Democratic Caucus Chairman and U.S. Representative Rahm Emanuel, D-Illinois, got to see a good chunk of New Mexico via I-25 when he came to help out each of New Mexico’s Democratic congressional candidates on Thursday.
Rahm Emanuel and Ben Ray Lujan. Photo by Matthew Reichbach
Emanuel spent time with Harry Teague in the morning before heading to Northern New Mexico for a brief event with Ben Ray Lujan and finishing his day in New Mexico with an Albuquerque event for Martin Heinrich.

“To be honest, I just left a family vacation in Seattle,” Emanuel said at the Lujan event north of Santa Fe. “And my wife went home with the three little kids and I said, ‘I’m going to New Mexico for the day’ and I’m going to meet with them back in Chicago.”

When asked why he was spending time in the 3rd Congressional District instead of spending more time in either of the districts which political analysts expect to be more competitive, Emanuel said it was partly because he and Lujan “hit it off” but also, “As a former chairman of the DCCC, you don’t take anything for granted.”

From there, Emanuel went to an Albuquerque event with Santa Fe County Sheriff Greg Solano and firefighters from the International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF) Local 244. All have endorsed Heinrich for the 1st Congressional District.

Heinrich spoke for a few minutes after being introduced by Solano before himself introducing Rahm Emanuel. Emanuel spoke for about 10 minutes about the need for more funding for police officers and other first responders and how he believed Heinrich was the right candidate to do it — even if the other candidate, Darren White, is himself a sheriff. Two programs which were mentioned numerous times were the Byrne Grant Program, which helps fund anti-drug measures, and the COPS Grant.

Martin Heinrich speaking at a campaign rally with Rahm Emanuel. Photo by Matthew Reichbach "We can fund our labs and create new jobs, and we can fund our police departments across the United States," Emanuel said in his speech. "I’m going to be here to help Martin because it’s time for a change."

Unsurprisingly, other supporters at the press conference agreed with Emanuel.

"If you would have asked me a year ago, I never would have imagined that I would not support a law enforcement officer running," Solano told the Independent. "But Darren White has been a staunch supporter of [President George W.] Bush’s policies. I don’t believe that he’s adequately fought for the law enforcement issues that we’ve had."

Heinrich himself spoke on the need to adequately fund police and other first responders. "It’s the role of government first to make sure that its citizens are safe. And if you can’t do that, then all the other important things that you need to do, the education, the healthcare, everything suffers if people don’t feel secure in their own homes and their own communities."

Rahm Emanuel speaking to firefighters before a Martin Heinrich press conference. Photo by Matthew Reichbach
Heinrich also said he was glad for the support of three sheriffs; Sandoval County Sheriff John Paul Trujillo and Valencia County Sheriff Rene Rivera also endorsed Heinrich. Both counties reach into the 1st Congressional District, though Bernalillo County takes up most of the district.

"It’s clear when I hear Martin’s voice when I hear what he’s talking about, it’s personal," Emanuel said in his speech.

Emanuel made the drive down I-25 through a heavy rainstorm, and despite the Rail Runner construction, made it to the Heinrich event on time.

While speaking to the press at Gabriel’s Restaurant with Lujan, Emanuel kept going back to one topic: the economy. "In the last seven years, median household income has declined by $1,200 and cost of living has increased by $4,700." Emanuel also said the economy was a major factor in 2006 where Democrats took control of both the House and Senate. At the time, he served as the DCCC chairman; under his leadership, the DCCC helped Democrats win 31 new seats without losing a single one they already held. Republicans lost 30 seats, and one formerly Independent seat went to the Democrats as well.

"[The economy] will again be a contributing factor because people realize that under the Republican Party stewardship, the middle class has been hurt," Emanuel said while sitting next to Lujan.