A text message campaign against a prominent Democratic senator spilled onto the Senate Floor Friday, drawing a harsh rebuke from Republican Sen. Crystal Diamond Brantley against members of her own party.
Anissa Ford-Tinnin, a former executive director of the Republican Party of New Mexico and one of the state’s fake electors, sent text messages and made Facebook posts accusing Sen. Joseph Cervantes (D-NM), the chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, of refusing to hear a bill criminalizing home invasions. The text, according to screenshots provided to Source New Mexico, said Cervantes did so because he “makes his living as a criminal defense lawyer protecting criminals instead of YOU.”
Cervantes noted on the Senate floor that he has never done a criminal defense case in 35 years as a lawyer, and said on social media that it’s “ludicrous” to suggest that New Mexico has no law making home invasion a crime.
Texts and Facebook posts from Ford-Tinnin contained Cervantes’ personal cell phone number, according to screenshots provided to Source New Mexico. Cervantes said on the Senate floor that he’s been inundated with phone calls, including more than 100 yesterday his staff fielded.
“Attack me for my positions, sure. Attack me for my vote, sure. But send out my text message and send out my cell phone number?” he said. “My office yesterday spent all day long, 100 plus phone calls, responding to people from my district on the basis of a lie.”
Sen. Bill Sharer (D-Farmington) and Crystal Diamond Brantley (D-Elephant Butte) both condemned the texts as a smear. Diamond Brantley said she was “embarrassed” on behalf of Republicans and denounced the political action committee associated with Ford-Tinnin.
“I apologize to Sen. Cervantes that this is happening, and I think that as an entire caucus, we need to denounce this PAC and the people who are running this,” she said. “This is not a good reflection of Republicans, and it’s not a good reflection of New Mexicans.”
Ford-Tinnin did not respond to a request for comment Friday afternoon. Cervantes has received death threats already this session for bringing bills up for debate critics said would result in gun seizures.
ISO WNMU regent appointments
Lawmakers on Friday noted a conspicuous absence in the flurry of university regent appointments coming down from Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham: replacements for Western New Mexico University board members who resigned last year in the wake of a spending scandal.
On Wednesday, Sen. Gabriel Ramos (R-Silver City) called on the Senate Floor for a new board to be appointed immediately.
“We cannot run WNMU without a president and a board,” Ramos said. “The only people who are suffering are our current students and future students.”
But the holdup isn’t with the Senate, said Sen. Katy Duhigg (D-Albuquerque), who chairs the Rules Committee.
“As soon as I get any appointments from the governor’s office, we will prioritize those hearings,” Duhigg said. “But we have not gotten anything yet.”
Michael Coleman, a spokesperson for the governor, told Source New Mexico that lawmakers will need to keep waiting.
“The governor is still reviewing applicants. She wants to ensure the best possible appointments, especially given recent events,” Coleman said in an email Friday.
Regents are subject to Senate confirmation. So far, the Senate has confirmed a handful of appointments, including at Eastern New Mexico University and New Mexico Military Institute.
Other confirmation hearings have yet to be scheduled, including for Gregory Lawrence Lujan, the governor’s brother. He’s up for student regent at New Mexico Highlands University, an appointment that raised some eyebrows amid legislative efforts at reforming university governance.
In other confirmations, the Senate confirmed Emily Kaltenbach 37-0 as the next cabinet secretary for the Aging and Long-Term Services Department. Source NM sat down with Kaltenbach early in the session to talk about her priorities.
Cleared the floors
The House of Representatives voted 38-31 in favor of House Bill 11, which would create a state-run paid family and medical leave program. The fifth time was the charm for the controversial measure, which never made it out of the House last session and died in several sessions before that. It now heads to the Senate.
The bill would provide up to six weeks of paid leave for those who need time off to care for a loved one, grieve a child’s loss or deal with a serious health condition, among other reasons.
The Senate unanimously passed Senate Bill 31, which would create a $150 million Natural Disaster Revolving Fund to provide zero-interest loans to replace or repair infrastructure damaged by natural disasters.
The Senate voted 31-2 on Senate Bill 158, which would require the Economic Development Department to report the effectiveness of tax and economic development incentives to the Legislative Finance Committee.
The Upper Chamber also passed Senate Bill 101 on a 32-7 vote, which would raise livestock inspection fees.
All three bills now head for the House for committee assignments.
Bill watch
The House Judiciary Committee on Friday afternoon passed a substitute version of House Bill 72, which would require the Health Care Authority to enforce minimum staffing ratios at hospitals; and House Bill 308, which would exempt conservancy districts from the Local Elections Act.
At press time on Friday, House Judiciary was debating House Bill 9, which would ban state agencies and local governments in New Mexico from collaborating with the federal government on immigrant detention.
The Senate Health and Public Affairs Committee, after lengthy debate, passed the UVisa Certification Act, which aims to standardize and strengthen the process by which immigrant victims of crime can get visas in recognition of their help to law enforcement. It passed by a vote of 6-3, though Sen. Jay Block (R-Rio Rancho) predicted it would face a tough test in the Senate Judiciary Committee.
Sen. Cindy Nava (D-Bernalillo), herself a former undocumented immigrant, applauded the bill: “As we know, many of our families do not have a pathway to legal status. That is a fact, and I think it is really commendable to see you all laying the foundation of facts versus assumption,” she said to bill sponsor Sen. Antoinette Sedillo-Lopez (D-Albuquerque) and her experts.
The House Education Committee on Friday morning passed Senate Bill 163, which would prohibit public schools and charter schools from banning students of federally recognized Indian nations, tribes or pueblos from wearing tribal regalia or items of cultural significance at graduation ceremonies or public school events.
Workin’ through the weekend:
Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham’s effort to create an Office of Housing gets its first hearing on Saturday at 10 a.m. at the House Government, Elections and Indian Affairs Committee. Read more about that proposal here, and here’s a link to House Bill 448.
Both chambers will have floor sessions at 1 pm. on Saturday.
The Senate will consider Senate Bill 5, which proposes changes to the New Mexico Department of Game and Fish, including a new name, expansion of the agency’s mission and a change in how its governing board is appointed.
Senior Reporter Austin Fisher contributed reporting to this story.