mhallen headshotMerritt Hamilton Allen, whose work is published previously in the Edgewood Independent, will also provide her columns to the Grant County Beat. 

NM GOP legislative leadership calls it a day

The deadline for filing for candidacy in New Mexico just passed and there were several major surprises, including the sheer number of incumbents not running. Nearly a third of the state Senate is not standing for re-election – 13 of 42 members, and 10 of 70 members of the House of Representatives are not running to keep their seats.

Three of the departing House members are running for vacant Senate seats, one of whom, former House minority leader and current House minority whip James Townsend of Artesia, is unopposed in both the primary and the general election. The House majority leader and longest serving member of the House, Representative Gail Chasey of Albuquerque, is stepping down. The only remaining Republican member of the House from the City of Albuquerque, nine-term Representative Bill Rehm, is retiring.

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A must-win race where there are no winners

Three things were striking the morning after Super Tuesday: Nikki Haley's declining to endorse former President Trump as she withdrew from the Republican primary; a new poll showing 6 of 10 Americans doubt both President Biden's and Trump's mental acuity when it comes to serving as President; and the Ukrainian's First Lady rejecting the invitation to attend the State of the Union address.

In 2024, America is a divided nation with weak political candidates whose own political inertia is earning it international snubs.

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The last of the GOP dealmakers calls it quits

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Kentucky) in his surprise announcement that he would vacate his leadership role in November, said, "I have many faults. Misunderstanding politics is not one of them." McConnell has seen that the many compromises he has achieved in recent weeks over border security and foreign aid in the Senate are for naught when it comes to getting legislation through the House of Representatives. He's done.

Starting his Senate career some four decades ago in the Reagan administration, McConnell has seen a lot of things that are all but impossible in today's Congress. He saw a time when budget hawks like Sen. Pete Domenici and Rep. Manuel Luján actually stood for responsible government spending. He observed GOP Senate Majority Leader Bob Dole regularly cut deals with Democrat Speaker of the House Tip O'Neill and vice versa to further the interests of the nation rather than serve personal fundraising agendas. He saw a Congress united against the global threat of Soviet domination and willing to stand up to the Kremlin.

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A professionalized legislature doesn't require six-figure salaries

The close of the 2024 legislative session was rather unremarkable, but for rumblings of calling a special session to address public safety. A mere 72 bills of the more than six hundred filed made it to the governor's desk to be signed into law.

The lackluster session juxtaposed against a state awash in revenues yet at the bottom of every national index is again giving rise to talk of "professionalizing" the Legislature. Our legislators are unpaid but for per diem when the Legislature is in session and for interim meeting attendance. For those who must travel long distances and pay for lodging, the per diem rate is barely a break-even proposition.

The problem with this "citizens' legislature" model is two-fold: first, it limits the pool of those who can serve in the legislature to the independently wealthy, the flexibly employed, or the retired. Second, the minimal staff and drop-in nature of the legislators themselves limits the Legislature's efficiency and effectiveness which dilutes its power in favor of the executive branch.

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A taste of the second Trump administration

Congressional approval ratings are measured monthly, and for the last quarter of 2023, have pretty much bottomed out. December polling, the most recent available, showed 85% of Americans disapprove of the job its Congress is doing.

And that was before the GOP-led House killed the bipartisan combined border security and foreign aid package, threatened the stand-alone foreign aid package, and successfully impeached the Secretary of Homeland Security by a single vote on the second try.

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APD: a cautionary tale

A federal investigation into the DWI unit of the Albuquerque Police Department and an Albuquerque law firm has resulted in the mayor, the police chief and the district attorney all pointing fingers – away from themselves.

If you don't follow Albuquerque news, here's the gist: Albuquerque lawyer Thomas Clear (also chair of the State Public Defender Commission until the FBI raided his office) is alleged to have colluded with four APD officers and one lieutenant over DWI defendants. The scam worked like this: the cops in question would arrest a DWI offender, refer them to Clear for legal representation and then make a procedural error during the legal proceedings, most commonly missing a court date, leading to the dismissal of the charges.

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Our bountiful food dilemma

America is awash in food. People from other countries who visit here or move here comment on the variety and volume of the food in our stores and the portions at our restaurants.

Then, they often like to comment on our collective obesity and tell us our food is crap.

It hits a nerve. But is it entirely deserved?

Our country has gotten fatter in the last thirty years. Since 1994, child obesity rates have doubled to nearly 20%. Nationwide, about 40% of Americans are considered obese, and another 30% considered overweight, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

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Make no mistake, healthcare is rationed

Whenever anyone talks about changing our healthcare system, the opposition warns of healthcare rationing. Here's the thing. Healthcare already is rationed, in truly haphazard ways.

I am among the most fortunate of Americans in that I am well-insured and quite knowledgeable about healthcare coverage from previous work experience. I consider myself to be a sophisticated consumer of our healthcare system. This was very helpful assisting my parents with multiple catastrophic hospitalizations, managing the pandemic, and managing my own medical issues (I happen to be a disabled veteran).

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