Politics

Mayor doubles down on pro-abortion rhetoric, attacks Otero County

7 Comments / New Mexico, News, Politics / By

On Tuesday, the Alamogordo City Commission met to discuss the failure of the pro-abortion petition aiming at dismantling the city’s Sanctuary City for the Unborn resolution passed last month via a special election. The City Clerk reported that the petitioners only gathered 507 of the required 589 signatures, meaning their petition, which did not follow proper protocol in filing, was tossed out.

During the meeting, Mayor Susan Payne, who voted against the pro-life resolution and signed the pro-abortion petition that called the Commission “extremist,” doubled down on her opposition to the Sanctuary for the Unborn resolution. 

Despite insisting on being “100 percent pro-life,” she claimed, “I will maintain with pride my stance that this is not a function of city government.”

She then said she would like to go back and change her vote on a previous resolution applauding Otero County for its pro-life resolution, which she sponsored, saying, “I voted ‘yes’ on the second resolution, and quite honestly, I shouldn’t have done that either. I wasn’t really voting for or against life. I was voting to support our county, which has got its own issues right now. So my plan is actually probably to bring that resolution … that second resolution for us to revisit it. I can’t do anything about the first one.” 

She then, on a subsequent Facebook comment on an article about the petition’s failure, bashed Otero County Commissioner Couy Griffin, who supported the City’s pro-life resolution, as a “grandstanding local politician.” 

At the special August meeting she called on consideration of the pro-life resolution, Payne said regarding her “no” vote to declare Alamogordo a Sanctuary City for the Unborn, “This is a very controversial subject, and I’m going to be honest with you. It might make some people mad at me, and you know what? If you can’t respect the way I feel, that’s kinda your deal. But this is a very controversial subject, and one I have said all along I did not believe was a function of city government. And I still believe that. I believe that very strongly.”

An independent analysis of the pro-abortion petition obtained via an IPRA request found that the signers only had 502 apparently valid signatures — 87 shy of the necessary threshold to call for a costly special election. These included 48 invalidated signatures due to the lack of an address, extremely illegible entries, or duplicate signatures, and 86 signers who were not registered voters.

Alamogordo’s pro-life resolution sponsored by conservative Commissioner Karl Melton of District Three stands intact despite pro-abortion efforts to kill it. 

Feel free to reach out to Mayor Susan Payne to give her your thoughts: spayne@ci.alamogordo.nm.us

Petition to strip Alamogordo’s pro-life sanctuary resolution fails miserably

Mayor doubles down on pro-abortion rhetoric, attacks Otero County Read More »

Petition to strip Alamogordo’s pro-life sanctuary resolution fails miserably

6 Comments / New Mexico, News, Politics / By

Pro-abortion radicals suffered a crippling defeat Tuesday when they failed to get a mere 589 signatures for a special election to overturn Alamogordo’s resolution declaring itself a Sanctuary City for the Unborn previously passed by the Alamogordo City Commission, according to documents obtained via an Inspection of Public Records Act (IPRA) request.

The City wrote in a press release, “A petition to take Resolution 2022-38, passed by City Commission on August 2, 2022, at a Special Meeting, for referendum was filed with the City Clerk on September 1, 2022. In accordance with NMSA 1978 § 3-1-5. Petitions, examinations of signatures; purging; judicial review, and in consultation with the Secretary of State and New Mexico Municipal League, the petition did not meet the statutory requirements. As such, the city will take no additional action on this matter.”

The pro-life measure passed in August with support from all but two apparently pro-abortion members, Mayor Susan Payne and Commissioner Sharon McDonald, on the seven-member commission.

The pro-abortion radicals who attempted to force a special election that would cost $30,000 in taxpayer funds included an unregistered group, “New Voices Otero,” with influence from outside pro-abortion organizations, including the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and the Planned Parenthood abortion business.

Although pro-abortion individuals make up the extreme minority in conservative, pro-life Alamogordo, the tiny band of radicals organized and declared that they got enough signatures on Thursday, September 1 — the deadline for submission.

But on Tuesday, the City of Alamogordo confirmed that the pro-abortion organizers had failed to meet the signature threshold. This failure deals them a crippling blow and the inability to waste city taxpayers’ funds on a frivolous election — an election which would have only reaffirmed the City Commission’s stance that the rights of the unborn are precious to city residents.

The resolution affirms that “each and every innocent human life is unique and precious to God,” while “human life begins at the moment of conception and continues, uninterrupted, until the moment of natural death,” according to scientific evidence. It also concludes, “The City Commission hereby declares itself a Sanctuary City for the Unborn.”

The pro-abortion petition’s failure is also a blow to Mayor Payne, who not only voted against the pro-life resolution but signed the pro-abortion organizers’ petition that erroneously dubbed the City Commission “extremist.” She also advocated on behalf of the petition, telling the Alamogordo Daily News, “I appreciate the hard work that everybody’s put into this.”

Payne recently responded to a negative, anti-Trump commenter on the Facebook post of City Commissioner Karl Melton, who sponsored the pro-life resolution. The commenter wrote regarding pro-life U.S. Sen. Tom Cotton, “Tom Cotton is another fascist MAGA traitor,” adding, “The democracy hating GOP won’t stop until they suppress every vote that isn’t for them.” 

Payne commented to the detractor, “lol me thinkst [sic] this is happening right here in our fair city recently,” apparently referring to pro-life Republicans making a difference in Alamogordo. Payne also leaked a private conversation she was involved in between city officials to a fringe leftist blogger and convicted felon who supported the pro-abortion radicals’ petition. 

During the meeting to pass the resolution, Payne told the audience before voting against the pro-life resolution, “This is a very controversial subject, and I’m going to be honest with you. It might make some people mad at me, and you know what? If you can’t respect the way I feel, that’s kinda your deal. But this is a very controversial subject, and one I have said all along I did not believe was a function of city government. And I still believe that. I believe that very strongly.”

An independent analysis of the pro-abortion petition by the Piñon Post obtained via an IPRA request found that the signers only had 502 apparently valid signatures — 87 shy of the necessary threshold to call for a costly special election. These included 48 invalidated signatures due to the lack of an address, extremely illegible entries, or duplicate signatures, and 86 signers who were not registered voters.

The City’s count showed the petitioners had only 507 valid signatures — 82 shy of the 589 needed for a special election.

Following the news of the petition’s failure, Commissioner Melton said, “Alamogordo residents showed that they will not fall for the deception from the pro-abortion radicals. The petitioners only needed to get 589 signatures, less than 2% of the population.” 

He added, “The fact that they failed to meet such an easy target is proof that the vast majority of Alamogordo is pro-life. I will continue to do my part to encourage a culture of life here in Alamogordo and Otero County.”

The Commission’s pro-life resolution stands intact, alongside a similar resolution passed by the Otero County Commission standing up for the right to life in the community.

Petition to strip Alamogordo’s pro-life sanctuary resolution fails miserably Read More »

MLG flies off to DC again, then heads to New York

16 Comments / New Mexico, News, Politics / By

On Monday, it was reported that far-left Democrat Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham was heading out to Washington, D.C. again, this time for a Tuesday White House event with Joe Biden to praise his far-left “climate change” law erroneously dubbed the “Inflation Reduction Act.” The mammoth bill costs American taxpayers at least $430 billion, according to Reuters.

Daniel Chacon of the Santa Fe New Mexican reported Monday that Lujan Grisham is “headed to Washington, D.C., at [Joe Biden]’s invitation to attend Tuesday’s signing of the Inflation Reduction Act and also meet with federal officials to advocate for additional wildfire relief.”

“While @GovMLG is in the nation’s capital, she’ll also have a consultation on an ongoing knee injury with an orthopedic surgeon from whom she has previously received treatment, according to her office.” 

Chacon added, “After that, she’ll remain in D.C. and New York for political engagements. @GovMLG will return to New Mexico on Friday.”

The trip comes after a slew of disappearances from New Mexico for D.C., including her wedding, which was reported to have been officiated by Kamala Harris.

Lujan Grisham faces a tough reelection challenge from Republican gubernatorial nominee Mark Ronchetti who is polling within single digits of the embattled governor. Libertarian Karen Bedonie is also running.

Lt. Gov. Howie Morales is in charge while Lujan Grisham is away for her East Coast trip.

As NM burns, MLG flies to D.C. for lavish wedding officiated by Kamala Harris

MLG flies off to DC again, then heads to New York Read More »

It turns out Michelle Lujan Grisham is an election denier

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A recently resurfaced video from when Democrat Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham was running for the governorship in 2018 shows she cast doubt on the results of the 2016 election of President Donald J. Trump.

A September 7 tweet from Lujan Grisham claims her regime is “bringing folks together” despite her rhetoric bashing those she disagrees with as “extremists” and calling them “lizard people,” among other jabs, such as during her pandemic lockdown when she belittled the citizens of places like Hobbs and Española.

In response to her tweet, Will Reinert of the Republican Governors Association posted a clip of the governor saying at a campaign event, “I am not Pollyanna about any election. I am living in a world where people I don’t have any idea how they could get elected.” 

She added, “And I know that sounds really harsh, but I have people say the most discriminatory and racist things to me. I don’t know how they could be elected with that perspective. I don’t know how you get elected with hate in your heart. I don’t know how you get elected with no vision. I don’t know how you get elected by saying there should be no federal or state government.” 

“I don’t understand how we have a president… Well, … Kelly is clear he’s the president. I don’t know about Trump. I don’t know how that happened, but it did happen,” she concluded.

WATCH: 

Lujan Grisham appears to have turned into an election denier despite claims previously claiming to stand up for “democracy.” 

It turns out Michelle Lujan Grisham is an election denier Read More »

Haaland renames 13 supposedly racist NM federal ‘features’ with ‘squaw’ title

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This week, far-left Department of the Interior (DOI) Sec. Deb Haaland announced DOI had removed 650 federal “features” with the name “squaw,” which she claims is a racial slur. In a press release, the Department insisted that squaw has been used as “an offensive ethnic, racial and sexist slur, particularly for Indigenous women.” 

The move came after a vote by the Haaland-established “Derogatory Geographic Names Task Force,” which moved to strike the names from federal lands.

“I feel a deep obligation to use my platform to ensure that our public lands and waters are accessible and welcoming. That starts with removing racist and derogatory names that have graced federal locations for far too long,” said Haaland. 

In New Mexico, there are 13 places renamed, including Squaw Creek Tank reservoir in Catron County, which is now named “Tin Tank Number Two.”

Other instances include Grant County’s Squaw Creek Ridge Tank and Squaw Creek, now named “Ridge Tank” and “Meason Creek,” respectively, Chaves County’s Squaw Canyon valley and Squaw Creek, now named “Janey Canyon,” and “Squaw Creek,” respectively, Soccorro County’s Squaw Peak, renamed to “Bear Peak,” Sierra County’s Squaw Tit Canyon and Squaw Tit summit, now named “Horse Camp Canyon” and “Grandview Peak,” respectively, Catron and Sierra Counties’ Squaw Creek, now named “Tin Creek,” Otero County’s Squaw Tank reservoir, now named “Lone Butte Tank,” Doña Ana County’s Squaw Mountain, now “Bar Mountain,” San Juan County’s Squaw Spring, now “Tuurkava Paachihpi Spring,” and Sandoval County’s Squaw Peak, now “Tamayameh Kah Sta Mah.”

The DOI press release notes, “Secretary’s Order 3405 created a Federal Advisory Committee for the Department to formally receive advice from the public regarding additional derogatory terms, derogatory terms on federal land units, and the process for derogatory name reconciliation. Next steps on the status of that Committee will be announced in the coming weeks.” 

This means the renaming of supposedly racist federal lands from “squaw” is just the tip of the iceberg for Haaland, who is prioritizing social justice over anything else. It is unclear how much the mass renaming of federal lands will cost the taxpayers, who will have to pay to replace signage, maps, merchandise, and all other necessary modifications.

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Deb Haaland gets wrecked over oil leasing failures during Senate hearing

Haaland renames 13 supposedly racist NM federal ‘features’ with ‘squaw’ title Read More »

NM ranked one of the states most in need of sales, business tax reform

4 Comments / New Mexico, News, Politics / By

According to a report from the nonprofit organization Tax Foundation’s “2022 State Business Tax Climate Index,” New Mexico ranks as one of the top ten states in need of sales tax reform, ranking 41st out of 50 states on tax freedom.

New Mexico is also a state that is ranked toward the bottom when it comes to its sales tax base, which is measured on five criteria, including the variety of the tax base, the typical purchases of consumers, whether it includes services, tax holidays, and excise taxes on things such as gasoline, alcohol, and tobacco. 

“States with the worst scores on the base subindex are Hawaii, Alabama, Washington, California, South Dakota, New Jersey, New Mexico, and Maryland. Their tax systems hamper economic growth by including too many business inputs, excluding too many consumer goods and services, and imposing excessive rates of excise taxation,” writes the group.

According to Tax Foundation, “Legislators in New Mexico created an additional individual income tax bracket on income above $210,000, bringing the state’s top rate from 4.9 percent to 5.9 percent. This dramatic increase caused a 10-place drop in the state’s individual income tax ranking and dropped New Mexico’s overall rank from 22nd to 28th.”

The state also ranks 41st out of all other states in business tax climate, making New Mexico a state with a more hostile tax environment for businesses.

“States that create the most tax pyramiding and economic distortion, and therefore score the worst, are states that levy a sales tax that generally allows no exclusions for business Inputs. Hawaii, New Mexico, South Dakota, and Washington are examples of states that tax many business inputs. The ideal base for sales taxation is all goods and services at the point of sale to the end-user,” the group concludes.

In recent years, Democrats have worked to increase taxes on consumers, businesses, and industries in the state while creating new taxes on many industries. This has all likely contributed to New Mexico’s unfriendly tax structure.

NM ranked one of the states most in need of sales, business tax reform Read More »

NM taxpayers forked over staggering amount for abortions in 2020-2021

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According to New Mexico Department of Health documents obtained by the pro-life group Abortion Free New Mexico, a shocking number of taxpayer-funded abortions happened right here in New Mexico through Medicaid.

The records obtained by the group indicate, “In 2020, New Mexico Medicaid funded 3,372 abortion procedures that resulted in expenditures to abortion providers totaling $386,096.06.”

“In 2021, the numbers rose as New Mexico Medicaid funded 3,955 abortion procedures that resulted in expenditures to abortion providers totaling $421,026.90.”

The group wrote in the press release that New Mexico’s Medicaid system expended “almost $1 million tax dollars funding 7,327 abortions over the course of two years alone.”

The news comes after Democrat Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham pledged to spend $10 million in 2023 on a new abortion mill in Las Cruces to service Texas women if she wins re-election. 

Tara Shaver of Abortion Free New Mexico wrote, “Nearly $1,000,000 of our tax dollars that are already being paid out by New Mexico Medicaid over the past two years alone for 7,327 abortions should alarm us all and motivate us to act!”

“While we can’t stop New Mexico Medicaid from funding abortions, we can work to prevent Michelle Lujan Grisham’s latest attempt to force us as New Mexican citizens to pay for an abortion center that will cater to out of state women seeking to kill their children by voting pro-life. It is vital that each New Mexican of conscience is mobilized to help get pro-life candidates elected in November. Early voting is right around the corner so time is of the essence to volunteer your time, talents and treasure to the candidate of your choice who will stand for life and make sure that Lujan Grisham’s nefarious plans don’t come to fruition.”

Lujan Grisham faces tough competition from GOP nominee Mark Ronchetti, who is polling within single digits of the embattled abortion up-to-birth governor who previously signed a bill in 2021 to legalize abortion up-to-birth in the state of New Mexico by stripping away all protections for mothers, babies, and doctors.

NM taxpayers forked over staggering amount for abortions in 2020-2021 Read More »

MLG claimed to be ‘product’ of NM ‘public schools system’ despite going to private school

14 Comments / New Mexico, News, Politics / By

On Tuesday, far-left Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham was called out on Twitter by school choice advocates for claiming to be “A product of New Mexico’s public schools system” [sic] despite graduating from a private school.

The Democrat’s education platform reads, “A product of New Mexico’s public schools system, Michelle is dedicated to uplifting every student, parent, educator, and school in New Mexico.”

However, Lujan Grisham graduated from St. Michael’s High School, a private Catholic school in Santa Fe, as she also notes on her official government website, “Lujan Grisham was born in Los Alamos and graduated from St. Michael’s High School in Santa Fe.” 

Corey A. DeAngelis of School Choice Now wrote on Twitter, “New Mexico Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham’s campaign website says she’s ‘a product of New Mexico’s public schools system.’ She graduated from a private school.” 

The Rio Grande Foundation’s Paul Gessing chimed in also:

She also did the very opposite of “uplift” every “ student, parent, educator, and school in New Mexico” due to her pandemic lockdowns which punished teachers who would not get the jab, ramming down the far-left Critical Race Theory curriculum through her Public Education Department, and even going as so far as to remove duly elected school board members who she disagreed with — the antithesis of her promise.

New Mexico’s education marks show 30-year lows in testing, with the deprivation of education for months and years to some children resulting in a barely literate publicly educated student population.

The proficiency tests released by PED show that third-graders had 23% proficiency in language arts, while those figures ebbed and flowed for other grades: fourth-graders (35%), fifth-graders (36%), sixth-graders (33%), seventh-graders (35%), and eighth-graders (33%). 

The state’s schools remain dead last on multiple rankings that show New Mexico has the worst public education system in the nation. Lujan Grisham is endorsed by the leftist teacher’s unions, the American Federation of Teachers, and the National Education Association, both of which advocated for lockdowns, forced masking, jabs, and Critical Race Theory. 

MLG claimed to be ‘product’ of NM ‘public schools system’ despite going to private school Read More »

Judge removes Couy Griffin from office, citing Civil War

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On Tuesday, it was announced that state District Court Judge Francis Mathew had made a ruling barring Otero County District Two Commissioner Couy Griffin from holding public office.

Mathews wrote in his ruling that Griffin “became constitutionally disqualified from federal and state positions specified (under the U.S. Constitution’s 14th Amendment, Section 3) and forfeited his current office as Otero County Commissioner effective Jan. 6, 2021,” adding, “Griffin shall be removed from his position as an Otero County Commissioner effective immediately.”

The judge made many anti-Trump sentiments in the ruling, claiming President Trump on January 6th made “false claims that the election was ‘rigged’ and ‘stolen,’” while claiming that the incursion into the U.S. Capitol constituted an “insurrection” despite not a single person involved being convicted of “insurrection.”

Regardless, Mathews concludes, “The Court concludes that the January 6, 2021 attack on the United States Capitol and the surrounding planning, mobilization, and incitement constituted an ‘insurrection’ within the meaning of Section Three of the Fourteenth Amendment.”

He then compared the January 6th protesters to the Confederates, who lost the Civil War, writing, “The mob ultimately achieved what even the Confederates never did during the Civil War: they breached the Capitol building and seized the Capitol grounds, forcing the Vice President and Congress to halt their constitutional duties and flee to more secure locations.”

“The case law holds that a person ‘engage[s]’ in an insurrection within the meaning of Section Three by ‘[v]oluntarily aiding the [insurrection], by personal service, or by contributions, other than charitable, of anything that [is] useful or necessary’ to the insurrectionists’ cause. Worthy, 63 N.C. at 203; see also Powell, 27 F. Cas. at 607 (defining ‘engage’ as ‘a voluntary effort to assist the Insurrection … and to bring it to a successful termination’ from the insurrectionists’ perspective).” 

“One need not personally commit acts of violence to ‘engag[e] in’ insurrection,” said Mathews.

According to the New York Times, Griffin’s removal is “the first official in more than 100 years to be removed under the Constitution’s bar on insurrectionists holding office.”

Griffin represented himself in the trial, and he does have the opportunity for an appeal.

Democrat Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham will likely have the opportunity to appoint Griffin’s replacement, which will go against the citizens of the District who elected Griffin — a conservative — to represent them as commissioner.

The lawsuit was filed by residents of Santa Fe and Los Alamos Counties, while none are from Otero County.

Judge removes Couy Griffin from office, citing Civil War Read More »

Leftists have fit over Santa Rosa hanging image of city’s namesake

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Despite the city of Santa Rosa in Guadalupe County having heavy Catholic influence in its founding, including that of Saint Rose of Lima, some who have been attacking Ten Commandments statues across the country are coming for images of Santa Rosa and Our Lady of Guadalupe in the small city of around 3,000 next.

A local resident, Herman Baca, reportedly “donated the painting [of Santa Rosa], by a Peruvian artist, to City Hall — where it hung for about 24 hours in the spring before calls to take it down prompted its removal.” 

Baca also donated a monument of Our Lady of Guadalupe to the city, which was planned to be placed on a city-owned lawn a block from City Hall. 

Santa Rosa de Lima is the patron saint of embroidery, gardening, and the cultivation of blooming flowers. She is also the first saint born in the Americas to be canonized by the Roman Catholic Church.

Mayor Nelson Kotiar placed the image of Santa Rosa in City Hall, but after an outcry from some residents, it was removed. 

The Santa Fe New Mexican writes, “[Kotiar] noted a painting of Santa Rosa hangs in the county courthouse, and no one raises a fuss about it. Nor has anyone complained about a small bust of St. Joseph he displays in his office, he said.”

Attorney Andy Schultz, who helped rip down a Ten Commandments monument in Bloomfield, told the New Mexican, “The current status of the Establishment Clause jurisprudence is a mess,” while claiming conflicting case law makes the Catholic icons’ presence in Santa Rosa’s City Hall difficult.

“I am a devout Catholic and pray to Mary every single day, but that’s not where the painting belongs,” claimed gift shop owner Luisa Chappell.

“It’s an interesting question, right?” said State Historian Rob Martinez  “We have so many Spanish and Mexican names [of towns and counties] that are shod through Roman Catholicism.” While some people may protest placing religious icons on public property, he said, “Locals say, ‘What’s the big deal? We’ve been doing Catholic imagery for centuries.’ ” 

Many others see the monument of Our Lady of Guadalupe and the image of Santa Rosa as a big boost to the city’s identity and attractiveness to tourism, as well as paying homage to the historical events that led to the city of Santa Rosa’s creation.

Leftists have fit over Santa Rosa hanging image of city’s namesake Read More »

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