How does the Media Pick and Choose?

In a recent story carried by KOB 4 (READ IT HERE) the media picks and chooses how they wish to put a “spin” on a story for their ratings benefit.  They selected to bash an APD officer who enjoys praise as a “terrific employee” and on the other hand paints APD and City leaders as victims.

How is it that APD, who is now under Federal control, the victim? How is it that ex-chief Schultz is facing criminal indictments, the victim?  How is it that droves of top brass have fled in fear of the collapse of APD, now the victims?  How is it that Richard J. Berry who has lead the City of Albuquerque to be one of the worst City’s in the United States of America for crime, now the victim?  The fact is; APD Administration and the City leaders are not the victims; they are the offending parties.  This is not hearsay these are facts.

 

The opening statement of the story states, “…a blog used to disparage the Albuquerque Police Department and city leaders…” the facts don't lie; APD Administration and City leaders have failed the community and the Eye On Albuquerque has called them out on their devilish deeds. How does this become disparaging? Do the job you were hired to do, do it right and do it morally correct and you will never hear anything from the Eye On Albuquerque.

 

 The second paragraph of the story states, “…operating under the screen name "Stealth" to write hateful, embarrassing and often untrue posts on the website ‘Eye on Albuquerque.’” There is nothing hateful about the truth.  If an APD Administrator or City leader gets embarrassed for conducting themselves or City business unethically; they deserve to be embarrassed.  As for the “untrue” statement; please back it up with facts.  The Eye On Albuquerque does not post a story until they have two different and separate sources to verify what has been stated.  Our stories have stood the test of time and time has shown and proven; our stories are and have been true. Simply stated here our critics; put up or shut.

 

 By telling the truth the Eye On Albuquerque has never:

 

• Diminished public trust and confidence in APD
• Personally attacked APD's leadership and city leaders
• Lowered morale at APD and used bad judgment
• Used information learned while on duty against APD

 

However, these are the legitimate and Bona-Fide charges against APD Administrators and City Leaders. This action against Roberto isn’t personally motivated or a personal attack?  The hope was to silence the “Whistle Blower.”

 

 Now that the facts are straight; ask the DOJ why they took over the APD by a forced Federal court action?

 

 One final thought on this story. The Eye has been told APD Administrators and City Leaders solicited assistance from the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI).  How is that APD Administrators and City leaders managed to get the FBI involved in an employment action but they can’t get the FBI involved in solving a rape or murder?  If this does not prove beyond a reasonable doubt the City will stop at literally nothing to silence their critics; nothing will.  The ADP Administrators and City leaders who sought assistance from the FBI should be prosecuted for gross negligence.  The DOJ should now focus their attention on why the Federal Bureau of Investigations would waste valuable resource on an employment action.

 

 PS- Here is a question that should be asked about the hearing officer, Pete Camacho.  It is clear to us Camacho was unsure in his own decision stating: "I find [Roberto] did commit acts that indicate a lack of moral character that would adversely affect her ability to exercise the duties of a certified law enforcement officer.”  Read what he was thinking and expressed in his opinion; “…did commit acts that indicate a lack of moral character…” We must ask; what does Camacho mean by “indicates?”  If Mr. Camacho was given clear and convincing evidence the statement should have stated: "I find [Roberto] did commit acts that exhibited a lack of moral character that would adversely affect her ability to exercise the duties of a certified law enforcement officer.”  The word indicates of a suggestive nature and is not believable.  Since the hearing Officer, Pete Camacho is unsure of his own opinion, did someone “grease the wheels” like Schultz did for Tazer?

 

 And yes, the Eye On Albuquerque is alive, well and very active.

1Out Of 2

Tuesday, Mayor-elect Berry filled two of his top positions - Darren White, Public Safety Director and David Campbell, Chief Administrative Officer.

Sheriff White is a solid pick for Public Safety Director. He was one of APD's own, headed up the New Mexico Department of Public Safety, and is currently in his second and - because of term limits - last term as Sheriff of Bernalillo County.

Currently the position of public safety director is held by Pete Dinelli - a lawyer. It's probably a good idea to have someone who has been a first responder in a position dealing with first response. However, we're not real sure that having a Chief of Chief's position is absolutely necessary - but that's a discussion for another day.

Berry's other pick could be somewhat more problematic. David Campbell - a Democrat - has been a city attorney under the Missing Mayor (Saavedra) and was an assistant to Mayor Kinney. He's worked for both Rs and Ds and therein may lie his problem.

Campbell's back and forth political relationships and mercenary nature may work for a lobbyist or lawyer, but the result is a bunch of folks on both sides of the isle that are none too fond of the CAO to be.

The Chief Administrative Officer requires council confirmation. Right now, the council isn't exactly falling all over itself to endorse Campbell as the new CAO.

Councilor Brad Winter, a Northeast Heights Republican, said he isn't sure Campbell will win enough votes for confirmation. He said he's concerned about Campbell's background as a land-use attorney who's contested city zoning decisions.

- ABQ Journal (Subscription)

Land use issues often end up in front of the council. The council has a history of deciding these cases based on politics (they are a political body after all) and subsequently being overturned by the District Court because they failed to make a decision based on the law. Councilor Cadigan has firsthand experience in these matters.

The point is... attorneys like Campbell don't make a lot of political friends in the process. So, lets take a look at a possible vote with the assumption that the new guys Lewis and Cook will give the mayor what he wants.

For years, Campbell has represented eeeevil developers. Forget about O'Malley, Benton, and Garduno and our Eyes tell us that Councilor Sanchez is no fan. That leaves Harris and Jones. Jones appointed Campbell to the Charter Review Task Force, so we have our first definite yes. Harris could go either way. But let's assume that since he's worked with Representative Berry for the last few years, he gives the new mayor what he wants.

That's a 4 to 4 tie with Winter in the middle and Winter has already indicated that he is "concerned" about Campbell. Frankly, there's an even chance that Harris won't vote in favor of Campbell. There are simply more scenarios where Campbell ends up not becoming Ed Adam's replacement than there are scenarios where he does.

Mayor-elect Berry will get his public safety director. It's far less likely that he will get his first choice for CAO. In fact, Campbell better get back on the line with Obama and see if that Foreign Service gig is still available.

Berry Resigns House Seat

Mayor-elect R.J. Berry has decided that a divided official cannot function. The Albuquerque Journal is reporting that Berry had made the decision to step down from his District 20 seat in the New Mexico Legislature.

"It has been my great honor and privilege to represent my district in the Legislature during these past two terms. With the transition of my administration just getting underway, it is imperative that I give it my full attention. The citizens of my district deserve a full-time legislator representing their needs in Santa Fe and the people of Albuquerque deserve a mayor-elect who is working full-time to facilitate a smooth transition at City Hall," Berry said in the release.

- ABQ Journal

We really couldn't agree more... The fact of the matter is that setting up a new city government is not an insignificant task. And with the current $700 MILLION state budget crisis, serving in the state legislature is going to require the full attention of every elected official. Mayor-elect Berry is wise to realize the limitations and the requirements of his new job and act to make sure that his District 20 constituents are properly represented.

Now the question of who will represent District 20 falls to the Bernalillo County Commission. The only question is whether or not the Commission will be able to fill the seat before Saturday's special session start.

Marty in the Middle

Last week's Eye Poll started out with R.J. Berry holding a significant lead over the incumbent Alcalde. By the end of the week, Marty moved to within one vote of the leader. In our unscientific Eye Poll Berry and Chavez both sat at 39% with Berry holding a 1 vote lead. Meanwhile the other challenger Richard Romero, rounded out the poll with 23% of the vote (view it here).

Historically speaking, it's not above supporters of The Almighty Alcalde to push a poll. In fact, we've had it happen before (read it here). In this case, we don't have any evidence of 11th Floor tampering but we wouldn't be shocked if it occurred. We're quite sure that Marty and his minions are more than a little sensitive about any poll these days.

In case you missed it... The Sunday Journal featured an above the fold story on the most recent Sanderoff poll that showed R.J. Berry leading in this year's mayoral derby by 6 points with 31% of the vote. Chavez followed Berry with 26% followed closely by Romero at 24%. 19% of respondents in the Journal poll were undecided and the margin of error was a rather large plus or minus 5 points (ABQ Journal Subscription).

The fact is that despite the Journal headline - "Berry Has Slim Lead Over Chávez, Romero, With Days To Go" - R.J. Berry is that at worst leading Chavez and Romero by 1 and 2 points respectively. On the other hand, Berry could be leading Chavez by as much as 11 points.

There are a healthy number of undecided voters - in this case 19%. If the undecideds break hard for either Chavez or Romero, Berry could see his lead evaporate quickly. However, it looks as if the majority of undecided voters come from the NE Heights - traditionally a Republican stronghold and the wellspring of Marty's past victories.

Meanwhile, Romero is drawing Hispanic votes and Democrats (particularly liberal Democrats) away from The Almighty Alcalde.

None of this is particularly surprising. Politics is often situational. From the beginning, the situation favored R.J Berry - a Republican - since Democrats Chavez and Romero would tend to split the D vote.

In the end it will come down to turnout. Romero with the backing of the Eli Lee machine will effectively get their vote out. Marty will work his city hall machine between now and the election to make sure that every employee both votes and knows that their career is in his hands.

But in the end, the election will be decided by Republicans - many of whom have faithfully if misguidedly supported The Almighty Alcalde in the past. For the first time in a long time, Marty is being squeezed making him - in a statistical sense more than in a political one - Marty in the Middle. If independents break hard for Berry, Albuquerque's unemployment rate will go up by one.

Phone Slime

Since last week's KNME debate, two different "polls" have been spewing slime all over those unfortunate enough to pick up the phone. It's not like these things are really polls. They're not even push polls. They're autodial phone messages masquerading as a poll by asking the poor unfortunate souls who are stuck listening to this garbage to press 1 or press 2 depending on how much of a scoundrel you believe RJ Berry is.

The problem is, there's no mechanism for collecting the response. The auodialer's message barrels on regardless of the answer.

Poll: "5 a : a questioning or canvassing of persons selected at random or by quota to obtain information or opinions to be analyzed b : a record of the information so obtained"

-Merriam-Webster.com

So, according to Merriam-Webster a poll requires that data be collected - without it there's nothing to analyze. Therefore, these "polls" aren't polls they're campaign communications. And in this case, they're unidentified campaign communications - a violation of the City of Albuquerque's campaign laws.

KOB-TV is reporting that all 3 campaigns are denying any knowledge of the illicit phoners. We think we can absolutely rule out the Berry camp - as they're the target. And to date, Romero hasn't been targeting Berry. By process of elimination, that leaves Uncle Marty and his merry band of campaign cronies as the most likely culprits.

The polls used some information, sometimes nearly word for word, from a Chávez hit piece — a mailer — questioning Berry's reputation as a fiscal conservative, among other things.

- ABQ Journal (Subscription)

The funniest part of this whole thing was the Chavez campaign's response from spokesperson Joan Griffin.

Chavez campaign spokesperson Joan Griffin repeatedly said they didn't know whose poll it was, but at the end of the message she added:

"I believe that polls are not required to have disclaimers,"

-KOB-TV

So, according to Ms. Griffin - we don't know a thing about whose "poll" it was, but if we did it was legal because polls don't have to have disclaimers. Read it again. That's what she said... Really! (We'll now pause for you to finish laughing...)

The lack of disclosure violates city election and campaign codes, interim City Clerk Randy Autio said Monday. Autio's office should have been given transcripts of the calls, and whoever is doing them should have registered as a measured finance committee — the city's version of a PAC.

-ABQ Journal (Subscription)

Lying to the public isn't exactly new for the Chavez administration. They've been fibbing about the number of officers on the street, the effectiveness of the red light scam-eras, and spewing noxious emissions about greenhouse gas. So... who don't you believe here? Press 1 for Berry, 2 for Romero, or 3 for Chavez.

More importantly despite the fact that the Chavez cronies made every attempt to block the caller ID of the party making the illegal autodialers, our Eyes tell us that there's evidence that the source of calls was the same as the source of Chavez' other identified campaign phone communications.

Let's review... the calls sound like Chavez radio ads running on local stations. They are denied, but defended by Chavez spokeswoman Joan Griffin. Chavez has a history of, well... bending the truth. And, there's evidence that the calls came from the same source as other Chavez campaign phone ads.

Looks to us like the slime coming from your phone originates over at the Chavez campaign office. But given the history of the Almighty Alcalde the source of slime isn't all that surprising... is it?

Eye Poll: Berry

As summer begins to wane and the election season begins, Eye readers have chosen who they would like to be the next mayor of Albuquerque. In our unscientific poll, Richard "RJ" Berry took the honors with a solid 45% of the vote. The Almighty Alcalde came in 2nd at 28% edging out Richard Romero by 1 point at 27% (view it here).

Granted the Eye Poll is unscientific and our readers tend to be of the center-right variety, but these numbers have to be a concern for the Chavez campaign. After all, Republicans - particularly Northeast Heights Republicans - have been largely responsible for keeping Marty in the Alcalde's chair.

If Marty's numbers slip with Republican voters and Richard Romero mounts a credible challenge, it's pretty easy to see the mayor held below the magic runoff line. Should Marty be held below 40%, Berry could very well end up the new mayor. Of course Berry needs to run a solid campaign of his own, otherwise the beneficiary of a Chavez 40% failure would be Richard Romero.

In either case, if Chavez is kept below 40% the likely beneficiary would be the other guy that's left standing for the runoff. They would likely receive all of the anti-Marty / Marty-fatigue vote making them the new occupant of the Alcalde's chair.

This week we're looking at another race where the two Ds could split to put an R in office. That of course is the District 5 race where incumbent (and former mayoral candidate, then out of politics, then back in the council race) Michael Cadigan is trying to defend his seat against two opponents - Republican Dan Lewis and Democrat Jeremy Toulouse.

This race is interesting because the Republican is on the public dole (and you know how we hate public financing) while the two Democrats are earning their way with voluntary donations from contributors. We have a regulator, a candidate already feeding from the public trough, and a third candidate that probably can't raise enough money to make a serious challenge (unless there are enough District 5 voters on Facebook and MySpace where we're all cooler 'cause we're on line).

This is an interesting race folks and don't be surprised if there are a few surprises before the final votes are tallied in October. Don't forget to vote!