Columns appear here a week after they're published in print.
© 2024 NEW MEXICO NEWS SERVICES 7/22/24
End of Biden drama gives state’s Democrats a second wind
By Sherry Robinson
All She Wrote
Before U.S. Rep. Gabe Vasquez joined Sen. Martin Heinrich in asking President Joe Biden to give up his run for a second term, Vasquez had distanced himself from Biden.
Last August, Vasquez was conspicuously absent from a Biden rally in New Mexico featuring a constellation of Democrats. Vasquez said he needed to spend time with his father, the Albuquerque Journal reported. He might as well have said he needed to wash his hair. It was clear he was already thinking ahead to this year’s race and didn’t want to give Republicans any ammunition, such as a photograph with Biden.
We now know that Biden’s popularity has been cooling for the past year over concerns about his age. Biden bowed to party pressure and stepped down on July 21.
In this political drama, New Mexico was a canary in the coal mine. Biden won New Mexico by double digits in 2020, but when Democratic governors met with Biden early this month, our governor warned him that he could lose the state, according to the Journal.
“What I said in that July 3 meeting (was) New Mexico is a bellwether state,” she said. “We’re very predictive, and our Hispanic voters are very predictive.”
She told the White House before the debate that she was worried – a leaked poll put New Mexico in play – but if he was determined to stay in the race, she would support him.
Of the four Democrats running for Congress, Vasquez has the most at stake. The other two representatives have relatively safe bluish districts, and Heinrich is an incumbent. However, Congressional District 2 is a toss-up, despite a Dem-led redistricting that tilted the district a bit in their favor. So Vasquez, a first-term congressman, and his opponent, Republican Yvette Herrell, are running hard.
During better days in 2022, Biden graced a rally in Albuquerque’s South Valley, newly added to CD2. It might have helped Vasquez defeat Herrell, the incumbent, by less than a percentage point in 2022.
Since the debate, pressure was on Biden to step down and on members of Congress to step up and nudge him out of the race. As Republicans needled Vasquez to speak up, NBC asked Democratic candidates in swing districts, including Vasquez, about turmoil at the top of the ticket, Vasquez was one of several Democrats who said he was focused on his own campaign and that was “to stop MAGA Republicans like Donald Trump and Yvette Herrell who support extreme policies.”
“Regardless of who’s on the top of the ticket, I’m going to continue to bring home results and deliver for the people in New Mexico.”
The Biden campaign blew their man’s chance to talk to the Congressional Hispanic Caucus. During a Zoom call on July 12, the campaign allowed only two members to pose questions, according to the nonpartisan online news source NOTUS. When the president offered to take more questions, Vasquez and another member tried to use the raised-hand feature; organizers lowered the hands.
A week later Heinrich, New Mexico’s senior senator, urged Biden to step aside. Vasquez followed a few hours later, saying Biden should step aside to give Democrats the “best opportunity to win in November.”
Heinrich, reflecting the party’s respect and fondness for the president, called Biden “one of the most accomplished presidents in modern history” and said he led the country through unprecedented challenges.
“However, this moment in our nation’s history calls for a focus that is bigger than any one person,” Heinrich said. “The return of Donald Trump to the White House poses an existential danger to our democracy. We must defeat him in November, and we need a candidate who can do that.”
A Republican strategist previously warned his people that it’s not over ‘til it’s over. Democrats just got a second wind.
© 2024 NEW MEXICO NEWS SERVICES 7/15/24
Line of succession
By Diane Denish
Corner to Corner
I’ve been thinking more these days about Vice President Kamala Harris, her role as vice president and the ever present is-she-ready question.
Being second in line is something I know a little about but on a smaller scale. For eight years, I served as lieutenant governor to Gov. Bill Richardson. Another similarity we share is being the first women to serve in the offices mentioned.
In New Mexico, the lieutenant governor is elected in a primary and becomes part of the ticket. It’s somewhat like an arranged marriage with the voters deciding who should be part of the ceremony.
At the federal level, each party’s nominee for president selects their running mate through a vetting process and confirmation of convention delegates.
Constitutional responsibilities are remarkably similar. Both are first in the line of succession to be chief executive (governor or president). Both serve as president of the Senate, presiding over the body. Neither has the power to vote unless the Senate is evenly divided on a matter.
An additional role for the vice president is the responsibility of opening, counting, and announcing the electoral votes in a joint session of Congress following a presidential election.
Most Americans had been unaware of this provision until Jan. 6, 2021, when President Trump intervened and tried to interrupt that process. Vice President Mike Pence leaned into his constitutional duty. The Constitution held strong despite a violent assault on the Capitol that day.
Both offices, lieutenant governor and vice president, have evolved over time.
In New Mexico lieutenant governors received no salary until the term of Lt. Gov. Roberto Mondragon, who served two non-successive terms.
Additionally, as time passed, the lieutenant governor became a member of the governor’s cabinet and chair of several statutory boards designated in legislation. During my time I became chair of the first Children’s Cabinet. We acted as a mini cabinet advising the governor about children’s issues and the role departments could play in improving children’s lives.
The vice presidents responsibilities also grew. In 1949 the vice president became a member of the National Security Council, thanks to President Truman. Truman realized that should succession happen for any reason, vice presidents needed to be fully informed. Over time, vice presidents were included in the president’s daily intelligence briefings, and that is still the case today.
Still, the readiness and success in ascending to the top stop is partially determined by the governor or president and the role they carve out with their running mates.
Most of us, when first elected, have to grow into the position. In the case of a lieutenant governor and vice president, it also depends on establishing a trusted relationship with the top of the ticket.
Vice President Harris acknowledged early on that building her relationship with President Biden was her first job. All indications are that Biden and Harris have done that with weekly lunches and her inclusion in staff meetings and briefings.
The Dobbs decision, which eliminates a woman’s right to reproductive care, created a new focus for Harris. She became the administration’s outspoken critic of the consequences of the decision. She has also been a key player on voters’ rights and a strong spokesperson for the president’s economic agenda.
At the end of 2023, Harris had cast more tie-breaking votes than any other vice president – 32 of them – including two critical economic bills: the Inflation Reduction Act and the American Rescue Plan, which helped rebuild the economy after the pandemic.
For all the current discussion of “Is she ready?” Yes. If and when the time comes. Her life experience, public service and strong values make her as ready as any of us can be to assume a job we have not held before.