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.
While two governor’s races went well for Republicans on Tuesday, two Congressional special elections gave Democrats something to celebrate. California Lt. Gov. John Garamendi retained California’s 10th Congressional District for Democrats and Democrat Bill Owens defeated Conservative Party candidate Doug Hoffman to win New York’s 23rd Congressional District.
Republicans had held the area in upstate New York that is now the 23rd Congressional District for more than a century (although President Barack Obama narrowly won the district last year). The seat was the scene for a battle between conservatives and moderates in the Republican Party, with conservatives successfully forcing out moderate Republican Dede Scozzafava.
Scozzafava endorsed Owens, perhaps tilting the race to the Democrat.
The California race was not nearly as filled with twists and turns, as Garamendi easily outpaced Republican David Harmer winning by double digits.
Meanwhile, the AARP is reportedly set to endorse the House version of health care according to both ABC News and the Associated Press. “Big victory,” one top Democrat told ABC’s George Stephanopoulos.
And House Republicans have released their version of health care reform that “relies on low-cost ideas, such as allowing purchasing of insurance across state lines, allowing small businesses to band together to get cheaper rates, and limiting medical malpractice lawsuits.”
The bill lacks some major parts of the Democratic bill, as Roll Call notes:
Under the GOP plan, insurance companies would still be allowed to exclude anyone with a pre-existing medical condition from coverage, there would be no national insurance exchange and businesses would not face any mandate to provide insurance nor individuals to buy it.
Republicans boycotted the mark up of a climate change bill in the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee today. Committee chairwoman Barbara Boxer, D-Cali., hinted she might go on without the Republicans.
Sen. Tom Udall, D-N.M., sits on that committee and Albuquerque Journal science writer John Fleck highlighted a quote from a Washington Post article on the boycotted mark up.
“We’re waiting for our Republican friends to show up,” contributed Sen. Tom Udall (D-N.M.). “We’ll wait and wait.”
Finally, the New Yorker’s Hendrik Hertzberg has five predictions for 2010 based on Tuesday’s election results.
