist Gen. Quasem Soleimani offered $80 million to anyone who would assassinate President Trump. Lopez said, “We’ll do it for half.” 

In a previous video, Ronchetti commented that Lopez “is a really funny guy” and  “pretty good guy, too, in person,” joking “like [we] hang out on the weekends.”

In another video, Ronchetti photoshopped his face onto President Trump’s hairstyle, saying, “the swirl is so nice,” adding, “the point is you don’t have to lose your cool over a bad haircut, okay?”

In another video, Ronchetti mocked former Governor Republican Gov. Susana Martinez for wearing a green hard-hat during an interview, in which he and KRQE anchors laughed hysterically at Martinez, with Ronchetti saying, “just take the hard hat off!” 

After Ronchetti’s direct shot at Trump as the “Orange One,” his mocking the future First Lady, bashing conservative Republican voters asking him questions as “little Facebook trolls who are in their parents’ basement with their Cheeto-stained fingers,” and shots at moderate anti-Trump Gov. Martinez’s appearance shows his willingness to go after people with ad-hominem attacks and mock them based on looks. These clips show how Ronchetti is not above high-school bullying and hazing of people based on skin color, hairstyle, and other factors. Gov. Martinez was a candidate of Jay McCleskey, Ronchetti’s campaign “messenger.”

Ronchetti has no past voting record of Republican support and has been embraced by people such as local drug dealer Darren White, who gave radical Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham $11,000 in her race for Governor. His pollster, Nicole McCleskey, served as NeverTrumper Jeb Bush’s pollster for his failed presidential run against Donald Trump.

Ronchetti’s opponents have denounced his comments, one of them even calling for him to drop out of the race for the U.S. Senate. Ronchetti’s campaign laughed off the comments, claiming the ex-weatherman was “joking.” But Republicans are not taking the comments bashing the incumbent Republican president lightly. Some have even gone so far as to demand campaign donation refunds in light of the anti-Trump comments. Requests for refunds can be directed to Ronchetti’s campaign email account, info@markronchetti.com.

WATCH: 2019 video of Senate candidate Ronchetti: I left GOP over ‘the Orange One’ Trump—he’s ‘taken a part of my soul.’

6 Comments / New Mexico, News, Politics / By

On Monday, GOP U.S. Senate candidate Gavin Clarkson’s campaign released a damning resurfaced video of fellow “Republican” candidate Mark Ronchetti attending a leftist “climate change” symposium, in which he brutally lambasted President Trump claiming President Trump or as he referred to him as the “Orange One” drove him to leave the Republican Party. He said, “I’m afraid that that has taken a part of my soul.”

The footage is from March 21, 2019 — a little over one year ago, and well into the Trump presidency. The climate change sumposium was the same day the Mueller Report came out.

According to the coverage of the climate change event by the Daily Lobo, “New Mexico exhibits the effects of climate change in the form of increased forest fires and drought, Ronchetti said.” 

During the video, Ronchetti also said he’s been on-board with “the idea of climate change for over 20 years,” and he mocked people who choose to have an SUV because of climate change. He also said we need to “replace” the oil and gas industry in New Mexico — including the suggestion that Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham cannot push forth her current environmental policies without oil and gas paying the check.

“With Nancy Pelosi and her socialist comrades already setting the stage for another impeachment,” Clarkson says, “Republicans can’t afford to nominate another Never-Trumper like Mitt Romney. We’ve got to have a nominee President Trump knows he can count on to help flip New Mexico red, someone who has actually stood with President Trump even when doing so involved extreme personal sacrifice.”

Now, Ronchetti, the proven NeverTrump candidate for U.S. Senate is once again clinging to the party he claims he left, — while blowing the NeverTrump dog whistle in defiance of the President.

The video of his remarks start at 41:30

Conservative Republicans warned Republicans on multiple occasions to be wary of Ronchetti, due to his NeverTrump connections, Republican-bashing language, lack of a Republican primary voting record, among other things — and the newly-resurfaces video proves the deep-seated hatred Ronchetti has for President Trump.

During his campaign, Ronchetti viciously lashed out at anyone asking questions of him, branding them as “little Facebook trolls who are in their parents’ basement with their Cheeto-stained fingers.”  

Ronchetti also hired the single most divisive politicó in the state of New Mexico, NeverTrumper Jay McCleskey, known for his “slash and burn” campaign strategies. According to a former staffer, McCleskey “will do anything to win, no matter what it takes. … He will destroy you as an opponent.”

The NeverTrump dots are all coming together, as Ronchetti has proven to not only be on President Trump’s team but as he claimed in the 2019 video, he does not even identify with the Republican Party. The new development in the race for Senate now pins two conservative Republicans, Dr. Gavin Clarkson and Elisa Martinez against each other to take the Republican nomination, as the resurfaced video is certain to cripple the remnants of Ronchetti’s campaign.

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