I am writing today to announce the closure of the New Mexico Independent. After three and a half years of operation in New Mexico, the board of the American Independent News Network, has decided to shift publication of its news…
While environmental activists played their part yesterday during demonstrations at the capitol building, going so far as to dress up as solar panels and to sing the tune of “You Are My Sunshine,” their counterparts, the anti-cap-and-trade contingency who has…
Roughly one quarter of University of New Mexico students are unimpressed with the state’s flagship public school, according to a survey that questioned college students about their higher education experiences.
Commerce Secretary-designate Bill Richardson is holding a fundraiser in Washington on Thursday to try to pay off the debt from his unsuccessful presidential campaign.
The fundraiser was first reported today by The Politico, which had previously reported that Richardson was running out of time to pay off $150,000 in outstanding campaign debt because federal ethics laws will hamper his ability to raise money for himself once he officially becomes a member of Barack Obama’s cabinet.
Obama announced the appointment of New Mexico’s governor last week, but Richardson must still be confirmed by the U.S. Senate, which won’t happen until late January or February.
Richardson, according to today’s article in The Politico, will hold the fundraiser at the Georgetown home of William A.K. Titleman and his wife, Maria. At the “waterfront reception,” the article states, donors will be asked to give up to $2,300 each.
Both Titlemans, the article states, served in the administration of former Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Ridge. They were “top fundraisers” for Richardson during his presidential campaign. They also gave to Hillary Clinton and, according to The Politico, William Titleman raised money for the American Leadership Project, which ran an ad in primary states earlier this year attacking Obama for being too vague in his proposals.
William Titleman is also a former Rita Aide lobbyist who is now an attorney for the firm Bernstein Liebhard. There are other hosts for the event, according to The Politico, including a lobbyist for Lehman Brothers and other companies and Mike Stratton, a Denver political strategist who worked on Richardson’s presidential campaign.
Richardson still owes $139,000 to Lea King, LLC, which is owned by New Mexico politicos Harry Teague and Johnny Cope, for use of the company’s jet during his campaign. He owes another $11,000 to Albuquerque’s Branch Law Firm for use of its jet.
