Last week's Eye Poll took up the 1st Congressional District race between Sheriff Darren White and former Councilor Martin Heinrich. In this poll Sheriff White extended his lead over the former councilor by two points resulting in a 16 point lead. 57% of Eye readers preferred Darren White, 41% Martin Heinrich, and 1% didn't know (read this week's poll here).
Several weeks ago we ran the same poll with similar results. Sheriff White led that poll by 14 points with 210 votes registered. Last week's poll registered 50% more votes with only 4 voters undecided (view the previous poll here).
So what's the significance? The 1st Congressional District race is certainly attracting more attention and at least with Eye readers, their choices seem to be already made. In the final analysis, this race will come down to how well each candidate gets their supporters to the polls. A large Obama wave would certainly help Heinrich, but Democratic waves have broken on the rocks of the 1st CD before.
This week we'll take a look at the Wall Street bailout. As you might have surmised, we have serious reservations about the ability of politicians (Republican or Democrat) to effectively fix a situation that they are largely responsible for. We'd like to know what you think about Washington's willingness to spend HUNDREDS OF BILLIONS of our tax dollars to buy up loans that shouldn't have been issued in the first place. Don't forget to vote!
Sep 28, 2008
Sep 24, 2008
Are We Learning Anything?
On this site you'll read on a regular basis our views on liberty and government interference in the market. A free market based on two parties mutually agreeing to provide goods and/or services to one another for a mutually agreed upon compensation does not include a third party controlling or artificially setting the conditions for the exchange.
Our current financial crisis was caused by a third party setting artificial conditions in the market place that ultimately weren't in the best interests of either of the original parties. Of course the third party we're talking about here is the federal government and the politicians that set policy based not on the long term financial health of lenders and borrowers, but on their own short term political health.
Thomas Sowell calls it stage one thinking - the concept that politicians generally think no further than their next election. As a result they're reluctant to head-off a crisis that won't occur until well after the next election. The looming social security crisis is a perfect example of an impending catastrophe that elected officials will not act to avert.
The simple explanation of the current situation and how we arrived here is that politicians interfered in the market place through the quasi-private Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac organizations making it profitable to lend money to people who could not afford to repay the loan. The government backed Freddie and Fannie bought loans from lenders that gave loans to people that should not have them. Where there's a guaranteed sale someone will come along with a product to sell.
To make matters worse, interest only loans were being handed out like candy on Halloween. These loans were sold to people as a way to get into a bigger home for a payment that they could afford. The scheme worked fine as long as property values continued to rise. When values leveled off and then fell precipitously, property owners and the financial institutions holding the note were upside down.
Now we have politicians trying to decide whether or not to spend close to a TRILLION of our tax dollars to fix the mess that they created in the first place. The lesson to be learned here is that quasi-government entities run by political appointees with near limitless financial power have no place in a free market.
Political interference created this mess it's insane to believe that increased government involvement will be the long-term solution - mainly because a good portion of the politicians running the government aren't thinking beyond November. Our fear is that we haven't learned anything and that this whole experience will result in a vast expansion of the federal government into a market that is becoming less and less free.
Our current financial crisis was caused by a third party setting artificial conditions in the market place that ultimately weren't in the best interests of either of the original parties. Of course the third party we're talking about here is the federal government and the politicians that set policy based not on the long term financial health of lenders and borrowers, but on their own short term political health.
Thomas Sowell calls it stage one thinking - the concept that politicians generally think no further than their next election. As a result they're reluctant to head-off a crisis that won't occur until well after the next election. The looming social security crisis is a perfect example of an impending catastrophe that elected officials will not act to avert.
The simple explanation of the current situation and how we arrived here is that politicians interfered in the market place through the quasi-private Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac organizations making it profitable to lend money to people who could not afford to repay the loan. The government backed Freddie and Fannie bought loans from lenders that gave loans to people that should not have them. Where there's a guaranteed sale someone will come along with a product to sell.
To make matters worse, interest only loans were being handed out like candy on Halloween. These loans were sold to people as a way to get into a bigger home for a payment that they could afford. The scheme worked fine as long as property values continued to rise. When values leveled off and then fell precipitously, property owners and the financial institutions holding the note were upside down.
Now we have politicians trying to decide whether or not to spend close to a TRILLION of our tax dollars to fix the mess that they created in the first place. The lesson to be learned here is that quasi-government entities run by political appointees with near limitless financial power have no place in a free market.
Political interference created this mess it's insane to believe that increased government involvement will be the long-term solution - mainly because a good portion of the politicians running the government aren't thinking beyond November. Our fear is that we haven't learned anything and that this whole experience will result in a vast expansion of the federal government into a market that is becoming less and less free.
KNME Debate Back On
We received word that the on-again off-again KNME televised debate between DA Kari Brandenburg and challenger Lisa Torraco is back on. Kevin McDonald over at KNME told us via email that the debate will be taped Sunday, October 19th at 10:00 am and will air the following Friday, October 24th at 7pm. McDonald also told us that he plans to post the debate at NewMexicoInFocus.org as soon as possible after the taping but before the program airs the following night.
We still think the Brandenburg folks are trying to keep their candidate sealed for as long as possible, but at least there will be some opportunity for the voters of the 2nd Judicial District to see the two candidates before they cast their votes.
----- Correction ------
We really ought to consult our calendar before posting. The debate will be taped on Sunday not Thursday as originally posted. Keven McDonald sent over an email setting us straight. The debate will be posted for nearly a week before the airdate. Thanks for the correction!
We still think the Brandenburg folks are trying to keep their candidate sealed for as long as possible, but at least there will be some opportunity for the voters of the 2nd Judicial District to see the two candidates before they cast their votes.
----- Correction ------
We really ought to consult our calendar before posting. The debate will be taped on Sunday not Thursday as originally posted. Keven McDonald sent over an email setting us straight. The debate will be posted for nearly a week before the airdate. Thanks for the correction!
The Bite Heard 'Round the World!
Ok... so maybe we got a little carried away with the title. It's hard to make anything grandiose out of a dog bite case. But in this case, it may have brought attention to a District Attorney's race where publicity has been sorely lacking.
Two years ago, District Attorney Brandenburg's cute and cuddly little K-9 bit one of her neighbors -Elaine Hazelrigg- on the face causing some bleeding and a chipped tooth. When Animal Control officers arrived they found that the DA's pooch was an illegal! Yep, Brandenburg's perp pet was unlicensed and found not to be current on their rabies.
Folks, most of the time the cover-up is what gets you into trouble. Is it important that DA Brandenburg was engaged in a civil contest with her neighbor? Was it important that the licensing and vaccination of her dog had lapsed? Generally speaking... No. There probably isn't a pet owner anywhere that hasn't missed sending their fees in or been a little late getting to the vet.
The elephant (or donkey if you prefer) in the room here is that DA Brandenburg received special treatment that worked to her political benefit by sealing a case that would normally have been of little consequence or public interest. It's the cover-up stupid! But the action taken by the DA to seal this case gives an indication of the DA's integrity and her willingness to hide even the smallest of embarrassments from the public. It's the bite heard 'round the world - or at least around town.
----- Update -----
A number of posters have complained about our take on this particular case. Let's be clear here... We don't have a problem with maintaining a certain amount of informational security where law enforcement officials are concerned. In this case - a minor civil suit - the DA chose to ask the court to place the entire case under seal when all that was truly necessary was to place documents that revealed her home address under seal.
When an elected official (even one in law enforcement) decides to extend the privilege of secrecy beyond the point where it's absolutely necessary, their actions invite suspicion. After all, civil court is a public proceeding and therefore rightfully a part of the public record. There were alternatives here and the DA chose a path that would protect not only her physical person but her political self - the latter of which has no right to the court's protection.
Two years ago, District Attorney Brandenburg's cute and cuddly little K-9 bit one of her neighbors -Elaine Hazelrigg- on the face causing some bleeding and a chipped tooth. When Animal Control officers arrived they found that the DA's pooch was an illegal! Yep, Brandenburg's perp pet was unlicensed and found not to be current on their rabies.
Hazelrigg, who lives on a street of high-end homes, said she decided to sue Brandenburg after the DA denied fault for her injuries and refused to pay her medical and dental expenses.As happens in many civil suits, the case was eventually settled and the two parties went on their way. So far, there's really nothing particularly remarkable about the case. In fact, the only thing that is remarkable about the case is that Brandenburg and her attorney asked that the case be sealed - and the court helpfully obliged.
"There was no remorse whatsoever. Zero," she said. "I wasn't in it for the money."
Attorney James Johansen, who represented Brandenburg in the suit, said no. He said the case was sealed because of concerns by the DA that file documents revealed the location of her home.That last bit is the problem. If Brandenburg's address is readily available then sealing the record is unnecessary and unwarranted.
"There has to be a balance here in protecting public officials and letting the public know what officials are doing in their private lives," Johansen said.
But Brandenburg's home address is easily and widely available from public sources. [emphasis added]
...Don Kochersberger, a lawyer for Hazelrigg, said one document in the case file — a summons issued to Brandenburg — had previously been sealed because it disclosed the DA's home address.This wasn't a nasty divorce where very personal and embarrassing details about the sex lives and personal habits of the contestants find their way into the public record. Without doubt there are times when sealing a case is both appropriate and necessary.
(Sidebar)In the Brandenburg Bite case, it appears that the court had more options than to seal the entire case. Paperwork that included the DA's home address had already been sealed so the only real reason to seal the case would be to avoid public scrutiny.
You'll no doubt remember an infamous child custody case where the alleged sexual habits of a candidate for U.S. Senate were made public after the Chicago Tribune sued in California for the release of those sealed records. The improper release of those records resulted in Jack Ryan ex-husband of actress Jerri Ryan withdrawing from the race a mere 3 months before the election and Barrack Hussein Obama becoming the Junior Senator from Illinois.
(End Sidebar)
Folks, most of the time the cover-up is what gets you into trouble. Is it important that DA Brandenburg was engaged in a civil contest with her neighbor? Was it important that the licensing and vaccination of her dog had lapsed? Generally speaking... No. There probably isn't a pet owner anywhere that hasn't missed sending their fees in or been a little late getting to the vet.
The elephant (or donkey if you prefer) in the room here is that DA Brandenburg received special treatment that worked to her political benefit by sealing a case that would normally have been of little consequence or public interest. It's the cover-up stupid! But the action taken by the DA to seal this case gives an indication of the DA's integrity and her willingness to hide even the smallest of embarrassments from the public. It's the bite heard 'round the world - or at least around town.
----- Update -----
A number of posters have complained about our take on this particular case. Let's be clear here... We don't have a problem with maintaining a certain amount of informational security where law enforcement officials are concerned. In this case - a minor civil suit - the DA chose to ask the court to place the entire case under seal when all that was truly necessary was to place documents that revealed her home address under seal.
When an elected official (even one in law enforcement) decides to extend the privilege of secrecy beyond the point where it's absolutely necessary, their actions invite suspicion. After all, civil court is a public proceeding and therefore rightfully a part of the public record. There were alternatives here and the DA chose a path that would protect not only her physical person but her political self - the latter of which has no right to the court's protection.
Sep 21, 2008
Not Even Close
Last week we ran our Eye Poll on the 2nd Judicial District Attorney's race. It wasn't even close. Challenger Lisa Torraco ran away with the voting taking 71% of the 239 votes. Incumbent Kari Brandenburg received 25% and 4% didn't know (view the results here). Our results mirror a poll that was run by the APOA three weeks ago where Ms. Torraco received 70.54% of the votes (read it here).
The question remains, if Brandenburg consistently loses by wide margins in these unscientific polls why isn't the local media picking up on the story? It's pretty apparent that a large number of Eye readers have law enforcement ties. It's more than a little concerning that the general public has no idea just how much the law enforcement community seems to dislike our current DA.
We have received word that DA Brandenburg has agreed to debate hosted by the UNM Law School October 23rd. Of course, the debate won't take place until early voters have been voting for more than two weeks. The debate timing looks to us like another move by the Brandenburg camp to protect the DA from what could be a poor performance.
The question remains, if Brandenburg consistently loses by wide margins in these unscientific polls why isn't the local media picking up on the story? It's pretty apparent that a large number of Eye readers have law enforcement ties. It's more than a little concerning that the general public has no idea just how much the law enforcement community seems to dislike our current DA.
We have received word that DA Brandenburg has agreed to debate hosted by the UNM Law School October 23rd. Of course, the debate won't take place until early voters have been voting for more than two weeks. The debate timing looks to us like another move by the Brandenburg camp to protect the DA from what could be a poor performance.
UNM School of Law Bernalillo County DA Candidate’s DebateThis week we train our Eye Poll back on the 1st Congressional District. You know the race between form councilor Martin Heinrich and Sheriff Darren White. Don't forget to vote!
October 23, 2008, UNMSOL, Room 2402, 12:30 to 1:15
Sep 19, 2008
Biden Remorse?
After the thunderous entry of Sarah Palin into the Presidential race, Democrats may be feeling a sense of buyers, or at least Biden remorse. Obama's safe pick turned out to be a less than inspiring choice, particularly when compared to McCain's coup.
With one decision the Arizona Senator nearly wiped out Obama's convention bounce and put the wind in his campaign sails allowing him to close on the Democratic frontrunner and surpass him in some polls. Now we're hearing whispers that Obama and the Ds are considering a veep swap.
The rumor - which could be just that - goes that Biden will step down citing health problems. Obama will then choose his vanquished opponent Hillary Clinton to replace the ailing Biden. All of this is timed to happen after the October 2nd debate.
Remember these are just rumors but if true, Biden could become a rabid attack dog during the debate without risking a public backlash. We believe that Democrats have been looking with envy at the McCain pick and would be willing to do just about anything to get Hillary back on their ticket.
With one decision the Arizona Senator nearly wiped out Obama's convention bounce and put the wind in his campaign sails allowing him to close on the Democratic frontrunner and surpass him in some polls. Now we're hearing whispers that Obama and the Ds are considering a veep swap.
The rumor - which could be just that - goes that Biden will step down citing health problems. Obama will then choose his vanquished opponent Hillary Clinton to replace the ailing Biden. All of this is timed to happen after the October 2nd debate.
Remember these are just rumors but if true, Biden could become a rabid attack dog during the debate without risking a public backlash. We believe that Democrats have been looking with envy at the McCain pick and would be willing to do just about anything to get Hillary back on their ticket.
Sep 16, 2008
Prevent Defense
In football they call it the prevent defense. You hear about it mainly when one team - we'll call it Team D - has a lead over another team - say Team R. The idea is that Team D plays conservative defense designed to minimize mistakes. The problem is Team R is hungry and playing from behind and is free to take the initiative away from the cautions even fearful Team D.
We'd argue that Democrats expecting another Democratic storm surge are playing their own version of the Prevent Defense. So far, two high profile candidates are busy trying to protect their lead or a perceived lead by preventing their candidates from appearing in televised debates with their opponents.
We told you about Kari Brandenburg backing out of a KNME channel 5 debate last week (read it here). Now, Congressional hopeful Martin Heinrich has joined the DA in the Democrat's undisclosed location.
Apparently, Heinrich has withdrawn from a KRQE/AARP debate that would have been televised on the CBS affiliate.
Worst of all, it sure looks like Heinrich was a... LOBBYIST! That's a lot like a "community organizer" only he's getting paid by special interests to "organize" state and federal law makers and officials. You can bet that like a lot of other lobbyists, Heinrich's efforts weren't about saving your money.
Team Democrat doesn't want these types of uncomfortable questions being asked of their anointed candidates. As a result, they're sent to the bunker to hide out and wait for the anticipated Obama storm surge that they believe will flood the voters and carry their candidates along to victory.
As most football fans will tell you, Team D better be careful when they employ the Prevent Defense. A good portion of the time the Prevent Defense prevents a team from winning.
----- Update -----
We had hardly pressed publish on this post than we received a news release from the Republican Party of New Mexico that included a link to a statement from Martin Heinrich to the media that included the all important question of whether or not he was going to release his lobbying records (listen to it here). His answer was, well... not yes.
The former councilor talked about the White campaign "owing" $5,000 to the taxpayers for the President Bush fundraiser on White's behalf. And when pressed on releasing his lobbying records the councilor from an undisclosed location talked about his "work" with groups to "protect" the Ojito Wilderness. In political speak work equals lobbying and the answer itself means "hell no I'm not going to answer your question!"
More importantly this little media appearance was a pitiful attempt to change the subject. Presidential visits are expensive affairs and we taxpayers generally pick up the tab no matter who's in the White House. But that wasn't really the point of Heinrich's idiotic statement.
Heinrich's real objective was to use Bush and White in a sentence together in an attempt to remind voters that Darren White worked on the Bush campaign. Ok... guilty. Darren White is a Republican. Darren White worked on the Bush campaign. Done being surprised now?
We'd bet that Heinrich supported Clinton and he probably would have supported Jimmy Carter had he been old enough to do so.
Here's another reminder... For the past two years, Democrats have been in charge of Congress. We know that comes as a surprise to many, but the truth is that every one of the talking points that Democrats ran and won on two years ago - including immediate troop withdrawl from Iraq - have been virtually ignored by those same politicians.
Democrats have an obsession with President Bush that is only surpassed by their recently discovered meniacal hatred of Sarah Palin. They will attempt to run against him at every opportunity even though there's not a single ballot that he will appear on ever again. If they're not careful, it will be their undoing.
We'd argue that Democrats expecting another Democratic storm surge are playing their own version of the Prevent Defense. So far, two high profile candidates are busy trying to protect their lead or a perceived lead by preventing their candidates from appearing in televised debates with their opponents.
We told you about Kari Brandenburg backing out of a KNME channel 5 debate last week (read it here). Now, Congressional hopeful Martin Heinrich has joined the DA in the Democrat's undisclosed location.
Apparently, Heinrich has withdrawn from a KRQE/AARP debate that would have been televised on the CBS affiliate.
“After agreeing to the debate, and even after both campaigns agreed to change the date to appease Martin Heinrich’s ‘busy schedule,’ today Martin Heinrich surprised no one and declined the opportunity to debate Darren White on the important issues of the day,” White spokesman Stephen Schatz said. “Martin must have reconsidered after his abysmal performance at the other candidate debates and forums and awakened to the fact that his liberal politics are out of touch with the independent voters of the First District.”Like his fellow Democrat, Heinrich has a number of recently revealed questions to answer like why he never registered as a lobbyist when he was admittedly engaging in the practice and getting paid to do so. The former councilor's company Heinrich Consulting allegedly lobbied both state and federal agencies and in doing so broke state and federal lobbying laws by not registering.
Worst of all, it sure looks like Heinrich was a... LOBBYIST! That's a lot like a "community organizer" only he's getting paid by special interests to "organize" state and federal law makers and officials. You can bet that like a lot of other lobbyists, Heinrich's efforts weren't about saving your money.
Team Democrat doesn't want these types of uncomfortable questions being asked of their anointed candidates. As a result, they're sent to the bunker to hide out and wait for the anticipated Obama storm surge that they believe will flood the voters and carry their candidates along to victory.
As most football fans will tell you, Team D better be careful when they employ the Prevent Defense. A good portion of the time the Prevent Defense prevents a team from winning.
----- Update -----
We had hardly pressed publish on this post than we received a news release from the Republican Party of New Mexico that included a link to a statement from Martin Heinrich to the media that included the all important question of whether or not he was going to release his lobbying records (listen to it here). His answer was, well... not yes.
The former councilor talked about the White campaign "owing" $5,000 to the taxpayers for the President Bush fundraiser on White's behalf. And when pressed on releasing his lobbying records the councilor from an undisclosed location talked about his "work" with groups to "protect" the Ojito Wilderness. In political speak work equals lobbying and the answer itself means "hell no I'm not going to answer your question!"
More importantly this little media appearance was a pitiful attempt to change the subject. Presidential visits are expensive affairs and we taxpayers generally pick up the tab no matter who's in the White House. But that wasn't really the point of Heinrich's idiotic statement.
Heinrich's real objective was to use Bush and White in a sentence together in an attempt to remind voters that Darren White worked on the Bush campaign. Ok... guilty. Darren White is a Republican. Darren White worked on the Bush campaign. Done being surprised now?
We'd bet that Heinrich supported Clinton and he probably would have supported Jimmy Carter had he been old enough to do so.
Here's another reminder... For the past two years, Democrats have been in charge of Congress. We know that comes as a surprise to many, but the truth is that every one of the talking points that Democrats ran and won on two years ago - including immediate troop withdrawl from Iraq - have been virtually ignored by those same politicians.
Democrats have an obsession with President Bush that is only surpassed by their recently discovered meniacal hatred of Sarah Palin. They will attempt to run against him at every opportunity even though there's not a single ballot that he will appear on ever again. If they're not careful, it will be their undoing.
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