Gessing: Cartoon & Road Trip Highlights Massive Policy Gap Between New Mexico And Lone Star State
By PAUL J. GESSING
President
Rio Grande Foundation
A recent cartoon by John Trever highlights the vastly different approaches towards governance of New Mexico and Texas.
The cartoon is of the state border circa 2030 as New Mexicans head to Texas for gas-powered vehicles while Texans visit NM for abortions and marijuana.
These are hardly the only differences between the two nowadays as Texas has no income tax or job-killing gross receipts tax, it is a right to work state, and state spending per-person is less than half of what it is in New Mexico. Not coincidentally, Texas is also one of the fastest Read More
Denish: Moms For Liberty Use Harassment, Intimidation To Push Agenda
By DIANE DENISH
Corner to Corner
© 2023 New Mexico News Services
When a local or national advocacy group uses words like “freedom”, “patriot” or “liberty” in their title, it raises my suspicions. The title may be catchy but usually disguises the true intent of the organization. This is especially true in the case of Moms for Liberty.
Moms for Liberty was founded in Florida in 2021 and began campaigning against COVID-19 protections in schools, including masks and vaccine mandates. All three of the original co-founders are Republicans (although they claim to be non-partisan) and one of them, Bridget Read More
Heinrich, Luján, Leger Fernández: Over $1.5M Funding To Fight Opioid Epidemic, Substance Abuse In New Mexico
From the Office of U.S. Sen. Martin Heinrich:
SANTA FE – U.S. Senators Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) and Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.) and U.S. Rep. Teresa Leger Fernández (D-N.M.) announced $1,524,625 in federal funding for the Santa Fe Recovery Center, Inc. from the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to combat the opioid epidemic and substance abuse in communities across New Mexico.
The funding will go toward recovery addiction treatment, recovery services, and overdose prevention. It will also expand the Medication Assisted Treatment (MAT) Access program, which the delegation passed Read More
Legislator OpEd: New Fines And Fees Law
By Senate Majority Leader Peter Wirth
Sen. Crystal Diamond Brantley, and
Rep. Christine Chandler
At a time when politics are more divisive than ever, New Mexicans have meaningful bipartisan change to celebrate. A new state law went into effect June 16 mandating the Motor Vehicle Division (MVD) no longer suspend driver’s licenses for simply missing an appearance or payment in minor traffic cases. While this highly technical change may sound tedious, it has an enormous impact.
License suspensions are a severe punishment in a state like ours that relies so heavily on driving. When people lose Read More
Housing Workshop For Northern New Mexico Aug. 8
VFNM News:
ULI New Mexico in partnership with the Ventana Fund has just released its Northern New Mexico Housing report for the Española area.
This report is the result of the April 2023 Northern New Mexico Housing Summit held in Española.
ULI NM extends an invitation to Northern New Mexico leaders to attend the next steps meeting 11:30 a.m. to 2 p.m., Tuesday, Aug. 8, 2023, at Nuckolls Brewing Santa Fe at 1611 Alcaldesa St. in Santa Fe.
The Española Housing Summit report discusses the impact of 7,500 new jobs in Española from Los Alamos National Laboratory and what that means for the ongoing housing Read More
National Hispanic Cultural Center Reopens
Interim Executive Director Zack Quintero
NHCC News:
The National Hispanic Cultural Center (NHCC) in Albuquerque is open again after Friday’s incident involving a vehicle. Following a weekend closure, all programs are now operating normally and events that were slated to take place in the NHCC’s Bank of America Theatre have been moved to the Albuquerque Journal Theatre and Wells Fargo Auditorium on the NHCC campus.
“The Center is open and welcoming our community,” Interim Executive Director Zack Quintero said. “All NHCC events will continue as planned while we begin construction and replace Read More
New Mexico Fight For Life Gala Ball Fundraiser: Empowering Hope For Suicide Prevention Sept. 16
NMFFL News:
New Mexico Fight for Life is proud to present its inaugural Gala Ball Fundraiser, an empowering event to benefit survivors of suicide, promote suicide awareness, and foster suicide prevention in New Mexico communities. Please join us starting at 6 p.m., Saturday, Sept. 16, at the beautiful Cities of Gold Hotel Ballroom, located at 10 Cities of Gold Rd # A, Santa Fe, NM 87506.
A Night of Hope and Resilience
Our Gala Ball Fundraiser is a celebration of hope, resilience, and the spirit of coming together to make a difference. This event will serve as the kickoff for our newly founded nonprofit, Read More
FBI: Carlsbad Woman Gets 30 Years For Making Child Porn
FBI News:
ALBUQUERQUE – Alexander M.M. Uballez, United States Attorney for the District of New Mexico, and Raul Bujanda, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Albuquerque Field Office, announced today that Rachel Michelle Crutcher was sentenced to 30 years in prison. Crutcher, 38, of Carlsbad, pled guilty Feb. 21 to production of a visual depiction of a minor engaging in sexually explicit conduct.
According to court documents, on Nov. 8, 2022, a Task Force Officer (TFO) working for the Child Exploitation and Human trafficking Task Force was monitoring a fetish Read More
Groundbreaking New Mexican Artists Recognized Among Recipients Of 2023 Governor’s Awards For Excellence In Arts
Courtesy/NMDCA
NMDCA News:
SANTA FE — Artists who reflect their people, their communities, and their culture are being recognized among the recipients of the 2023 Governor’s Awards for Excellence in the Arts.
New Mexico Department of Cultural Affairs (NMDCA), New Mexico Arts (NMA), and the New Mexico Arts Commission (NMAC) join in the Governor’s celebration of this diverse group of influential and impactful individuals.
“I want to congratulate the 2023 Governor’s Awards for Excellence in the Arts winners,” Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham. “This year’s recipients come from every corner Read More
Heinrich, Luján Lead Colleagues In Bicameral Call For Funding To Prevent Child Care Fiscal Cliff In New Mexico
Congressional News:
WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Sen. Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) and U.S. Sen. Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.) joined U.S. Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.) along with Senators Tina Smith (D-Minn.) and Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and U.S. Reps Suzanne Bonamici (D-Ore.) and Sara Jacobs (D-Calif.) in leading a bicameral group of colleagues to call on President Joe Biden to support needed funding to prevent a national wave of child care closures.
Democrats secured historic funding in the American Rescue Plan to stabilize child care during the COVID-19 pandemic, but that relief funding is set to end this