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Visit main State Impeachment page. See also AfterDowningStreet.org's New Mexico page and Mother Media.
New Mexico
Current Status
Senators Gerald Ortiz y Pino and John Grubesic introduced SJR5 on 1/23/07 calling for impeachment of Bush and Cheney. Despite testimony from many concerned New Mexicans, it was killed by Republicans and 9 Democrats on 3/8/07 using a procedural vote that cut off debate.
Contacts
- Desi Brown, +1-505-256-0668, "desibrown at comcast.net", working with state legislature
- Leland Lehrman, +1-505-982-3609, "leland.lehrman at gmail.com", working with state legislature
- New Mexico State Legislature contacts
Videos
- Introductory Press Conference
- Elizabeth Holtzman testifying for SJR5
- Testimony and vote at Rules Committee
- Testimony and vote at Public Affairs Committee
News
3/8/07 - Republicans and 9 Democrats killed SJR5 using a procedural trick. They tried again and blocked the report from coming out of the Judiciary Committee. This way they avoided having to debate the resolution and to explain their vote. Read more... [Blog] [Analysis by David Lindorff]
3/7/07 - Republicans tried to kill SJR5 with a procedural trick. They pulled a surprise manouver and tried to block adoption of the Judiciary Committee report. The Democratic floor leader was able to save it. [MotherMedia]
3/5/07 - SJR5 passes Judiciary Committee on a 5 to 1 vote and heads for the Senate floor. Needs 22 votes to pass.
Leland Lehrman writes: In what may be a national first, a State-initiated impeachment resolution against the President and Vice-President of the United States has reached the floor of a State Senate. Drawing support from hundreds of supremely dedicated citizens willing to wait hours on both weekends and weekdays for the opportunity to speak, the five Democrats present on the New Mexico Senate Judiciary Committee, voted in favor without doubt or hesitation. No audience member spoke against.
Former Congresswoman Liz Holtzman's expert witness testimony appeared via videotape and was enormously influential due to her standing as a member of the Judiciary Committee that begain impeachment proceedings against Richard Nixon.
Senator Rod Adair, the sole Republican willing to answer the charges made a best effort to deny them, but was ultimately unconvincing. Predictably citing the now suspect war powers of the Executive Branch and claiming that the United States is the guardian of the free world against fascism and totalitarianism, Senator Adair used the propaganda term Islamofascists to vilify America's opponents in the Middle East and justify the ongoing wars. No Democrat attempted to refute Senator Adair's position, but the hour was late and their vote said it all.
The resolution now goes to the Senate floor where the vote is expected to be close. Majority Leader Michael Sanchez, who controls the floor schedule, voted solidly without comment for the Resolution in Judiciary and recently stated to the press that he expects the measure to pass in a party line vote. However, Democratic Senators John Arthur Smith and Shannon Robinson have declared their hesitance to vote for the measure and Senator Tim Jennings and Phil Griego remain uncommitted. There is some question as to whether or not the vote must pass with a majority of the Senate (22 yes votes) or a majority of those present. Authorities on the Rules of the New Mexico Legislature are working on the question but believe that a majority of those present will suffice.
2/24/07 - SJR5 passes Public Affairs Committee, 3-2, moves on to Senate Judiciary Committee. Read more... [Impeachment Channel]
2/16/07 - SJR5 passed the Rules Committee with a unanimous vote of 5-0. The 4 Republicans on the Committee did not attend. Democratic Senators voting for the bill were Lopez, Grubesic, Altamirano, Feldman, and McSorley. The meeting room was packed to the gills, with a huge crowd winding down the hallways outside the hearing. Several hours were spent listening to citizens speak on behalf of the bill, until Committee members were forced to move on to other business. The resolution has to pass through the Senate Public Affairs and Senate Judiciary Committees before it can be debated on the Senate Floor. [Haussamen] [OpEdNews] [Video from Channel 7 News]
2/9/07 - The Rules Committee meeting on SJR5 was postponed until 2/16/07 by Chairwoman Linda Lopez. The press event will proceed as planned.
2/5/07 - The New Mexico Impeachment Resolution will roll into its first Committee Hearing this Friday, February 9th, at 9AM in Room 321 of the State Capitol Building. It is possible that it will be reassigned to a larger hearing room if there is a crowd. Four of the five Democratic Senators on the Rules Committee have already signed the bill: Chairwoman Linda Lopez, Vice-Chair John Grubesic, Cisco McSorley and Dede Feldman. Senator Ben Altamirano, President Pro Tempore of the Senate is the swing vote on Rules. [News]
1/23/07 - Senators Gerald Ortiz y Pino and John Grubesic along with six other Senators announced that they have filed resolution SJR5 to impeach Bush and Cheney. [FreeMarketNews] [FreeNewMexican] [AP] [Video of Press Conference]
1/12/07 - Senator Gerald Ortiz y Pino has confirmed by phone that he will sponsor an impeachment resolution based on our model resolution. Senator Grubesic will cosponsor. He says that he was persuaded by Leland Lehrman and by a recent Harper's article by Lewis Lapham that said if we do not impeach Bush then we are complicit in his crimes.
1/8/07 - Senator Gerald Ortiz y Pino has drafted an impeachment resolution based on our model resolution. He is trying to decide whether to sponsor it, depending on how much support he can get from other state legislators. Note that the resolution can pass without being signed by Governer Richardson.
2/21/06 - According to Leland Lehrman, the New Mexico state senate may see a resolution to impeach in early 2007. Senator Gerald Ortiz y Pino is drafting an impeachment resolution but has not yet decided whether to introduce it. You can contact the Senator through his website and give him your support.
3/21/06 - State Democratic Party added impeachment to their party platform at a state convention in Albuquerque. "The New Mexico Democratic Party is calling for President Bush's removal from office— a position some party leaders are already distancing themselves from. The resolution says "the Democratic Party of New Mexico supports the impeachment of George Bush and his lawful removal from office." It was adopted as a floor amendment to the state party platform at a convention Saturday in Albuquerque. The state Democratic Party chairman, John Wertheim, said Saturday's vote at a gathering of more than 1,200 party delegates shows that many Democrats believe the Bush administration is "fraught with abuses of power and violations of the Constitution."
