Television News Veteran Awes Judges at Spamfest

In the heat of a general election we've all had our mailboxes stuffed with political postcards and our email in boxes filled with SPAM from candidates requesting donations.

On Saturday, members of the media took a break from the political campaigns and headed to the Albuquerque Press Club for dinner.

SPAMFEST is a time-honored tradition at the Albuquerque Press Club.

It was retired KOB TV Assignment Manager Orlando Medina who captured the top prize. His Spam Adobada featured chunks of SPAM in a lovely red chile sauce. It was accompanied with pinto beans and tortillas. Medina spent 32 years in broadcast news before retiring last year.

Defending 2007 Champion Tom Wright protested enforcement of the rules requiring contestants prepare their own dishes and simply opened a can of SPAM, stuck a serving knife in it, and entered the can.

Last year Wright was challenged when members learned he had a chef prepare his entry. Allowed to keep the trophy, Wright says he has "the creativity to win, but lacks the technical skills to prepare it."

His 2008 entry, "A SPAMIN Tragedy" was funny enough to pick up 2nd place (likey a pity vote by the judges for this "humorous" entry).

Contestants were challenged to use their imagination and culinary creativity to liven up the processed pork in a can.

Of course, entry rules required SPAM be used and the dish had to be edible.

From our viewpoint, most of the tasters in the crowed filled their plates, and some went back for seconds.

Judges scored each entry on taste, humor and originality. Nick, a judge on tonight's panel, said "this SPAM" is delicious. Justin who filled his plate twice took to singing lyrics from SPAMALOT.

Entires included:

• Spameroni calzone
• Spam spud specials
• Plain can of spam
• Deviled spam eggs
• Spiche
• Spamwich hors d'oeuvres
• Spam Adobada
• Spam pad thai
• Spamelette
• Croque le spam
• Spam with anjou pear and blue cheese
• Spicy spam poppers
• Spam bhaji with mint chutney

Winners List:

Taste:
1st Prize: Orlando Medina, Spam Adobada
2nd Prize: Gary Hubbard spam spud

Humor:
Tom Wright, A Spamin Tradegy
Lisa Benski, Croque le spam

Originality
Orlando Medina, Spam Adobada

Our favorites Spam Devil Eggs and Spiche didn't make the final cut.

If you're hungry and craving a can of SPAM... check out these recipes and cook books on Amazon.

Pearce: Udall Needs to Make a Decision About Debates

U.S. Senate Steve Pearce is putting pressure on Democrat Tom Udall to set dates for broadcast debates ahead of this fall's election. Pearce wrote an open letter to the media this afternoon asking Udall to stop stalling and pick a date for the NBC "Meet the Press" Senate debate.

Udall's campaign staff says they've been meeting and the letter is a publicity stunt.

Here's a copy of the letter from Pearce:

Dear Member of the Media,

Since it is clear that Tom Udall is stalling on debates, it is time to bring the statewide media into the negotiations for him to do what is right.

I urge him to have a meeting within the next seven days with our campaign and all of the electronic and print media to finalize a date certain for a series of debates to be televised in New Mexico and to confirm a date that is acceptable for Meet the Press as a national debate.

It is important to set these dates now so that Tom Udall cannot duck and run.

Sincerely,

Steve Pearce

Earlier in the week Pearce's campaign suggested debate dates in this August 07, 2008 News Release:

Albuquerque - Today, People for Pearce Campaign Manager John Billingsley contacted officials at KRQE, KOB, and NBC's "Meet the Press" to suggest possible dates for the future televised debates between Congressman Steve Pearce and Tom Udall. Billingsley has already accepted a debate on October 26th that will be televised by KOAT.

For the two remaining televised debates the Pearce and Udall campaigns have already agreed upon, Billingsley requested late September for KOB and mid-October for KRQE. The campaign has encouraged an October date for "Meet the Press".

"Steve wants the people of New Mexico to see the real differences between the candidates. He's willing to stand up and defend his record, his positions and his vision for the future of New Mexico and the country, " said Billingsley. "It's time for Tom Udall to stop ducking these debates and let the people of New Mexico know where he stands."

The suggested dates are as follows:

KOB: Septemeber 23rd, 25th, and 30th
KOAT: Between October 15th and 19th
NBC's Meet the Press: October 5th, 12th, and 19th

The Pearce campaign has already accepted KOAT's offer to hold a televised debate on October 26th.

Local Nonprofits Issue Rebuttal to Attorney General's Statement on Primary Election Dispute

Colleen Heild has the latest on the non-profit mailer controversy in the Albuquerque Journal

Note we received these statements from several of the the groups involved.

John Boyd - Counsel for Center for Civic Policy and New Mexico Youth Organized

Sara Berger - Counsel for Center for Civic Policy and New Mexico Youth Organized

The United States Supreme Court has made it abundantly clear that election officials are only permitted to regulate public statements that explicitly address elections. They are not permitted to regulate public statements that relate to officeholders' conduct, even though those officeholders may be running for re-election. This is fundamental to the First Amendment's guarantee of freedom of speech. The Attorney General's statement that he recognizes what can be regulated on the basis of whether it 'walks like a duck' is an indication that he doesn't understand the law in this area, and he is inviting entirely unnecessary litigation against the State of New Mexico."

Eli Il Yong Lee - Executive Director, Center for Civic Policy

We are disappointed by Attorney General King's uncharacteristically glib assessment of a serious matter. At stake is the ability of nonprofits throughout New Mexico to hold elected officials accountable for their actions and to advocate for issues that are critical to their missions. Further, we are disappointed that the Attorney General is issuing a verdict through the media prior to his office completing its research on this matter."

McCain Pledges Easier Access to Quality Health Programs for Rural New Mexican Vets

Thousands of rural New Mexican vets now have to travel to Albuquerque for access to care, but things might get better for them if Republican Presidential Candidate John McCain gets his way. On Saturday in Las Vegas, Republican Presidential Candidate John McCain told disabled vets, like himself, that he'll create a Veterans' Care Access Card. The card, McCain said, will provide those without timely access to VA facilities the option of using high-quality health-care providers near their homes.


Here's the text from his speech:

Though victory in Iraq is finally in sight, a great deal still depends on the decisions and good judgment of the next president. The hard-won gains of our troops hang in the balance. The lasting advantage of a peaceful and democratic ally in the heart of the Middle East could still be squandered by hasty withdrawal and arbitrary timelines. And this is one of many problems in the shifting positions of my opponent, Senator Obama.

To read the rest of the remarks click here.

Photo from Memorial Day Speech in ABQ - MG Bralley

Rio Rancho Scores A Victory Over Former City Manager

A district court judge ruled Thursday that the city of Rio Rancho did take proper action in correcting any violations of the state’s Open Meetings Act it may have made in terminating Jim Palenick’s employment contract. Rio Rancho blogger Eric Maddy has more details on his website The Score.

Heinrick Supports Marijuana for Medicinal Purposes.

It's been 13 months since New Mexico's Medical Marijuana law took effect. We asked Democratic Congressional Candidate Martin Heinrich his views on the program.

In this AUDIO INTERVIEW, Heinrich says he supports marijuana for medicinal purposes, but says he's adamantly opposed to legalizing drugs.

"It's incredibly important that we don’t decriminalize or legalize the recreational use of marijuana. I think that would be an enormous mistake."

Heinrich told me at an event featuring a national guest, Illinois Congressman Rahm Emanuel (a former Clinton Aide), that he believes the effectiveness of marijuana should be left up to the medical establishment, and not to politicians.

He says he's proud of the work he did as an Albuquerque City Councilor to approve one of the first laws in the country that required Sudafed to be locked behind glass or stored in counters. He said it made an enormous impact in the community.

Heinrich says there needs to be more of an effort here to cracking down on methamphetamines, heroin and cocaine. If elected to congress he says he'll try to get more funding to fight illegal drugs.

Meanwhile, the NM Department of Health will have a public meeting on Monday, September 8, 2008 at 9:00 a.m. to determine the "Licensing Requirements For Producers, Production Facilities and Distribution" Visit this webpage to read more about the program in New Mexico.

Republican Presidential Candidate John McCain told me, on his Straight Talk Express bus, during his recent trip to Albuquerque, that he supports New Mexico's right to have a medical marijuana law. In this AUDIO INTERVIEW, however, he says he also believes, as do millions of other Americans that marijuana is a gateway drug. McCain says the Bush administration has been AWOL on the War on Drugs.

The D.E.A. says it's illegal. And they're arresting users, growers and distributors. On August 5th Federal prosecutors won a conviction against a Morro Bay pot dispenser. David Lynch faces five years in prison. The Los Angeles Times reported:

Cultivating, using and selling doctor-prescribed medical marijuana are allowed in some instances under California law. But they are outlawed entirely under federal law, which supersedes those of the states.

According to the FEDS marijuana is still addictive and people using it for relief are having to seek admittance in rehab programs, but probably like this exclusive center one in Malibu. We learned there are more teens in treatment for marijuana use than for any other drug or for alcohol. Adolescent admissions to substance abuse facilities for marijuana grew from 43 percent of all adolescent admissions in 1994 to 60 percent in 1999.

Agents claim marijuana is much stronger now than it was decades ago. According to data from the Potency Monitoring Project at the University of Mississippi, the tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) content of commercial-grade marijuana rose from an average of 3.71 percent in 1985 to an average of 5.57 percent in 1998. The average THC content of U.S. produced sinsemilla increased from 3.2 percent in 1977 to 12.8 percent in 1997.

To read about the myths of the "drug" consider visiting this D.E.A. webpage.
Photos: MG Bralley

Nearly 200 Laid off at Albuquerque's Eclipse Aviation

Eclipse Aviation released approximately 190 temporary workers. This affects nine percent of Eclipse's total workforce. The company insists the labor move is not a layoff because it does not affect any direct employees. Eclipse's total employment remains at about 1865. The majority of the released temporary workers in Albuquerque were hired from outside of New Mexico. They will return to their agency for further job placement.The company was not available for comment.

AG Clears the Air on Campaigning Dispute

Attorney General Gary King today answered erroneous reports that his office was somehow backing away from its request to the Secretary of State's Office to require a non-profit group to report campaign expenditures and abide by other requirements under the Campaign Practices Act and Lobbyist Regulation Act.

"Despite some reports to the contrary, we fully support our earlier position in a letter that the Secretary of State's Office needs to tell the New Mexico Youth Organization (NMYO) to immediately comply with the law," says Attorney General King. "Due to the spread of misinformation there seems to be some thought that my office had "disavowed" our letter or told the Secretary of State to "ignore" our advice, that is just not true. Those words were used, however, by others who support theNMYO."

The AG also says, "If the Deputy Secretary of State thought we had instructed him to simply ignore our letter, then that was a misunderstanding on his part of what was said."

Following receipt of a letter from the Center for Civic Policy (CCP), the Secretary of State's Office forwarded the letter to the AG's Office. In the letter, the CCP set forth a number of claims supporting NMYO's actions and urged the Secretary of State not to grant the AGO's request. Before they made a decision to disregard or follow the AG's advice, the SOS was asked to let the AG's office closely examine the CCP's claims and report back. That is where the issue stands today.

NMYO is responsible for a number of messages distributed publicly that targeted state Legislators. The group claims that the mailers it sent out were not campaign materials. The Attorney General disagrees.

"There's an old saying that if it walks like a duck and quacks like a duck, then its probably a duck," say AG King. "And I think we know a duck when we see one."

White: I'm Back on the Trail.

He may be slowed down a bit while recovering from a back injury and week long hospital stay, but Darren White says he’s ready to campaign.

On Thursday he squelched rumors that he was quitting the campaign for the 1^s Congressional District. He says bloggers who claimed NM Republicans might replace him on the ballot at a meeting next Thursday with Heather Wilson are “absolutely false.”

In this PRESS CONFERENCE AUDIO White says he’s prepared to earn every single vote and eager to talk about important issues in the campaign, including health care.

"America has the highest quality health care in the world, but too many Americans (44 million) are without basic health coverage. We must enact common-sense reforms and market-based solution that will make quality health care more affordable and more accessible for every American."

4 Point Health Care Program:

Making Health Care More Affordable:

• White wants common-sense tort reform measures. He says they are necessary to reduce frivolous lawsuits that are driving up the cost of health care through unnecessary litigation, forcing doctors and other specialists to practice defensive medicine.
• He also wants to provide individual tax credits to purchase health care, and promote Health Savings Accounts, so more Americans can purchase their own health insurance.

Improving Accessibility and Increasing Choices:

• Allow people to shop for health insurance across state lines so they can find the plan that is best for them and their families at a cost they can afford.
• Make it easier for small business to pool together so they can provide their employees with the same quality health coverage as larger companies.
• Ensure people are able to keep their health insurance when they change jobs.

Keeping Patients and Doctors in Charge:

• Darren White says he believes that patients and doctors, not Washington bureaucrats, should be in charge of health care.
• Darren opposes government-run health care schemes that would increase costs, limit patient choice, and reduce the quality and efficiency of health care in America.

Providing More Coverage for Uninsured Children in America:

• In a country with as much wealth as America, it is morally unacceptable for children to go without basic health coverage. White says he’ll support a program to provide more children with basic health coverage through expanding the S-Chip Program.
• In case you missed it, Congressional Candidate Darren White released his 7 point plan for energy independence this week.

Here are the key provisions:

Innovate to find the next generation of energy sources:
We must continue research and development into promising new, clean, and reliable energy sources, including solar power, hydroelectric power, wind power, and biofuels.

Expand the use of clean energy sources now:
We need to expand the use of proven alternative energy sources, including nuclear power, natural gas, and clean coal technology.

Increase the production of American-made energy in an environmentally-safe way :
Today, about 70% of the oil consumed in the United States is imported, a significant amount from countries that are not friendly to the U.S. That is unacceptable when America has a vast reservoir of untapped resources. We must increase domestic production to increase supply, and lower the price of gas.

End bureaucratic red tape:
We have to bring new, modern oil refineries on-line to increase supply. Bureaucracy and regulations have held up the construction process long enough.

Encourage conservation:
Americans want to be active partners. We need to reward Americans who make their home, car, or business more energy-efficient through conservation tax incentives. We should help more businesses allow their employees to telecommute by providing incentives.

Corporate responsibility:
American corporations need to be partners in this process as well. I support increased fuel efficiency standards for automobiles. And there must be serious accountability tied to any tax credits for energy companies.

More oversight on speculators:
Some estimate 25% of the cost of a barrel of oil is due to speculation. The trading of oil futures should be transparent and subject to strict oversight. We must close loopholes, reform the system, and aggressively investigate cases of potential abuse and price manipulation.

Photo: MG Bralley

Eclipse Aviation: NTSB issues preliminary report on Pennsylvania accident

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) issued a preliminary report on an accident involving an Eclipse 500(r) that occurred on July 30, 2008 at the Brandywine Airport (OQN) in West Chester, Pennsylvania. The accident involved a customer aircraft with two occupants on board. Neither of them was injured.

The report states that the pilot's approach was a little high and fast.

He overran the runway while landing the airplane, skidded off the end of the runway, traveled down a 40-foot embankment, and crossed a service road where the airplane came to rest.

In a recent article in the Pottstown Mercury, NTSB Investigator Todd Gunther was quoted as saying that the plane had no structural problems or mechanical malfunctions prior to impact. To view the article, you can go to this link:

The investigation is ongoing and we are cooperating fully with the NTSB and Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).

To view the NTSB's preliminary report, you can go to this link: