On Saturday, the family of Juan Muñoz, a 20-year-old National Guardsman, who has been missing since February, held a gathering of about 50 people across the street from the New Mexico State Police (NMSP) station on Paseo del Cañon, reported the Taos News.
Muñoz’s family is trying to get NMSP investigators to seek answers about his disappearance. His car was found at the Rio Grande Gorge Bridge with all of his belongings, which the investigators have brushed off as a suicide, which is common at the Gorge Bridge.
But Muñoz’s family have brought attention “that the guards at the Gorge Bridge had seen Muñoz’s car pull up, followed by another car, shortly after 8 p.m. on Feb. 19th, the day before Muñoz’s disappearance.”
Elizabeth Rivera, Muñoz’s mother, said that she has tried calling Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham for her help several times but had not yet received any responses.
“He wanted to serve this country and they’re giving up on him. That’s not right. They can’t give up on somebody that wanted to fight for our country,” said Carla Muñoz, Juan’s cousin, as she questioned why they were not able to see footage of Juan leaving the National Guard Armory, and were given different answers as to why not.
“You guys make them swear a commitment to you guys expecting them to be there every weekend, but when they go missing you give up just like that?” asked Vidal Aragon, another of Juan’s cousins, of the National Guard, who they hope will assist in the investigation. “We need you guys to show us that he left that base.”
The News reported that “Several family members pointed out that at the beginning of the rally, there were several state police officers across the street, but that they quickly departed. Some of Muñoz’s cousins also pointed out a NMSP officer parked around the corner with the vehicle on, seemingly watching the event.”
It is still unclear if the family has gotten ahold of Gov. Lujan Grisham’s office for help since Saturday, but they are organizing three more rallies: one by the Gorge bridge, one at the Taos plaza, and one in front of the Roundhouse in Santa Fe.
On Thursday, embattled Democrat Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham, who was accused and later settled with $62,500 in campaign funds for sexual assault, sent out a fundraising email about her radical far-left agenda and what she has “accomplished.”
In the email, she wrote to supporters, “We reinforced reproductive rights in our state, we invested in our public schools and early childhood education, and we delivered $200 million in pandemic relief to small businesses. We overcame Republican Party obstruction and got real results for New Mexicans from legalizing recreational cannabis to strengthening civil rights and so much more.”
She wrote, “We can do even more to help our great state thrive and chart our path toward a brighter future.”
But one line, in particular, stuck out. She wrote, “I couldn’t be prouder of everything that we’ve accomplished – but that doesn’t mean I’m satisfied. I know this team has the drive and the passion to make New Mexico a clean-energy leader, an educational powerhouse and a model for sustainable economic growth.”
Despite ramming through the Green New Deal, abortion up-to-birth and infanticide, assisted suicide via lethal drugs, recreational marijuana, raiding the permanent fund, raising taxes, putting targets on the backs of law enforcers, destroying “right to work,” crippling small businesses with government-forced handouts, she is still not “satisfied.”
When will Gov. Lujan Grisham be “satisfied”?
Lujan Grisham’s fundraising email comes one day after she announced the potential reopening of the state once 60% of the population is vaccinated, although her version of full reopening still includes mask mandates, a public health emergency, and more restrictions on New Mexicans.
On Wednesday, embattled Democrat Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham, who was accused and later settled with $62,500 in campaign funds for sexual assault, held a COVID-19 press conference. The presser comes after quite some time without one, where she claimed New Mexico could be open in nine weeks. She said, “In nine weeks, New Mexico, we are open,” given that 60% of the population is vaccinated by June 30.
The news comes as more counties shifted from red, yellow, and green status to turquoise while the criteria for what these colors mean changed again to mean case numbers modified from 5% to 7.5%, test positivity rates move from eight to 10 per 100,000 people, and percentage of the vaccinated population is added as a new requirement with a 35% weekly threshold.
Under the new criteria, 24 counties are in “turquoise,” six are in “green,” three are in “yellow,” and none are in “red.”
Human Services Secretary David Scrase said, “I think this is clearly doable,” but “it’s going to take extra work,” which can be interpreted as code as the administration once again moving the goalposts.
However, if the state meets the 60% goal for “100% reopening,” it still means that indoor mask requirements will remain, masking for youth sports will remain, the Coronavirus state of emergency will remain, New Mexicans are still on stay-at-home orders. This comes despite a masked Rio Rancho athlete collapsing due to lack of air during a race due to Gov. Lujan Grisham’s mask-mandated athletics.
Dr. Scrase and Gov. Lujan Grisham also both indicated that in the future, annual “booster” inoculations are likely coming.
Countless New Mexico jobs have been destroyed forever. People have left the state in droves due to the lockdown orders. Many have been reliant on the government’s unemployment system despite some jobs reopening. New Mexico trails the entire nation with employment numbers as the third-worst unemployment state.
During the pandemic, Lujan Grisham has repeatedly skirted her own lockdown orders, forced New Mexicans to stand in cold breadlines over the holidays, misused government funds to buy $200 per pound Wagyu beef steaks and fine wine, and constantly changed the science and criteria on reopening the state.
Embattled Democrat Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham, who was accused and later settled with $62,500 in campaign funds for sexual assault, did not only pay off an accuser with campaign cash.
According to the Lujan Grisham campaign’s most recent filing, she paid $1,040.00 to her daughter, Erin Grisham at “Beauty By Erin Grisham” for “media preparation” on October 13, 2020. It appears suspect that the campaign made sure to list the Governor’s daughter’s services as “media preparation” instead of as hair and makeup, since she is a freelance hair and makeup artist, according to her LinkedIn profile. Erin Grisham does not have a registered LLC or other registered taxable entity with the New Mexico Secretary of State’s Office, although she holds a cosmetology license that expires in 2022, according to the New Mexico Regulation & Licensing Department.
On her professional profile, Erin Grisham writes that she has been a “Hair and make-up stylist for members of the NM State Representatives and New Mexico State Democratic Party.” On LinkedIn and her website, Erin Grisham lists no other services she offers other than hair and makeup. It is unclear if Erin Grisham still resides in the state since, on her website, she writes, “ I started my career in New Mexico and recently moved to California to further my education in the beauty industry.”
According to New Mexico state law, “Expenditures that are reasonably attributable to the candidate’s campaign and not to personal use or personal living expenses are permissible campaign expenditures.” Makeup and hair expenses are not appropriate uses of campaign funds, per state law.
For the date the expenditure was made to Erin Grisham, Gov. Lujan Grisham was at a virtual fundraiser for the re-election of Rep. Dayan Hochman-Vigil (D-Bernalillo) from 4:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. According to her official calendar from the Office of the Governor, Lujan Grisham had a cabinet meeting at 10:00 a.m., a “USC Climate Discussion” from 11:50 am to 12:50 noon, and a call with Vice President Pence and other governors scheduled for 12:00 noon.
Later in that week, the Governor had a “Casey Foundation: Opportunities for Young People in New Mexico” on October 14th, a press conference on the 15th, and multiple calls with Democrats and Dr. Deborah Birx on the 16th.
In the same campaign finance report, Lujan Grisham’s largest expenditures were the $62,5000 to James Hallinan, sexual assault accuser, $50,000 to the Democrat Party of New Mexico, and $34,100 to Anne Lewis Strategies of Washington, D.C., which is listed in the campaign finance report as an “online consultant.”
Marijuana dealer Darren White of PurLife gave the Governor’s campaign three separate payments of $10,000 in December 2020, just weeks before the 2021 Legislative Session, where the Governor’s recreational marijuana bill was rammed through. Lujan Grisham also received a $10,000 contribution from Bright Green in Grants, which the campaign finance report identifies as a marijuana company.
This story will be updated if Lujan Grisham’s campaign responds to the Piñon Post‘s request for comment.
On Saturday, businesswoman Karen Bedonie of Mexican Springs, north of Gallup, entered the 2022 race for governor of New Mexico, making her the second Republican to announce their candidacy following Sandoval County Commissioner Jay Block who announced last Saturday.
In an announcement video, Bedonie says, “I am a woman of courage and I have worked tirelessly to formulate a liberating plan for the beautiful state of New Mexico.”
“The heaviest burdens that weigh my mind are what we need to do to save our state: energy, safety, law enforcement support, education, reducing taxes, cutting the red tape for small businesses, freedom, independence, jobs, agriculture, forestry, and all of our very precious industries here in New Mexico. And we also need to keep God in our endeavors.”
“I have respect for the moderate Democrat[s] that are also the same as my Democratic parents. The common ground is based on conservatism. It’s the teachings that have shaped my life to become a loving person and a hard worker.”
The announcement video, which features inter-spliced photographs of Bedonie holding a rife, posing with law enforcers, her husband, and her family, portrayed her campaign’s focuses on a family, faith, and freedoms-based message.
“I believe the Second Amendment of the Constitution is absolute, written so beautifully that the builders of this nation installed these rights to withstand tyranny and the trampling of our liberties and freedoms. As a mother of five daughters, we will bear arms to protect ourselves. Missing, murdered, and indigenous women is real and is also unresolved,” Bedonie said in the announcement video.
Bedonie’s formal announcement took place at Allen Hall in Grady, New Mexico, where people from across the state, including Albuquerque-area and Hobbs, gathered to support the candidate. At the event, Bedonie and her daughters served fry bread to attendees and spoke with supporters about issues to turn the state around. She previously ran for Congress in 2020 for the Third District, which covers most of northern New Mexico.
If Bedonie wins the GOP nomination, she will face embattled Democrat Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham, who was accused and later settled $62,500 for sexual assault. Lujan Grisham has been a controversial figure in New Mexico, grabbing national headlines for her hostility toward New Mexicans during COVID-19 and her penchant to ram through extreme far-left legislation to further her agenda.
On Friday, Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham was forced to rescind her previous orders setting capacity limits on church gatherings after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that capacity limits on places of worship cannot be more restrictive than other places, such as schools.
In a seemingly strategic move to not want to cause any more controversy in her embattled administration, where she was accused and settled $62,500 over sexual assault, she begrudgingly lifted the order, according to Nora Sackett, the governor’s mouthpiece.
“The state, of course, is always concerned about the risk of viral spread anywhere people are gathered,” Nora Meyers Sackett wrote. “Nonetheless, the case law from the Supreme Court is clear.”
The Santa Fe New Mexican reports that Sackett “denied political pressure to fully open churches” was a factor leading to the decision, although many have doubted the validity of that argument.
Despite the health order allowing 100% capacity, the Archdiocese of Santa Fe is directing its parishes to “limit capacity according to the color-coding for indoor services — and to not allow 100 percent attendance,” the New Mexican writes.
The move by Archbishop John C. Wester is typical, as he previously championed the closure of Santuario de Chimayó sacred site for two consecutive years, citing COVID-19 as the reason for the closure. Wester also made a public service announcement for Gov, Lujan Grisham pushing masks.
"Wearing a mask is a sign of care for our neighbor. Practicing social distancing is a sign of care for our loved ones and the loved ones of others."
I couldn't agree more. Thank you, Archbishop Wester, for encouraging New Mexicans to protect one another.
The news comes after a long list of Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham’s hostility toward the faithful, despite claiming to belong to the Roman Catholic faith.
Here’s an overview:
On Holy Saturday 2020, Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham made a proclamation that all in-person Easter church services of five or greater were banned, effectively stopping New Mexicans from attending church on Easter Sunday. She said she wanted to make “absolutely clear that mass gatherings of any type are not permitted in houses of worship.”
Abortion facilities were allowed to stay wide open while churches were shuttered.
On Easter 2020, the Governor made a “proclamation” from the Governor’s mansion, writing on Twitter, “This Easter, home is the holy place. I expect all New Mexicans to stay safe by staying home to celebrate, not gathering with friends and family.”
On Mother’s Day 2020, Gov. Lujan Grisham sent out her State Police to serve a cease and desist order to Truth or Consequences pastor, Dr. Caleb Cooper.
Pastor Jeff Carr of Mesa Baptist Church in Rio Rancho was told by the Governor’s Office that while in-person services were prohibited, he could still hold “online services, drive-in services where people remain in the car with their windows rolled up… or listen to a radio service, honk their horns for ‘Amen!’ and so on.”
Legacy Church in Albuquerque fought back against the Governor and sued the state and remained under scrutiny by the Governor and the liberal media for living out their faith through fellowship in their church. The Governor’s Democrat-controlled NM Supreme Court struck down the church’s lawsuit. After a Christmas Eve service, Lujan Grisham issued a $10,000 fine to the church.
Other churches caved to Grisham’s edicts:
I was honored to be mentioned by the governor today for what we have been planning for this year’s Easter service. Our drive-in services are full but I would like to encourage you to join us either online or on local tv stations. Thank you again @Michelle4NM for your support! pic.twitter.com/vEffAlX5dU
Las Cruces Bishop Peter Baldacchin instructed his diocese that “While it is true that we need to take every reasonable precaution to reduce the spread of Coronavirus, it is equally true that we offer the greatest ‘essential service’ to our people. The past few weeks have brought to light many unintended consequences of the ‘stay-at-home’ order.”
On Easter 2020, Gov. Lujan Grisham instructed New Mexicans to “celebrate safely” while important traditions such as the pilgrimage to El Santuario de Chimayó were prohibited.
Now, with the small olive branch the Governor has conceded, this should be no means an occasion to celebrate. For over a year, New Mexicans’ rights have been infringed by Gov. Lujan Grisham, especially the ever-important right to worship at church. No person of faith should be celebrating an oppressive governess ripping away their rights and then giving them back to us months later, making it sound like a favor.
On Thursday, embattled Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham, who was accused and later settled $62,500 for sexual assault, addressed Joe Biden’s “Leaders Summit on Climate” hosted by EPA administrator Michael S. Regan, where she spoke of her extreme actions to cripple the oil and gas industry and set “ambitious” emissions standards for the sake of “climate change.”
She spoke of her unilateral executive orders to force through extreme environmental rulemaking through a “climate task force,” her work for New Mexico to join in Paris Climate Accord, which the United Nations admitted was a “fraud,” and her ambitions to “look forward” to “this administration’s work on infrastructure,” which could be a signal that Lujan Grisham sees federal dollars coming New Mexico’s way for extreme eco-leftist policies if Biden’s trillion-dollar infrastructure bill becomes law.
But Lujan Grisham specifically took time to bash the United States, claiming, “the U.S.–in the context of this panel–has the worst record on greenhouse gas emissions for every country represented on this panel.” However, the United States has the tenth-cleanest air quality in the world according to the World Health Organization, so it is unclear how Lujan Grisham has arrived at her anti-American stance on the “climate.”
Other participants at the Climate Summit included leaders from pollutant-heavy nations, such as President Xi Jinping of the communist People’s Republic of China, Prime Minister Narendra Modi of India, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina of Bangladesh, among other polluting nations on the top of the list for the most pollutant nations.
Throughout her time as governor, Lujan Grisham has pushed rabidly anti-energy policies, including the “Green New Deal,” also known as the “Energy Transition Act,” supported extreme emissions standards for oil and gas producers, tapped far-left enviro-Marxists to work in her administration, and has supported harmful 20+ cent gas taxes on the poor, which have luckily failed in the Legislature thus far.
Read her full remarks in front of the panel below:
Like the… Biden administration, one of my first actions was to execute an executive order that established a framework for three critical components. One, we joined the Paris agreement and we set our greenhouse gas emissions reductions based on that agreement’s targets.
So, we were very clear about what we wanted to accomplish and we had a climate task force that included every bit of the stakeholders that you identified in your question. So, the industry, consumers, utilities, environmental groups, scientists, other experts, every single economic stakeholder you could think of to make sure we could really move on those targets and we joined the U.S. Climate Alliance.
And I really want to put into perspective that the U.S. Climate Alliance, a bipartisan group of governors that represent more than half the U.S. total population, 60% of the U.S. GDP, and we collectively are responsible for 40% of emissions. And to put that into context, the U.S.–in the context of this panel–has the worst record on greenhouse gas emissions for every country represented on this panel.
So, we have a long way to go. So we set an ambitious target, and as you know, we now have the leading methane rules in the country that eliminates venting and flaring by the gas industry, and by 2026, requires that we are recapturing 98% of methane emissions and we are on our way to set the very same targets for ozone rules.
We didn’t let the pandemic interrupt that rulemaking process and our efforts to really bring the industry together with us. And I’ll tell you why that’s really important, although it gets criticized: because if you’re just choosing accountability, then you are chasing that effort all of the time without getting your entire state in a leadership fashion all on the same page, and it becomes politically cyclical. And what we want to establish in both our own state work, given that we’re a leading oil and gas producer in this country, is that we can show innovation, we can set incredibly ambitious standards, we can require accountability, and leadership in making sure that we are addressing climate change in a comprehensive fashion by making sure it’s not just government versus the industry, where the industry with government on one topic, which greenhouse gas emissions are methane, but it’s every single stakeholder and every single policymaker in the state, including the entire cabinet working together to achieve those results.
And I will add one last thing which is given that you’re building that, you’re using young people, everyone is at the table, we also have one of the country’s most ambitious renewable portfolio standards investments, and as we move towards investing in a rescue plan and look forward to this administration’s work on infrastructure, we’re gonna be ready to have a robust platform, as the mayor… in Louisiana talked about… that those infrastructure investments will also allow you to not only meet your current targets but to exceed them as we work as a coalition to address climate change across the globe.
On Wednesday, it was reported that Michelle Lujan Grisham’s senior policy advisor Dominic Gabello had resigned from the administration, making him the latest top-level official to leave her office amid her sexual assault scandal where she paid off a former staffer $62,500 with campaign funds who alleged she groped his crotch.
Gabello will not abandon the Governor entirely but will cash in on his work for Lujan Grisham by “starting his own business and continuing to serve as a political consultant to the governor on the campaign side,” according to Nora Sackett, the Governor’s press secretary.
Sackett says Gabello’s last official day will be April 30, telling the New Mexican that Gabello “was out of the office and unavailable for comment Wednesday.”
“Dominic Gabello is a veteran political adviser, who has been a major part of Gov. Lujan Grisham’s team for near a decade and managed her congressional and gubernatorial campaigns,” campaign spokesman Jared Leopold said in a statement. “We are thrilled to have his help on Gov. Lujan Grisham’s campaign.”
While working in the administration, Gabello was getting $143,769 per year as senior policy adviser, which is comparable to other staffers’ salaries in the well-paid Lujan Grisham office.
The resignation comes after Department of Workforce Solutions cabinet secretary Bill McCamley quit unexpectedly, John Bingaman, the Governor’s former chief of staff, left the administration to manage a private investment firm, and in January, Victor Reyes, the governor’s legislative director, stepped down.
Last year, Department of Finance and Administration secretary Olivia Padilla-Jackson, Department of Health secretary Kathy Kunkel, and state epidemiologist Dr. Michael Landen all resigned, among others.
Gabello was front and center in the Governor’s groping controversy, where James Hallinan, the victim, claimed Gabello tried to talk him out of reporting the incident.
Gabello was also central in organizing a meeting with communist Chinese officials in New Mexico, where Lujan Grisham and Chinese Consul General Zhang Ping discussed possibly making New Mexico a sister-state with the hostile nation.
On Tuesday, Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham sent out a fundraising email lauding her signing of the Democrats’ extreme recreational marijuana bill, despite concerns from law enforcement about public safety.
Lujan Grisham relished in the bill’s signing, writing, “I was deeply proud to sign this bill into law because I know it will open up so many opportunities for New Mexico. Opportunities for workers and entrepreneurs to build prosperous careers. Opportunities to generate more revenue for state and local governments. And opportunities to mend the harm done by the failed war on drugs – which has taken a disproportionate toll on communities of color.”
She claimed the bill is just what she was “dreaming of” when she introduced her extreme proposals before the legislative session, many of which she got, including abortion up to birth, assisted suicide legalization, raiding the permanent fund for free daycare, among other extreme measures.
“This is the kind of change I’m dreaming of when I talk about building a brighter future for New Mexico – a win-win that allows both individuals and communities to thrive. Together, we’ll keep fighting to make our bold agenda a reality. This session, we’ve proven that it’s possible.”
Then she made an appeal for cash, writing that she wanted to hit a $10,000 fundraising goal, asking, “If you supported legalizing cannabis in New Mexico, will you donate $15 or more right now to keep our state blue?”
It is unclear if Lujan Grisham’s appeal to her far-left supporters will yield success, but Democrats did everything they could to ram through the bill but failed in epic proportions by not getting it through the regular session. The initial failure resulted in the Governor calling a hurried special session to ram the bill through in record time and signing the proposal as fast as she could.
On Tuesday, embattled Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham, who was accused and later settled $62,500 for sexual assault, will take part in a pre-Oscars event with the pro-abortion, sexist group “EMILY’s List,” which funnels millions of dark money dollars each year to pro-abortion candidates.
According to the Federal Election Commission (FEC), EMILY’s List gave Lujan Grisham at least $40,000 in direct contributions during the time she was in Congress. That amount does not account for the independent expenditures of the group in her favor. During Lujan Grisham’s 2018 run for governor, the dark money group funneled over $11,000 in direct contributions to her campaign, while spending an unknown amount on independent expenditures.
According to the press release from EMILY’s List, the “virtual” event will “feature a panel discussion hosted by the EMILY’s List Creative Council, where a powerful mix of entertainment industry and elected leaders will come together to spotlight the groundbreaking women who are leading the way in politics and the entertainment industry.”
Lujan Grisham will share the virtual stage for a “keynote panel” with raunchy “comedian” Samantha Bee of “Full Frontal with Samantha Bee,” disgraced aging actress and anti-American Vietnam War activist “Hanoi” Jane Fonda, actresses Regina King and Lucy Liu, Rep. Katherine Clark (D-MA), and EMILY’s List Creative Council Co-Chair Chelsea Handler.
The release notes that EMILY’s List’s “vision is to be a driving force of change in America by electing more Democratic pro-[abortion] women to national, state, and local office, and this event serves to bring together politics and entertainment ‒ two areas where industries need to continue to make more space for women.”
The event, which purports to support women, features Gov. Lujan Grisham despite claims of sexual assault and later hush money payoffs to the victim. It also ignores the 750 million female babies worldwide killed through abortion over the past 50 years.
