Gov. Susana Martinez isn’t a frontrunner for the Republican nomination for President in 2016; Public Policy Polling finds that 68 percent of likely Republican voters don’t know enough about her to form an opinion while just one percent say she is their top choice. A study by the Economic Policy Institute finds that economic recovery is slow in New Mexico — and even slower for Hispanics in the state. An ethics complaint against Mayor Richard Berry took … Read entire article »

KUNM looks at the questions surrounding New Mexico’s health insurance exchange on the day of a key deadline — one for a federal grant. But with exchanges required to be up and running nationally by October 1st, New Mexico’s Insurance Exchange chair, Dr. JR Damron says he’s not sure the state can do that on its own. In light of that short timeline, Damron expects New Mexico to have a final proposal for the federal government on … Read entire article »

New Mexico is stuck in the recession, cabinet secretary for the Department of Finance and Administration Tom Clifford told legislators on Tuesday. This is not good news for the economy that even a member of the Susana Martinez administration would say how bad the economy is going. From NM Capitol Report: Clifford even sounded a cautionary tone when discussing the oil industry, a beacon of success during dark times for much of the state. He said oil exploration typically … Read entire article »

There was a lot of news on a proposed uranium mine near Mount Taylor. The time for public comments on a controversial uranium mine has been extended, KUNM reports. At issue is mining around Mount Taylor, a site that is considered holy by many Native Americans. Meanwhile, there were protests. New Mexico In Depth reports on a protest of the proposed uranium mine. Inside, U.S. Forest Service officials acknowledged the mine will have “significant” impacts on archeological sites … Read entire article »

Capitol Report New Mexico looks at dozens of governmental entities that are behind on completing audits. It is required by New Mexico law that audits are performed annually — but there is no penalty to not doing so. Gov. Susana Martinez issued an executive order saying that entities that don’t complete audits on time will not be eligible for capital outlay — but more drastic measures could be needed. Balderas says that his hands are tied when … Read entire article »

The immigration debate is heating up, as the Senate prepares to vote on comprehensive immigration reform. The conservative Heritage Foundation issued a report that said immigration would cost the United States trillions. The report immediately was criticized for being flawed — by conservatives. Michael Coleman at the Albuquerque Journal writes that criticism by anti-tax kingmaker Grover Norquist “reflects divisions among Republicans in Congress as the U.S. Senate begins debate on a sweeping bipartisan immigration bill this … Read entire article »

New Mexico State University has a new president. Former Gov. Garrey Carruthers was named the new president by the NMSU Board of Regents. It wasn’t unanimous — it came on a 3-2 vote. Salary negotiations will now go on. Local state representatives were unhappy with Carruthers’ views on climate change and the tobacco fund — but now they will work with Carruthers on state funding for the university. Milan Simonich says he knows how to deal with crises because … Read entire article »

Is Gov. Susana Martinez “heavy on the hype” and light on actual accomplishments? That’s the take of a column by Milan Simonich in a scathing critique of the popular first-term governor. At his NM Capitol Report blog, Simonich wrote: Martinez, a Republican, will stand for re-election next year without many accomplishments. In the tradition of someone determined to win votes, she is re-inventing how government works in hopes of receiving credit where little is due her. Simonich was also … Read entire article »

Did you know that you can get the Morning Word early in your inbox each morning? It’s easy — all you need to do is make a monthly donation to NM Telegram — this helps keep NM Telegram running and keeps the Morning Word coming out each weekday morning. When you do this, you will get the Morning Word emailed to you at 4:30 am each morning. If this isn’t before you head off to work each … Read entire article »