I’ve got an idea: let’s just eliminate the whole voting process. Everyone

knows how tainted voting is. Fewer and fewer people do it and those who do cheat constantly and then corrupt public figures lie about the

results (somehow, Republicans believe this and don’t question that Republicans hold all the power). Let’s replace that sham

system with the way it really works: those with money win. After all, to some of our fellow citizens, money IS speech, which must mean

they believe the ones with the most money have the greatest right to speak (and those without money better shut up). Those same folks

believe private property rights trump all others (good-bye, Endangered Species Act, passed

under the suddenly-too-liberal Nixon).

So, let’s get out of the way of those who are corrupt enough to buy access and those who

are corrupt enough to sell it. We’ll call it Free Market Democracy in the New and Improved AmeriCo! mjh

ABQjournal: Chávez Tops $1.1M

in Race to Stay Mayor By Jim Ludwick, Journal Staff Writer

Albuquerque Mayor Martin Chávez has raised more than $1.1

million for his re-election effort.

That’s more than four times as much as City Councilor Eric Griego, who has reported

monetary contributions totaling nearly $265,000.

And it is roughly $1 million ahead of Council President Brad Winter, who has

raised $154,000 in his bid to unseat Chávez.

ABQjournal: Wage Opponents Top Backers in Spending By Olivier

Uyttebrouck, Journal Staff Writer

Three groups opposing a proposed minimum wage initiative spent a total of $206,048 as of

Friday, topping supporters’ expenditures of $137,483, according to reports filed at the City Clerk’s Office.

The initiative

on the city’s ballot Tuesday calls for an hourly minimum wage of $7.50 for regular workers and $4.50 for tipped workers at businesses

with 11 or more employees.

The Albuquerque Minimum Wage Committee, which supports the initiative, reported total contributions

of $81,669. The three opposing groups raised $225,471.

Blunt’s fundraising propels him

to Republican leadership role BY MATT STEARNS AND DAVID GOLDSTEIN, Knight Ridder Newspapers

In a move of unusual

perceptiveness, Blunt – himself a man of modest means – began sending contributions from his own campaign coffers to 21 Republicans

throughout the country running for Congress for the first time.

When I read the initial news story about this tactic, I thought how low-class

it is for the supporters of the front-runner and likely winner to act like this — where were their flip-flops?

Kudos to the

Journal for blaming Chávez himself for this. Too bad they continue to endorse the boor. mjh

ABQjournal: Mayor Needs to Rein In His

Troops

City campaign politics hit a low point Thursday.

Notified that rivals Eric Griego and Brad

Winter were going to hold a press conference, Mayor Martin Chávez’s campaign dispatched a crowd of supporters and campaign pooch Dukes

to Civic Plaza.

Dukes, the mayor’s dog whose picture and paw-print were featured on a mailer addressed to dogs in voting

households, may have been the best behaved of the mayor’s backers.

Campaign spokeswoman Joan Griffin said the mayor’s

supporters “wanted to encourage a positive campaign and quit this kind of negative campaigning that’s going on.”

The Chávez

camp’s alternative to negative campaigning apparently is to shout down, intimidate or otherwise disrupt legitimate opposition campaign

events.

Chanting, “Marty, Marty, Marty,” Chávez supporters closed in on Griego and Winter as the two councilors running for

mayor raised questions about a Chávez fundraiser. …

[R]aising questions about the fundraiser and the campaign’s varying reports

on the amounts contributed is fair game.

Chávez supporters’ obnoxious tactics on Thursday are not, and the buck for their

behavior stops on the incumbent mayor’s desk.

Unless he condones this kind of campaigning, Chávez should apologize to Griego

and Winter for those who disrupted their press conference in his name. While he’s at it, he should apologize to the voters for

this boorish behavior.