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Wilderness bill puts Teague in a tough spot
Heath Haussamen
The Doña Ana County wilderness bill that New Mexico’s U.S. senators and local activists are trying to push through Congress before the end of the year puts U.S. Rep. Harry Teague in a very tough political spot.
The Democratic is in a difficult re-election battle against former GOP U.S. Rep. Steve Pearce. It’s a Republican-leaning district in a Republican leaning year, and Pearce already has an advantage.
Because of past votes, Teague has angered conservatives and progressives alike. And no matter what stance Teague takes on the wilderness bill, he’s going to once again anger constituents his re-election campaign needs.
Supporters of the bill want to push it through before the end of the year, because it’s unlikely or at least less likely to pass the House if Pearce, not Teague, represents the district. There’s even a chance Democrats could lose control of the House in November – which would all but ensure the death of the bill.
So the legislation has to be pushed through this year or its chances of passing could go way down. But pushing the bill through this year could seal Teague’s fate.
No matter what stance he takes…
Teague has angered conservatives by voting in favor of cap-and-trade legislation. And he has angered the progressive wing of his party with his health-care record – he voted against health care reform and his company has cut health insurance for employees.
Three polls of the race have shown that it’s a toss-up (here, here and here), but none are recent. It’s my belief that the race has shifted further to the right, and that Pearce has the advantage. That’s in part based on a recent poll that showed last week that the less-conservative 1st Congressional District race in the Albuquerque area is a toss-up even though the dynamics are better for the Democrat in that race.
U.S. Rep. Martin Heinrich hasn’t alienated his progressive base. Republican challenger Jon Barela isn’t anywhere near as well known as Pearce. And yet the 1st District race is close.
I’m guessing that means Pearce is pulling ahead of Teague in the 2nd Congressional District race.
With that as the backdrop, the Organ Mountains – Desert Peaks Wilderness Act could be Teague’s worst nightmare. It’s already passed a Senate committee and awaits a Senate floor vote. Then it’s on to the House.
Progressives have worked hard to get the bill to this point and are anxious to secure approval of the legislation, which would designate hundreds of thousands of acres in the most populous county in Teague’s district as wilderness – a restrictive conservation designation that prohibits most uses of cars, bikes and other mechanized vehicles. Voting for the bill would help Teague in Doña Ana County, but would hurt him in the more conservative eastern side of the district, where many oppose wilderness as another government intrusion.
Voting against the legislation would hurt Teague in Doña Ana County – a must-win county for him – but at least wouldn’t give conservatives a fresh reason to be angry at him.
Walking a fine line
Teague is walking a fine line, and it’s apparent in the statement his office gave me about the bill. From spokeswoman Kara Kelber:
“Congressman Teague has said that the peaks of the Organ Mountains define both Las Cruces and Doña Ana County, and he believes that Doña Ana County’s natural beauty and wide open spaces need to be protected. However, with a unique, exceptionally dangerous drug war that has claimed thousands of lives raging just across the border in Mexico, Harry is cautious to endorse legislation until we know more about how the drug war could impact our national security, and it can be conclusively established that the bill will not hinder Border Patrol and local law enforcement efforts to restrict criminal activity, protect against the drug violence in the border region, and secure our border.
“Harry does absolutely oppose any effort to rob future generations of land to hunt and fish and New Mexicans of their natural heritage by selling off our public lands to for-profit interests – a radical, but real proposal that Congressman Pearce previously put forth.”
Pearce, who opposes this bill and the wilderness designation altogether, knows Teague faces a difficult choice. From a recent news release:
“Like a typical Washington insider, Congressman Teague has been sidestepping this issue and refusing to lead at home,” Pearce said. “I hope Congressman Teague will take a position on the wilderness bill immediately.”
Pearce proposes new land designations that aren’t as restrictive as wilderness. As I’ve written before, progressives aren’t going to vote for him, but that doesn’t necessarily mean they’ll vote for Teague.
Teague is going to have to take a stance
When he announced that he would vote against the health-care reform bill last year, Teague put out a statement that offended some progressives because it sounded as though he was trying to say the legislation wasn’t progressive enough. Some have said he was trying to have it both ways – his vote was to appease conservatives while his statement sounded like it came from progressive Rep. Dennis Kucinich of Ohio, who initially voted against the bill because it didn’t go far enough.
In trying to walk that tight rope, Teague didn’t win many friends.
He won’t be able to get away with that a second time. Teague is going to have to take a definite stance on the wilderness bill. People need to see him as principled. That didn’t happen with his health-care vote.
Teague will lose some support no matter which way he votes. That’s inevitable. But Congress isn’t currently scheduled to meet between the November election and January, when the winner of the election will be sworn in.
The wilderness vote is likely coming up for a House vote before the election. Teague is going to have to take a stance.
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By continually trying to sit on the fence, Teague has tried to please all but has pleased very few. The land in question is already public land so it isn’t a taking and redistribution of land as Mr. Cummings claims. How much of the proposed wilderness is even on the border? The border security issue is nothing but a distraction by those ideologically opposed to wilderness no matter what.
Teague has disappointed the wilderness supporters who helped to elect him, the lies and fearmongering have spread and I now fear for a good bill’s passage. Teague, you’re not going to win anyway, go ahead and do the right thing before Pearce gets his seat back.
Mr. Hemingway seems to offer a lot of advice on what the Border Patrol supports. I dont think I have ever read that they support wilderness designation. The proposed S.1689 bill will give Border Patrol unlimited access on a two mile strip across the southern border of the Potrillo mts wilderness and then no access on the rest of the wilderness area except in hot pursuit. The rest of the time they will have to walk or ride a horse to patrol in the wilderness. What part of no vehicle access in the wilderness do you not understand. The two mile access will increase their flexibility over what they would get with wilderness designation. You need to read the 1964 wilderness act if you think the wilderness act won’t hamper the Border Patrol.
In my opinion those (greens, progressives, communitarians, socialists, communists, Marists, Leninists, Maoists, Stalinists, etc., etc.,) who seek to take and redistribute are nothing more than thieves that make the Mafia look like Boy Scouts.
The concept of wildernesses is not only repugnant, but wildernesses are merely the 1st steps in the total control over “We The People”.
Back in the middle and late 80′s when the animal rights activists were wanting to plant their critters everywhere, including the areas around the Organ Mts the biologists often justified their desires by saying that this area offered no meaningful mineral resources.
In 1904 Mr. FAYETTE ALRXANDER JONES, C. E., E. M., L.L.D., published NEW MEXICO MINES AND MINERALS, which clearly states that there were several active prosperous mines working around the base of this majestic mountain. Furthermore, he went on to state that he fully expected to see remarkable mineral discoveries made in the Dona Ana Mts. Clearly, opportunity waits, but if the greens can bamboozle enough voters and congressmen then this area will become like so many other barren areas of the USA.
Obviously, if minerals were left available some enterprising individual could become independent of the states control strings and the govt cannot allow that kind of freedom. Look around, take stock of what the socialists are doing to our freedoms, as well as jobs, which they claim is a privilege to have anyway.
Hopefully, the voters have had enough and will vote-out the treacherous rascals before the point of no return is breached.
It’s Obama’s fault
Here is REP’s Honorary Board of distinguished Republicans:
Former Congressman Sherwood Boehlert — New York
Congressman (and former Governor) Mike Castle — Delaware
Former Governor David Cargo — New Mexico
Senator Susan Collins — Maine
Congressman Vern Ehlers — Michigan
Congressman Jim Gerlach — Pennsylvania
Former Congressman Wayne Gilchrest — Maryland
Former Senator Barry Goldwater** — Arizona
Former Congressman Jim Greenwood — Pennsylvania
Former Congresswoman Nancy Johnson — Connecticut
Congressman Tim Johnson — Illinois
Congressman Mark Kirk — Illinois
Senator John McCain — Arizona
Former Governor William Milliken — Michigan
Mr. Jeremy Pinchot — New York
Former Congressman John Porter — Illinois & DC
Mr. Samuel Pryor III — New York
Mr. Nathaniel Reed — Florida
Mr. Larry Rockefeller — New York
Mr. Theodore Roosevelt IV — New York
Former Congressman Jim Saxton — New Jersey
Former Congressman Joe Schwarz — Michigan
Former Congressman Christopher Shays — Connecticut
Former Congressman Rob Simmons — Connecticut
Former EPA Administrator Russell Train — Washington, DC
Former Congressman James Walsh — New York
Former Governor and EPA Administrator Christine Todd Whitman — New Jersey
It is an impressive list!
Common sense tells me that border security is a matter for the Border Patrol that supports the Wilderness Act. I guess we will always have “armchair” border agents spreading fear among the populace thinking they know than the actual Border Patrol – unbelievable.
According to the Border Patrol and contrary to the fear-mongering pundits and politicians the apprehension of illegal immigrants are sharply down, —by more than sixty per cent since 2000. Illegal immigration has clearly been declining. However it is a good election ploy for unscrupulous politicians.
By the way our nearest neighbor El Paso that is on the border is one of safest big cities in the United States according to the F.B.I. In addition, the idea that the Border Patrol will be hampered by the Wilderness Act, is blatantly false and misinformed. Hopefully Congressman Teague will realize this because Mr. Pearce will be running around Southern New Mexico trying to scare everyone with his “Chicken Little” fear tactics!
REP is nothing but an activist, enviro-lobby group, and they are nothing but RINOs. Bloomberg is more of a Repub than any of them.
Even the Republicans for Environmental Protection group gave the lowest rating in 2007 to Mr. Stevan Pearce -3. The Congressional Scorecard rates the performance of Republicans in Congress on the vital conservation and environmental issues of our time.
http://www.repamerica.org/2007_scorecard.pdf
If he is reelected, poor Teddy Roosevelt will be turning over in his grave, and Dona Ana County will suffer from this Eastern New Mexican.
Let’s clear up some misconceptions: The peaks of the Organ Mountains will exist as long as the slow and ceaseless effects of erosion allow, we don’t need to save them. If we convert all of the public land in Dona Ana County into wilderness where will Gov Denish build her windfarms and solar arrays to employ all those New Mexicans?
As for the health care bill Teague would have voted for it, if needed, but was allowed to vote no when they knew they had 219 in order to give him a chance this Nov. I found his explanation amusing given it was so obvious what happened.
Mr. Teague is correct to identify the border security issue and Border Patrol access that will become a real problem if the Wilderness bill as currently written is passed. Common sense tells us that if Border Patrol is restricted in their future access with the passage of S.1689, then border security will become a larger issue. Common sense tells me that Rep. Teague should kill the bill as it is currently written if he wants to protect the border. Teague is going to have to take a stand wether likes it or not.
Good analysis Heath. This bill has numerous onerous provisions that lock up the land from uses that are easily criticized. For instance, why make felons of boy scouts and scientists seeking to study the geology and paleontology? But the whole idea of taking this land out of the public’s ability to access it is going to hurt Teague if he votes for it. It is our land after all. And BTW, the trip by Pelosi to Santa Fe to raise money for Teague is not going to help him in CD2 either. Nor will it help Marty.
Former Congressman Pearce was the ultimate “insider” in the Bush administration. He was one of most odious anti-Wilderness congressmen in New Mexico history. He is a throw back to the New Mexican Senator and Interior Secretary Albert Fall of the 1910′s and 1920′s, who like Congressman Pearce was an advocate for selling off all public lands to the highest bidder or biggest campaign contributors. Mr. Pearce would open the Organ Mountains to ATV’s, mining operations, housing developments, etc. He supported a pseudo wilderness scheme pushed by a vociferous minority. Pearce poses an unprecedented threat to the forests, wilderness areas, and wildlife refuges of New Mexico!
One of the main reasons I voted for Harry Teague for Congress is the simple fact that he unequivocally supported the Citizens’ Wilderness and National Conservation Area Proposal for the Organ Mountains including Sierra de Las Uvas, Broad Canyon, Robledos and Greater Potrillo Mountain Areas. Now he is waffling on this important issue.
Congressman Teague should follow the strong leadership of former President Andrew Jackson – “Take time to deliberate ; but when the time for action arrives, stop thinking and go in.”!