"Election Denialism" Is Increasing Right-Wing Violence

It seems that right-wing violence is increasing in this country, and one of the reasons is the GOP claim that elections (the ones they lose) are rigged. The latest is in New Mexico, where a candidate who lost his election to the state legislature paid others to shoot up the houses of Democratic officials.

Here is how Zeeshan Aleem describes it at MSNBC.com:

A Republican election denier who failed to win his race for the New Mexico state House has been arrested on the suspicion that he orchestrated shootings at the homes of Democratic elected officials. While details of the case are still coming out, the situation is a reminder of how election denialism can prime its proponents for political violence when they don’t get their way.

Solomon Peña lost his state House race in November to the incumbent Democrat by a large margin. Mimicking what then-President Donald Trump did following his 2020 defeat to Joe Biden, Peña never conceded. Days after the election he endorsed Trump’s 2024 bid and said he was “researching my options” regarding what to do about the race that he wouldn’t admit his opponent had won.

According to multiple reports, it appears that one of the options he pursued was harassing government officials who say Peña showed up at their homes and confronted them about what he said were false election results.

​​One of those officials, Bernalillo County Commissioner Adriann Barboa, told NBC News that Peña came to her house after the election, acted aggressively and made semi-intelligible points about “how many doors he knocked on and how the number of votes didn’t match.” She called the police after he left. Former County Commissioner Debbie O’Malley described a similar experience of being tracked down at her home and accosted over the results in November.

“He was angry about losing the election,” she told NBC News. “He felt the election was unfair and untrue.” O’Malley also alerted law enforcement.

After those reported encounters, a series of shootings took place at the homes of four government officials, including Barboa, O’Malley, a state senator and a state representative. Fortunately nobody was injured or killed. But those shootings could’ve easily resulted in tragedy. Some of the bullets burst into the bedroom of the daughter of one of those state lawmakers.  

Police claim that Peña was the “mastermind” behind the shootings, and that he paid cash to four men to carry them out. Police say they’re still investigating, but that one of the alleged members of the conspiracy is acting as an informant, and that they believe Peña may have been motivated by his election loss.

It is a stroke of fortune that the shootings didn’t cause physical injury or death. But they underscore a disturbing trend of rising political violence in the U.S. that will not be reversed until the right firmly disavows both political violence and the ideology that incentivizes it.

When influential Republicans delight in mocking the brutal assaulton former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s husband, the base notices. When Rep. Paul Gosar, R-Ariz., shares cartoons that depict him killing his Democratic colleagues — and most of his party stands by his side — the base notices. When Trump celebrates his fans beating up critics at his rallies and calls for people to get “wild” and “fight like hell” at the U.S. Capitol, the base notices. 

But even without Trumpism’s nonchalance over real and fantasized  violence, it seems only logical that election denialism would lead to violence. If the right keeps telling the lie that the entire electoral system is being rigged against them, then it makes sense that some people will be convinced that use of force is an attractive “option.” The right-wing authoritarian playbook includes sapping right-wingers of any faith that the political establishment can be trusted. It seems inevitable that those susceptible to that lie will increasingly come to perceive anti-government violence as a reasonable response. 

New Poll Has Sanders And Biden Leading In New Mexico

The chart above is from the Emerson College Poll -- done between January 3rd and 6th of 447 Democratic primary voters in New Mexico, with a 4.6 point margin of error.

Seven New Presidential Polls In Virginia, New Mexico, Florida, North Carolina, Missouri, Arizona, And Utah

This chart shows the latest presidential polls in Virginia, New Mexico, Florida, North Carolina, Missouri, Arizona, and Utah. You can click on the state name to learn more about the polls.

Clinton Wins N. Jersey, N. Mexico, And S. Dakota

Five states held a primary Tuesday night, and one held a caucus. These were the last states to vote in this primary/caucus season. Only the District of Columbia is still to vote, and they will do that next week. Here are the results of the first five states to vote -- New Jersey, New Mexico, South Dakota, North Dakota, and Montana. California polls closed very late, and I will address those results in another post.

NEW JERSEY PRIMARY
Clinton...............63%
Sanders...............37%

NEW MEXICO PRIMARY
Clinton...............52%
Sanders...............49%

SOUTH DAKOTA PRIMARY
Clinton...............51%
Sanders...............49%

NORTH DAKOTA CAUCUS
Clinton...............26%
Sanders...............64%

MONTANA PRIMARY
Clinton...............46%
Sanders...............49%

This was a very good night for Clinton. She won New Jersey, New Mexico, and South Dakota, while Sanders won the only caucus. As I write this, Montana is too close to call with Sanders having a small lead. This outcome gives Clinton more than a hundred delegates over the 2383 needed for the nomination -- and that's before the California results come in (where she is assured of another 200 delegates, at least).

New Polls In Seven U.S. Senate Races

Rasmussen Poll

Rasmussen Poll

Rasmussen Poll

Rasmussen Poll

CNN / ORC Poll

CNN / ORC Poll

Des Moines Register Poll

New Mexico Senate Race Has Udall With Big Lead

If there is a safe Democratic seat in the Senate in this election, then this is probably it. Senator Udall, the Democratic incumbent, has a whopping 21 point lead over his Republican opponent in New Mexico.

The info in this chart was obtained from a new Rasmussen Poll -- conducted on July 21st and 22nd of 860 likely New Mexico voters, and has a margin of error of 4 points.

Senator Tom Udall Makes A Plea For Immigration Reform

Here is the latest missive from Senator Tom Udall (D-New Mexico) to his supporters. In it, he makes a plea for immigration reform, which he has solidly supported for quite a while now.

I think Senator Udall understands that immigration reform is not going to be passed by this Congress. The teabaggers in the House will make sure of that. But since the Republicans are killing immigration reform for right now, Senator Udall wants to make them own that position as the elections draw nearer. He wants the American public (who support reform) to know who has killed it -- and I think he's very smart to do that.

I hope Senator Udall, and his Democratic cohorts, continue to remind the voters about this over the next few months -- and also about the GOP's desire to cut Social Security benefits, eliminate the Medicare program, block raising the minimum wage, cut food stamps, cut taxes for the rich & corporations, and cut education funding at all levels. The voters need to be reminded early and often about the hard-hearted stands of the Republicans.

Here is what Senator Udall had to say about immigration reform:

A week ago, we celebrated civil rights leader César Chávez’s birthday. His legacy reminds us of the importance of family, and that no matter who you are, or where you come from, everyone deserves respect and a shot at the American Dream.

As residents of a border state, the people of New Mexico are well aware of the complexities and challenges associated with immigration reform.

Congress’ response to immigration reform illustrates two things -- what our government is capable of when folks focus on what’s best for the country, and what happens when they don’t.

Last year, I was thrilled when Senators from both sides of the aisle came together to pass a comprehensive immigration package that secures our borders and strengthens the American economy. Yet partisan obstructionists in the House of Representatives refuse to take action.

Immigration reform is an issue that affects thousands of families in New Mexico and millions across the country. It shouldn’t be treated as a political bargaining chip by those on the far right.

America's 1.6 million "DREAMers," children brought into our country illegally by their parents when they were young, are some of the most important examples of the need for immigration reform. For these children, America is the only home they’ve ever known.

America desperately needs an immigration system that works for these children, their families, and for all undocumented families already living here.

But we can’t move forward until the House decides to take action. Sign our petition today and let the House know that it’s time to pass comprehensive immigration reform right now.

America is a nation of immigrants, established by our forefathers on the sacred principles of freedom and equal opportunity for all. But our current immigration system does not reflect these values.

I support comprehensive immigration reform because it’s good for our economy, good for families, and because it’s the right thing to do. I hope you’ll join me.

Thank you.

 Senator Tom Udall

New Mexico Voters Support Hillary For President

New Mexico has a Republican governor, but that is an anomaly. It has become one of the most reliably "blue" states in the nation. New Mexico voted for President Obama in both 2008 and 2012 by a substantial margin -- and a new Public Policy Polling survey shows they are ready to vote Democratic again in 2016 (especially if Hillary Clinton is the Democratic candidate). Note that Hillary currently holds a double-digit lead in New Mexico over all the leading Republican contenders.

The survey was done between March 20th and 23rd of 674 registered voters in New Mexico, and has a margin of error of 3.8 points.

17 States Now Have Equal Marriage Rights

The constitutional guarantee of equal rights under the law has never been a reality in the United States, but a dream of those who understand and  support the Constitution -- a dream that has had to be fought for throughout this nation's history. Yesterday, another small battle was won that moves that dream just a little bit closer to becoming real.

On Thursday, New Mexico became the 17th state (plus the District of Columbia) to legalize same-sex marriages, when the state's Supreme Court ruled that same-sex marriages could not be prohibited constitutionally. The court said:

"Accordingly, New Mexico may neither constitutionally deny same-gender couples the right to marry nor deprive them of the rights, protections and responsibilities of marriage laws, unless the proponents of the legislation — the opponents of same-gender marriage — prove that the discrimination caused by the legislation is 'substantially related to an important government interest.'"

The court ruling didn't strike down an actual law, but a sort of tradition. The state doesn't have any law prohibiting (or allowing) same-sex marriages, but county clerks across the state have traditionally denied marriage licenses to same-sex couples. Thanks to this court ruling, they can no longer do that.

Here are the entities that now allow legal same-sex marriages:

1. California
2. Connecticut
3. Delaware
4. Iowa
5. Maine
6. Maryland
7. Massachusetts
8. Minnesota
9. New Hampshire
10. New York
11. Rhode Island
12. Vermont
13. Washington
14. New Jersy
15. Illinois
16. Hawaii
17. New Mexico
and
District of Columbia

Albuquerque Stands Up For Women's Rights

I applaud my neighbors in Albuquerque (just down I-40 to the west of Amarillo). The anti-women's rights movement tried to impose a 20-week ban on all abortions in that beautiful city by referendum -- and brought in lots of outsiders (and outside money) to campaign for the repugnant effort. But the good people of Albuquerque couldn't be convinced to vote against the right of women to control their own bodies. They defeated the onerous referendum by a 55% to 45% vote.

Teen Pregnancy Down (In Some States)

It looks like Texas no longer leads the nation in the number of teen pregnancies (although I think it still is number one in the number of second pregnancies among teens). The state with the most teen pregnancies per capita is Texas' western neighbor, New Mexico. But New Mexico is followed closely by Mississippi, Texas, Nevada, Arkansas, and Arizona.

Teen pregnancy has actually fallen in the United States as a whole, but the states listed above have not helped the national average. Why is this? Because these states either don't mandate sex education programs at all, or they don't require those programs to be medically accurate. Too often, if programs are offered at all in those states, they either are just "abstinence only" programs or contain anti-contraceptive propaganda instead of medically accurate information.

According to the Guttmacher Institute, the drop in teen pregnancies is almost exclusively due to increased use of contraceptives by teenagers. The rate of use of contraceptives nationally is 75%. That's the highest it's ever been, but sadly, it means that 25% of teens nationwide still don't use contraceptives when having sex. And in the states with the leading pregnancy rates, the use of contraceptives is lower (only 60.5% in New Mexico).

The truth, whether right-wing fundamentalists want to admit it or not, is that good medically accurate sex education programs do work to reduce teen pregnancies. Abstinence only programs and programs that provide anti-contraceptive propaganda instead of medically accurate information just lead to higher rates of teen pregnancies. It may make fundamentalists feel good to teach religion instead of contraception, but it just puts teens in danger of unwanted pregnancies (and sexually-transmitted diseases).

Note -- The above maps are from Think Progress.

Some New "Swing State" Polls

I realize the election is still several months away. Heck, we haven't even had the nominating conventions yet. But I love polls and I thought these were rather interesting -- especially since they take place in states that many consider to be swing states -- that is, states Romney and the Republicans were hoping to win. Here they are (and make of them what you will):

MARQUETTE LAW SCHOOL POLL (Wisconsin)
Obama...............51%
Romney...............43%
This is a two point increase for Obama over June numbers.

WE ASK AMERICA POLL (Pennsylvania)
Obama...............47%
Romney...............40%
Undecided..............13%

WE ASK AMERICA POLL (New Mexico)
Obama...............51%
Romney...............40%
Undecided...............9%

PUBLIC POLICY POLLING (Virginia)
Obama...............50%
Romney...............42%
This margin has held firm since last April.

PUBLIC POLICY POLLING (North Carolina)
Obama...............47%
Romney...............46%
Romney had a two point lead in early June -- 48%-46%.

Firebaggers ?

It seems that an Obama campaign official is upset that not everyone is happy with the president's cave-in on the debt ceiling deal. Ray Sandoval, the head of the Obama for America campaign in New Mexico, recently sent an e-mail to Democrats in his state. The e-mail was a defense of Obama's "compromise" on the debt ceiling deal, but it was also an attack on those who disagreed with it.

The e-mail denigrated Nobel Prize winning economist Paul Krugman (the only economist telling the truth about the recession and Washington's ineptitude in dealing with it) by calling him a "political rookie". He also struck out at the "Firebagger Lefty blogosphere" (evidently a combination of the excellent progressive blog FireDogLake and the term "teabagger"). I can only assume that he includes me as one of these "firebaggers", since I am a proud member of the lefty blogosphere and have been very critical of the president's debt ceiling agreement.

Is Sandoval trying to divide those who supported the election of Obama in the last election? Without the support of progressives, Obama would never have even been nominated. A spokesman from the national campaign quickly distanced the Obama campaign from the remarks by Sandoval, but I have to wonder if they are not secretly pleased. This is not the first time a representative of the president has slammed progressives. Just last year White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs called us the "professional left", and said we were "crazy" and needed to be "drug-tested".

Maybe it's time to remind the president of the wise words of Will Rogers. He said he was not a member of any organized political party -- he was a Democrat. The fact is that Democrats do not as a whole drink the colored kool-aid, and dutifully spout the party line as defined by their leaders. Democrats, especially progressives, tend to think for themselves (and they are not afraid to say what they think). And the only way to change our minds is through reason and logic -- not name-calling.

Frankly, those of us on the left have been called a lot worse names and it hasn't fazed us. Being an older lefty, this sort of reminds me of the early sixties when a prosecutor (in Chicago, I think) called the anti-establishment people "freaks". He meant it as a slam, but instead of being insulted they took the word as their own and wore it with pride. From that point on they called themselves "Freaks" (not hippies as is thought -- hippie was a term used more by the establishment).

I know the term "firebagger" was supposed to shame those of us in the lefty blogosphere, but I suspect if it has any effect it will be to further unify us. It would not surprise me at all to see the term proudly adopted as our own. But one thing it will not do is make us toe the party line. When we believe the president (or anyone else) is wrong we will say so.

So I'm a firebagger. OK. Now what are you going to do to get my support and vote, Mr. President? Or do you even care that you are alienating many of those who helped put you in office?

No More Environmentalism For New Mexico

The state of New Mexico is commonly called the "Land of Enchantment". There's a good reason for that. It's a very beautiful state with delicate ecologies ranging from desert to mountains. It also has a history that stretches over many centuries, and an interesting mix of cultures. When all of this ccomes together, it truly becomes an enchanting place -- both for residents and visitors.

But if you haven't enjoyed the beauty of that special state, you might want to do so quickly. It looks like the new Republican governor, Susana Martinez, is going to turn over the state to the giant oil and gas companies. And she's going to turn those companies loose without supervision or regard to what they will do to the environment. If you've ever seen what the oil and gas companies can do to the environment when they aren't strictly regulated, then you'll know how bad that can get.

Governor Martinez has appointed Harrison Schmitt to head the Energy, Minerals and Natural Resources Department. This is the state agency that is supposed to protect the environment in New Mexico. She wants Schmitt to immediately begin reviewing regulations on the oil and gas industry put in place by her predecessor, Governor Richardson.

And Schmitt doesn't need any encouraging. He is an avid opponent of the idea that global climate change is happening, and he believes all environmentalists are communists. Governor Martinez could not have picked a worse person to head up that state agency. Just listen to this piece of an interview Schmitt gave to right-wing radio:

"Number one we’ve been concerned with the misuse of science, but I think more fundamentally, this misuse of science has lead to politicians and ideologues to try to gain control of the American economy, and indeed the global economy, by scaring people….I think that there are individuals, [Obama science czar John] Holdren apparently among them, a very large number who have taken — shall we say captured the environmental movement and turned it into what was previously considered the communist movement. And that’s just something that people of common sense are going to continue to have to counter and wake up enough so that they can take control of their government again. [...]

I think the whole trend really began with the fall of the Soviet Union. Becausethe great champion of the opponents of liberty, namely communism, had to find some other place to go and they basically went into the environmental movement. That’s not to say there aren’t some major and significant environmental issues, particularly at the local level, but they converted environmental activism to a political movement and some would say a religious movement."

I fear for the environment of our beautiful sister state of New Mexico -- which is just a few miles west of where I live.

Richardson Backs Udall For Senate

During this election season, I have been wrapped up in supporting Barack Obama for president and Rick Noriega for the U.S. Senate seat from Texas. I still think both are great candidates, and I will do everything I can to see they both are elected this coming November.

But I was reminded recently that there's another senate campaign going on less than a hundred miles from where I live -- in our neighboring state of New Mexico. New Mexico has a great Democrat running for senate named Tom Udall.

Bill Richardson, governor of New Mexico, has now thrown his full support behind Mr. Udall. This is what Richardson has to say about Udall:

I've known Tom Udall for more than 25 years. But more than just being my good friend, he has shown himself time and again to be a voice for reason and solid Democratic values.

In fact, he was one of the very few Members of Congress to have the courage to vote against the War in Iraq, even when George W. Bush was stampeding the entire country into an invasion that we now know was completely unjustified and ultimately deeply damaging to America. You can hear Tom talk very eloquently about his plan to end the war by clicking here.

You, I and all of America need his wisdom now in the U.S. Senate--particularly when we've seen how 49 Republicans can block the entire progress of the country through political maneuvering and threats of filibuster.

Without Tom in the Senate, along with a veto-proof Democratic majority, we cannot begin to undo the terrible damage George W. Bush, Dick Cheney, and the Republicans have done to our economy, our environment and our future.

Millions of Americans now face home foreclosure while trillions of dollars in personal wealth have been wiped out because of Republican aversion to financial regulation.

37 million Americans face every day without health insurance because of Republican devotion to insurance company profits.

And America is hobbled by its dependence on foreign oil while the Republicans have blocked a meaningful renewable energy policy for the future.

I know that right now the media and many voters are focused on the presidential election. And there is no question that it is critically important. But it is every bit as important that we elect as many Democrats to the Senate as possible.

A Democratic president will need a Senate that will fully support the change America needs now. And if, despite our best efforts, the Republicans hold onto the White House, it will be like a third term for George W. Bush and Dick Cheney unless we have a veto-proof majority in the Senate.

Even though my own presidential bid is over, I remain keenly engaged in this election at every level of government. We have an opportunity to take our country back now that we simply must not miss.

Naturally, my first order of business is supporting Rick Noriega in his battle to unseat John Cornyn. I will keep sending him what I can and will campaign hard for him as the election nears. But I bet I can free up a few dollars to send to our western neighbor, Tom Udall. If you can, then I urge you to do so.

Our new Democratic president is going to need both of these good men to help him in the senate.