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Only bold change will end rampant abuse in state government
Susana Martinez
In an article published by The Albuquerque Journal, the author reiterated what many New Mexicans are calling for in the wake of several recent, high-profile ethics scandals that have been revealed within the Richardson/Denish Administration – a new level of transparency and commitment to battling abuse in state government.
It was shocking to learn that Bruce Malott, the chairman of the Educational Retirement Board (ERB), had a direct financial interest through a loan from the father of Marc Correra. Marc Correra made millions from finder’s fees related to ERB investments. It also raises another serious question – how many other members of these powerful boards in the Richardson/Denish administration had conflicts related to taxpayer-funded deals they considered? New Mexicans deserve immediate answers.
The costs of the Richardson/Denish Administration’s culture of corruption cannot be measured in dollars and cents alone, as New Mexico has lost both prestige and standing due to the waste, fraud and abuse. We need a new direction in state government – one that has zero tolerance for pay-to-play deals for affluent special interests. As governor, I am ready to provide that from the very first moment I am elected.
Although Diane Denish has partially refunded some of the donations from disgraced ex-ERB Chairman Malott, I believe that it is her duty as lieutenant governor and as a candidate for governor to fully repudiate these types of insider deals by returning all of it, every last penny. While Denish has repeatedly denied having anything to do with the malfeasance, her argument is becoming less and less credible as a parade of Denish donors are exposed as central players in these acts against New Mexicans.
One of the most meaningful ways we can combat these types of deals going forward is with more transparency to ensure conflicts of interest and questionable deals have nowhere to hide and that they see the light of day. At the very least, Diane Denish has been completely complacent in fighting corruption, and for the last eight years, she voluntarily surrounded herself with and took money from the very people who have been at the center of the waste, fraud and abuse.
This is completely unacceptable. That is why I am calling on Diane Denish to donate all the funds she received from Malott’s company, Meyners & Company, as well as the employees of this firm, which is now embroiled in the middle of this controversy. So far, Denish has refused to do so, which should communicate a very clear message to voters: Lieutenant Governor Diane Denish believes she operates outside the rules that the rest of us must abide by.
Just the first step
And donating the funds is just the first step. The Richardson/Denish Administration should release the financial information of their appointees to powerful financial boards and commissions, such as the Board of Finance and the ERB, so that any additional conflicts of interest can be identified and scrutinized. This should include names and all relevant financial information, such as loans and other business interests. Some of the most powerful appointees in this administration are subject to the least amount of transparency and the current financial disclosure forms for financial board appointees are woefully inadequate, as these recent revelations have demonstrated.
In a Martinez Administration, everyone would be held to account, which is why I have a detailed plan to eliminate the corruption. As I proposed earlier this year, all appointments in my administration would be subject to comprehensive financial disclosure statements, which would be posted online for all to see.
Those who are found to have used their position to benefit themselves, their families or their business associates would be subject to harsher penalties and termination. Corruption is a very serious crime, and it is about time that our government recognizes that fact and holds itself to a higher standard. Abuse in government cannot be tolerated, and it will be terminated in a Martinez Administration.
Simply pleading ignorance of these crooked deals is unacceptable, and New Mexicans deserve better. The Richardson/Denish Administration has failed to take the bold steps required to sweep out the corruption running rampant under their roof. As governor, I am prepared to make bold changes, and I have laid out a comprehensive plan to accomplish the goal of ending corruption in state government.
Martinez is the Republican gubernatorial nominee and Doña Ana County district attorney. She has updated this column to reflect that the loan came from Marc Correra’s father, not Marc Correra himself.
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Hemingway does his homework–as usual. Thanks for the info!
MADD New Mexico criticizes the District Attorney Ms. Martinez. Ms. Martinez’s bold move on DWI’s is as the Court Monitor has observed “that in the majority of cases adjudicated at arraignment in Magistrate Court, the defendant does not have counsel. The plea is negotiated between the prosecutor and the defendant with no defense attorney present.” This is a poor policy. I wish someone show one outstanding thing Ms. Martinez has done as District Attorney. Here is 2008 MADD report on New Mexico DWI’s!
http://nmshtd.state.nm.us/stopdwi/Reports/CtMonitorReport2.pdf
Ms. Martinez failed to show any leadership capability skills at all regarding unemployment fraud. This is the bottom line. Her record is mediocre at best as a District Attorney.
Hemingway thinks that Martinez could have prevented the complaint in regards to HIDTA which is a Federal Agency that is overseen at the Federal level and not on the State level. There was a Federal investigation and to date no charges have been filed on anyone. Then Hemingway complains that New Mexico ranks high in Unemployment fraud! Where is our Lieutenant Governor? She is a State elected Official and the Labor Department is underneath the watch of Denish and Richardson! Where is Gary King? He is the Attorney General. Why isn’t his office looking into any of this? To simply blame all of this on Martinez is wrong!
Martinez’s “bold change” is… calling on her opponent to donate campaign funds?
Glad to see that Heath Haussamen is continuing his cheerleading of Martinez throughout the entire election cycle.
New Mexico ranks high in Unemployment fraud. Here is an area where Ms. Martinez could have taken a leadership role. District attorneys in New York along with the State Labor Department and dozens of law enforcement agencies, are working to bring unemployment fraudsters to justice. In Dona Ana County IS ANYTHING BEING DONE to combat this crime?
New Mexico ranks third in the nation in terms of percentage of unemployment overpayments, with some 28.68 percent ($97.8 million) of the total benefits sent to New Mexico unemployment recipients should not have been delivered. Only Louisiana and Indiana had a worse percentage.
Where are you, Ms. Martinez? Where is the BOLD change in your present office? Please explain what you are doing!
http://www.capitolreportnewmexico.com/?p=1449
Ms. Martinez, from following your campaign for Governor of our beautiful state, I’ve learned that “bold change” might also mean you are just as likely to sell out to the richest out-of-stater as the next guy. Be it Sarah “I quit my job of Governor of AK” Palin, Bob “TX swiftboater” Perry, or Foster “Cheney’s mega-Christian right wing WY hunting buddy” Friess. What I’ve also learned is that you lean towards disenfranchising same sex couples, even more so, in our great and tolerant state. And that given the job of Governor of NM, you will criminalize medical marijuana users with chronic illnesses and debilitating diseases who are seeking relief from their pain and suffering. I’m anxious to hear your position on HCR. Will you add NM to the states who are suing over the new health care bill? You’re are not fooling this voter, Ms. Martinez. If my vote counts this November, I will not let you take NM back(wards) with help from your radical right wing Tea Party friends. Thanks, but no thanks.
Here is the latest on corruption and the New Mexico High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area program – scary. Why didn’t Ms. Martinez assist in exposing this matter? She is on the Executive Board! She should be aware of these matters. Her leadership could have made a difference!
http://narcosphere.narconews.com/notebook/bill-conroy/2010/05/hidta-task-force-border-mired-corruption-charges
In 2007 the problems with the HIDTA program in New Mexico were shown by the following press statement issued by the office of Senator Pete Domenici:
“The White House’s Office of National Drug Control Policy has suspended funding for the High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area program in New Mexico for repeatedly failing to comply with multiple federal guidelines over the past three years. These reportedly non-criminal infractions are related to not using HIDTA funding for core HIDTA purposes.”
Again there is no BOLD change.
For instance Susana Martinez stressed teaching inmates life skills in Dona Ana County prison and the need for funds in 2009. As she said: “We have to take better advantage of the captive audience; otherwise, we’re just housing them,” She said “inmates have the time and incentive to learn and should be given the opportunity. Many of these folks don’t even know how to get a bank account or how to go get a driver’s license, just the basic skills of every day life. Many times they grew up without those skills. No one taught them.” However she irresponsibly used federal Southwest Border Prosecution Initiative funds to give hundreds of thousands of dollars in bonuses to top deputies and political allies (more than $477,000 between FY06-FY10). This is an example of how Ms. Martinez failed to initiate BOLD change. She could have used those funds for the prison system to enact a comprehensive program of reform.
The bold changes made by Susana Martinez stand in her record as DA. She cleaned up the DA’s office when she took control and brought it into being the best in the state. What more could you want of her Hemingway. The job she did was exemplary, just as the job she will do as Governor.
She has the respect and support of most forward thinking people in the state. You are just mouthing works that do not fit the reality.
What “bold” thing would you like her to have done as DA?
I am wondering, if you don’t believe that Martinez will change government to make it less conducive to corruption, do you believe Denish will? She has not talked about ending any of the political appointments made during the Richardson Denish tenure. It is going to be all the same players with a different team captain – same old, same old.
Look at the records, Ms. Martinez has done nothing BOLD as Third Judicial District Attorney for several years. Now as a gubernatorial candidate she promises bold changes – it is all poppycock!