Thursday, June 3, 2010
New Ad: Meet the Real Susana Martinez
District Attorney has worst murder conviction rate in state; now Martinez thinks she deserves a promotion?
Albuquerque, NM – After Susana Martinez won the Republican nomination by distorting her record and making empty promises, the Denish campaign today released an ad to introduce New Mexicans to the real Susana Martinez – and her failed record as District Attorney.
The ad directly quotes Susana Martinez talking about the importance of looking at candidates’ records, and then challenges Martinez to explain her broken pledge on felony DWI plea bargains and her horrible murder conviction rate – which is the lowest in the state. [New Mexico Administrative Office of the Courts, New Mexico State Court Annual Reports, FY 1999-2009]
“Susana Martinez won the Republican nomination with sound bites and empty promises, but in reality, she’s been a failed District Attorney who doesn’t deserve a promotion,” said Chris Cervini, Denish’s campaign spokesman. “New Mexicans want a Governor who they can trust to get the job done, not a failed District Attorney who broke her pledge to be tough on DWI offenders and has the worst felony murder conviction rate in the state. New Mexicans deserve more.”
The new ad entitled “Record,” is running statewide on network/cable television and it can be viewed here: http://www.youtube.com/user/
Background facts to support assertions made in the ad:
1. Martinez Broke Her Promise Not To Cut Plea Bargain Deals On DWIs:
2004: Martinez said, “We Will Not Plea Bargain A DWI Case,” Particularly For Repeat Offenders. According to the Las Cruces Sun-News, “The dubious record for most previous DWI convictions in Dona Ana County is 22…It happens almost everywhere in New Mexico and the reasons vary, but in Dona Ana County, steps are being taken to put an end to it. ‘We will not plea bargain a DWI case,’ Dona Ana County District Attorney Susana Martinez said. ‘We don’t pretend it is a first or second offense just to move the court docket along.’” [Las Cruces Sun-News, 9/5/04]
Fiscal Year | District 3 Felony DWI Plea Bargains |
FY 2009 | 120 |
FY 2008 | 111 |
FY 2007 | 181 |
FY 2006 | 150 |
FY 2005 | 170 |
FY 2004 | 104 |
Total | 836 |
[New Mexico Administrative Office of the Courts, New Mexico State Court Annual Reports, FY 2004-2009, accessed 5/11/10]
2. Susana Martinez Has The Worst Felony Homicide Conviction Rate In The State:
Judicial District | Felony Homicide: Average Conviction Rate from FY99-FY09 |
District 9 | 81.25% |
District 11 | 77.45098% |
District 6 | 75% |
District 5 | 74.7191% |
District 12 | 74.19355% |
District 1 | 70.90909% |
District 8 | 70.27027% |
State-Wide | 69.4704% |
District 7 | 68.18182% |
District 10 | 66.66667% |
District 4 | 65.78947% |
District 2 | 63.46154% |
District 13 | 60.60606% |
District 3: Susana Martinez | 60% |
[New Mexico Administrative Office of the Courts, New Mexico State Court Annual Reports, FY 1999-2009, accessed 5/11/10]
Notes:
1. To obtain the total number of convictions: pleas at trial, pleas before trial and convictions were added together. The total number of convictions was divided by the total number of cases and multiplied by one hundred.A complete spreadsheet of all of the DA homicide rates is available upon request.
2. The charts above cover FY 1999 – FY 2009, which are the only years that statistics are available in a consistent format at the Administrative Office of the Courts.
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Wednesday, June 2, 2010
Full Democratic Ticket
Congratulations to the New Mexico Democratic Ticket 2010
Primary results yield strong Democratic state-wide ticket
Albuquerque, NM - With results for the Democratic Party Primary now in, New Mexico Democrats have a unified state-wide ticket for the 2010 election. Leading the ticket is Diane Denish, the party’s nominee for Governor. Brian Colón joins Denish as her running mate and the Lieutenant Governor candidate.
“I would like to congratulate each of the stellar nominees who truly bring excellence to New Mexico, along with the unity and strength they lend the Democratic ticket,” said DPNM Chairman Javier Gonzales. “New Mexico Democrats are united behind Diane Denish and her focus on creating jobs and helping our state become more competitive. As Democrats we will work hard as a unified party and always put our state’s working families first.”
Below is the list of candidates that make up the 2010 Democratic ticket:
Diane Denish, Governor
Brian Colón, Lieutenant Governor
Martin Heinrich, 1st Congressional District
Harry Teague, 2nd Congressional District
Ben Ray Lujan Jr., 3rd Congressional District
Mary Herrera, Secretary of State
Gary King, Attorney General
James B. Lewis, Treasurer
Hector Balderas, Auditor
Ray Bennett Powell, Commissioner of Public Lands
Judge Robert E. Robles, Court of Appeals Position 1
Judge Linda M. Vanzi, Court of Appeals Position 2
Judge Tim L. Garcia, Court of Appeals Position 3
The Real Susana Martinez
While you’ve probably seen Susana Martinez’s TV commercials boasting about her being a tough prosecutor, it’s what she is not saying on TV that many New Mexicans will find deeply troubling.
Now that the Republicans have their nominee, the choice for New Mexicans couldn’t be clearer.
In Diane Denish, we will have a different kind of Governor – a leader who will stand up to the powerful interests and insiders on behalf of New Mexico’s families and small businesses.
And Susana Martinez – well, the saying “all sizzle, no steak” comes to mind.
Below are a few quick facts about Sarah Palin’s choice for the next Governor of New Mexico:
- In 2004, Martinez said she wouldn’t plea bargain a DWI case – in fact it was a campaign pledge – and then she broke her promise more than 800 times. She cut plea bargain deals with more than 800 felony DWI offenders since making the pledge, and more than 1,000 in total. [Las Cruces Sun-News, 9/5/04; Albuquerque Journal, 5/19/10; Administrative Office of the Courts, Annual Reports, Third District Court, FY 1999-2009, accessed 5/11/10]
- Martinez boasts about her conviction rate, but in reality, one out of every three district court criminal defendants gets off. [Administrative Office of the Courts, Annual Reports, Third District Court, FY 1999-2009, accessed 5/11/10]
- Nearly 40 percent of felony murder defendants got off and her rape conviction rate is only 57 percent. [Administrative Office of the Courts, Annual Reports, Third District Court, FY 1999-2009, accessed 5/11/10]
With a record like that, does Susana Martinez really think she deserves a promotion?
But beyond distorting her failed record, Martinez won her primary by pandering to the special interests and showing her far-right wing colors. A quick look at some of the facts:
Needless to say, Susana Martinez is as ready to be Governor as Sarah Palin was to be president.
- Susana Martinez’s campaign is largely being bankrolled by big oil interests and she just received $450,000 (the largest contribution in New Mexico history) from the Texas millionaire and his wife behind the disgraceful Swift Boat ads against John Kerry in 2004. [New Mexico Politics with Joe Monahan, 5/28/10]
- Martinez is a darling of the Republican establishment in Santa Fe and the Tea Party, participating in more than a dozen rallies and forums across the state.
- Two weeks before the primary, Martinez was behind in the polls – and then Sarah Palin came to town and threw her enthusiastic support behind her favorite candidate. Palin said at the endorsement event: “Send her to Santa Fe please to do the job, and it’s not just for New Mexico, it’s for the rest of the U.S.”
Now that you know about the real Susana Martinez, we need your help to spread the word to your friends, neighbors and colleagues. We need help to stop Martinez from getting an undeserved promotion to the Roundhouse. Susana Martinez is wrong for New Mexico.
Keep New Mexico Blue!
Sincerely,
Javier M. Gonzales
DPNM Chairman
Tuesday, June 1, 2010
Susana Martinez's Swift Boat Donations Getting National Attention
THE DALLAS MORNING NEWS
Bob Perry Bankrolls Republican in New Mexico
By Wayne Slater
Houston homebuilder Bob Perry has his favorite in the Texas governor's race - incumbent Rick Perry (no relation). The Republican governor has been a long-time recipient of campaign cash, and has reciprocated by creating a state agency that protected builders from consumer complaints (now disbanded after a storm of protest). Perhaps the nation's most prolific campaign giver, Bob Perry is putting big money behind a candidate for governor in New Mexico. Perry and his wife have contributed $450,000 to Republican Susana Martinez. That's about two thirds of her total campaign haul over the pasts three weeks as she heads into today's primary runoff.
The very fine Chris Cillizza at the Washington Post reports that Martinez has benefited from get-tough ads on immigration and the endorsement of tea-party favorite Sarah Palin. Perry's largesse in New Mexico is part of the homebuilder's big-dollar political giving - including $2.5 million to the Republican Governor's Association. Back in Texas, the homebuilder is an advocate of having the government limit lawsuits against business, including his own. At the same time, he's refused to pay court judgments against him. A jury in Fort Worth ordered him to pay $58 million to a retirement-age couple for refusing for a decade of fix their defective home. Perry's lawyers are appealing, and the case could continue in years.
http://trailblazersblog.
WASHINGTON POST
Morning Fix
Doña Ana County District Attorney Susana Martinez pulled in an impressive $721,000 for her GOP gubernatorial bid during the past three weeks but nearly two-thirds of that amount was contributed by a donor who funded the 2004 "Swift Boat" ad campaign against Massachusetts Sen. John Kerry.
Texas home builder Bob Perry (and his wife) donated $450,000 to Martinez who appears poised to win the Republican nod in today's gubernatorial primary in New Mexico. Perry has donated to a number of 2010 candidates including Texas Gov. Rick Perry (R) (no relation). He's also given $2.5 million to the RGA.
Martinez campaign manager Adam Deguire defended the donation. "Susana appreciates the support she has received from Bob and Doylene Perry, both of whom have been very supportive in the past of Republicans in New Mexico, including the state party," he said.
Martinez has been riding a wave of momentum following her strong showing in the March GOP pre-primary convention where she won with 47 percent of the delegate vote in a five-candidate field that included the son of legendary former New Mexico Sen. Pete Domenici.
But it was Martinez's ads hammering former state party chairman Allen Weh on immigration as well as Martinez's endorsement by former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin (R) last month that have been the main forces behind her recent surge.
Polls show a competitive race between Lt. Gov. Diane Denish and Martinez in the fall. Denish faces no Democratic primary competition today.
http://voices.washingtonpost.
Monday, May 31, 2010
DPNM Chairman's Remarks on Memorial Day
31 May 2010
For Immediate Release
Albuquerque, NM – Today the Democratic Party of New Mexico, along with citizens across the state, remember the sacrifice of our Nation's Armed Services:
"Today, as we join with our families and friends at gatherings, matanzas, and barbecues, it is important to remember why. We honor and give praise to those who have made the ultimate sacrifice to defend our country and our families: the men and women who have died in military service while protecting our freedom and the United States of America.
At 1pm MST, a national monument of remembrance will take take place -- flags will be flown at half staff -- and we will all give thanks to those who have fallen in order to protect our great Nation and preserve it's people's rights towards the pursuit of happiness and the American dream."
Sincerely,
Javier M. Gonzales
Chairman, Democratic Party of New Mexico
Friday, May 28, 2010
Swift Boat Funder Bank-Rolls Susana Martinez with $450K
Swift Boat money makes up over 60% of Martinez’s total; candidate officially abandons campaign based on ethics
Albuquerque, NM - After taking $450,000 from Texas multi-millionaire Robert Perry, the chief financer of the disgraced Swift Boat Veterans for Truth, Susana Martinez has made it clear that her pledges to bring ethics reforms are nothing more than empty campaign rhetoric. Her actions speak louder than her words.
According to the most recent finance report, the $450,000 Perry and his wife gave Susana Martinez accounts for more than 60% of her contributions this period. The Swift Boat Veterans for Truth are widely known for funding the shameless ads that recklessly challenged John Kerry’s patriotism during the 2004 presidential election.
“Susana Martinez talks a big game about ethics, but actions speak louder than words. By taking $450,000, the largest donation in state history from the people responsible for the dirtiest campaign ploy in years, Martinez is announcing that ethics reform will no longer be part of her campaign platform,” said DPNM Chairman Javier Gonzales. “Susana Martinez’s campaign strategy is simple: first saddle up to powerful oil companies, then to Sarah Palin, and now to the Swift Boaters. Meanwhile, New Mexico families are left completely behind.”
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