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.
After Arizona’s Republican Governor, Jan Brewer, signed the nation’s strictest anti-immigration law, New Mexico GOP gubernatorial hopefuls mostly expressed support for the decision, but stopped short of fully endorsing the law.
The sole Democratic gubernatorial candidate, Diane Denish, already said that she does not support the law, saying provisions that allow law enforcement to demand proof of citizenship from anyone they believe to be suspicious amount to “racial profiling.”
Former state Republican Party chairman Allen Weh said that the new law in Arizona would compel New Mexico to tighten its laws.
“As governor, I’ll immediately rescind the executive order put in place by the Richardson-Denish administration that bars State Police from reporting illegal immigrants that they stop or apprehend,” Weh told The Independent in a statement. “I’ll also do what it takes to stop issuing driver’s licenses to illegal immigrants, because New Mexico has become a portal for illegal immigrants to obtain official documentation that helps them burrow into the United States.”
Doña Ana County District Attorney Susana Martinez said the law was a result of “the fact that the federal government has failed to address adequately the issue of immigration.”
“In New Mexico, Martinez believes we must implement fundamental reforms such as revoking driver’s licenses for illegal immigrants, opposing free tuition through taxpayer-funded lottery scholarships for those in the country illegally and end the sanctuary policy that prevents state police from inquiring about the immigration status of criminals,” Martinez said in a statement. Martinez currently is airing a TV ad about illegal immigration.
Attorney Pete Domenici, Jr. said in a statement that “waiting for Congress is not sufficient.”
“As governor, I will oppose sanctuary status in New Mexico, will secure our borders, and will enhance law enforcement tools, while recognizing New Mexico’s heritage and protecting individual rights,” Domenici said. “It may be possible to tailor appropriate provisions of Arizona’s recent law for New Mexico.”
PR firm owner Doug Turner told The Independent in a statement that he would expand funding to law enforcement and include funding for unmanned aerial drones that use “technology … developed right here in New Mexico.”
“I would not support the components of Arizona’s bill that could legitimize racial profiling, but I am optimistic that the law will force the federal government to finally take action on the issue,” Turner said.
State Rep. Janice Arnold-Jones told The Independent in a statement that the Arizona law “is a state response to federal inability to control our border and enforce federal law. Arizona made violation of federal law a violation of state law, enabling local authorities to act — an essential step towards securing our borders, addressing narco-terrorism, limiting human trafficking and assuring jobs.”
The Democratic Party of New Mexico pounced on the potential wedge issue. State party chairman Javier Gonzales said in a statement, “It’s shocking that in a state as diverse as New Mexico, the three GOP frontrunners would not immediately come out against this dangerous law.”
