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.
The campaign spokesman for Steve Pearce this week told Politico that Pearce “believes that President Obama is a duly elected president and a U.S. citizen.”
Last week, when asked by The Independent if Pearce believed that President Barack Obama was born on U.S. soil the campaign refused to give a direct answer.
The Politico article mentioned Pearce as one of the Republican candidates who has had the dubious distinction of getting the attention from activist Orly Taitz, a lawyer known as the “birther queen” for her repeated attempts to prove that Obama was not born in the United States.
This stems from remarks Pearce made at a September 30 town hall where he was asked, “What is your position on Barack Obama, if he is in fact a Kenyan born Indonesian Muslim?”
Pearce responded, “My position is that Barack Obama raised the most significant questions himself. He said, after he came to the U.S., that he traveled to Pakistan. Now at the point that he traveled to Pakistan it was not legal to go there with a U.S. passport. And so he, himself, raised the greatest questions. I think that those questions need to be asked.”
There was no travel ban to Pakistan in 1981. That is an allegation made by those who say Obama was not born in the United States and has been called “nonsense” by Factcheck.org.
And a number of journalists and fact check organizations have proven that Obama was born in Hawaii in 1961. However, those like Taitz, and the woman who questioned Pearce at the town hall, still believe the conspiracy theory.
Taitz recently attempted to get the Supreme Court to hear a case about a $20,000 fine that Taitz was handed for frivolous litigation to do with her claims that Obama is not a citizen. That case was rejected by the Supreme Court.
Taitz asked readers of her website to contact Pearce and tell him “If he signs a pledge to bring Obama’s illegitimacy to presidency to the House Judicial Commitee, we will support his candidacy and we will deliver donations and votes for him.”
Like other Republican candidates who Taitz has conditionally backed, Pearce’s campaign wants nothing to do with Taitz.
“I’ve never even heard that name before to be honest, and I can tell that she has not contacted us,” Pearce spokesman Jason Heffley told Politico when asked about Taitz. “To elaborate on our comments from last weekend, Steve believes that President Obama is a duly elected president and a U.S. citizen, and that’s his view.”
Last week, Pearce’s campaign sent out this statement to the press in response to questions about the statements Pearce made at a town .
“Harry Teague’s liberal allies at The Huffington Post are attempting to make an issue where none exists. Obama’s citizenship is not an issue in this race. He’s the duly elected President and I respect that. This election is going to be determined by who is creating jobs not blog stories. I will create jobs and cut spending. Teague won’t.”
Further into the video taken at the town hall, the woman asks Pearce if the issue winds up in Congress will he be there to which Pearce responds, ”I don’t mind being in the fight but I don’t think it should be our consummate fight.”
The woman says, “Oh, no, not the consummate fight, but if it comes up …. ”
Pearce says, “Yes, and I don’t, don’t have a problem expressing my opinions or expressing a vote, either one.”
