By. Rep. Greg Nibert

The New Mexico Supreme Court sent House Democrats and their leadership a huge wakeup call in response to their lock-step support and die-hard party loyalty for the Governor over the past 620+ days from the onset of the pandemic. On March 11, 2020, the Governor began her dictatorial journey of bypassing the State Legislature and started her two-year-long mission of shutting our state down, restricting civil liberties, and consolidating power- an effort no other NM Governor had ever attempted. While at the same time, the Democrat-controlled House of Representatives' silence in challenging the Governor was deafening as they willfully ceded their authority and voice to their party's leader. They blocked my bipartisan legislation aimed at reforming the Emergency Powers Act, never letting the full body debate the topic, of which I plan to sponsor again this year.

Yet, there may still be hope for New Mexico with the recent ruling by the NM Supreme Court that, contrary to what House Democrats and the Governor have been saying (or not saying), the Legislature does have the constitutional duty and responsibility to appropriate money -- even federal money --- deposited into the State Treasury. Several Democrat Senators joined a bipartisan lawsuit to resist the Governor's overreach. The bipartisan effort allowed the Legislature to take back it's "power of the purse." Equally important, the Supreme Court's decision rejected the Governor's false premise that she alone had the authority to spend more than $1.75 billion in federal dollars without any input from The People's representatives.

Our republic is at extreme risk when any Governor tries to exert unilateral authority which runs counter to constitutional requirements of checks and balances. Yet, there are even greater dangers to our fragile self-governance when one of the branches of government places greater importance on party loyalty than upholding the constitution they were sworn to uphold. That is exactly what Speaker Egolf and his Democrat House colleagues did when they recklessly followed the Governor's lead and never offered a peep of opposition. Hopefully, this ruling by the Supreme Court will give them the courage to stand up for the people who elected them.

We have seen what 620+ days of Lujan Grisham's unchecked control has done to our state. Her legacy is dominated by high unemployment, economic uncertainty, and increased business closures, not to mention increased prices on everything from groceries to gasoline, and continued failures to educate our students and protect the well-being of young children.

State Legislators are duly elected to speak on behalf of their diverse and varied communities across New Mexico. Blindly following the unconstitutional edicts of any Governor and not recognizing the separation of powers is not only dangerous, it sets a precedent that silos power to one individual instead of maintaining the checks and balances on the branches of government. The Legislature must seriously rein in Lujan Grisham's thirst for power because we cannot allow a Governor with DC ambitions to ruin our state just so she to springboard herself into the national spotlight. The People's voice must be restored!

Content on the Beat

WARNING: All articles and photos with a byline or photo credit are copyrighted to the author or photographer. You may not use any information found within the articles without asking permission AND giving attribution to the source. Photos can be requested and may incur a nominal fee for use personally or commercially.

Disclaimer: If you find errors in articles not written by the Beat team but sent to us from other content providers, please contact the writer, not the Beat. For example, obituaries are always provided by the funeral home or a family member. We can fix errors, but please give details on where the error is so we can find it. News releases from government and non-profit entities are posted generally without change, except for legal notices, which incur a small charge.

NOTE: If an article does not have a byline, it was written by someone not affiliated with the Beat and then sent to the Beat for posting.

Images: We have received complaints about large images blocking parts of other articles. If you encounter this problem, click on the title of the article you want to read and it will take you to that article's page, which shows only that article without any intruders. 

New Columnists: The Beat continues to bring you new columnists. And check out the old faithfuls who continue to provide content.

Newsletter: If you opt in to the Join GCB Three Times Weekly Updates option above this to the right, you will be subscribed to email notifications with links to recently posted articles.

Submitting to the Beat

Those new to providing news releases to the Beat are asked to please check out submission guidelines at https://www.grantcountybeat.com/about/submissions. They are for your information to make life easier on the readers, as well as for the editor.

Advertising: Don't forget to tell advertisers that you saw their ads on the Beat.

Classifieds: We have changed Classifieds to a simpler option. Check periodically to see if any new ones have popped up. Send your information to editor@grantcountybeat.com and we will post it as soon as we can. Instructions and prices are on the page.

Editor's Notes

It has come to this editor's attention that people are sending information to the Grant County Beat Facebook page. Please be aware that the editor does not regularly monitor the page. If you have items you want to send to the editor, please send them to editor@grantcountybeat.com. Thanks!

Here for YOU: Consider the Beat your DAILY newspaper for up-to-date information about Grant County. It's at your fingertips! One Click to Local News. Thanks for your support for and your readership of Grant County's online news source—www.grantcountybeat.com

Feel free to notify editor@grantcountybeat.com if you notice any technical problems on the site. Your convenience is my desire for the Beat.  The Beat totally appreciates its readers and subscribers!  

Compliance: Because you are an esteemed member of The Grant County Beat readership, be assured that we at the Beat continue to do everything we can to be in full compliance with GDPR and pertinent US law, so that the information you have chosen to give to us cannot be compromised.