Eric Griego Scores PCCC Endorsement

The Progressive Change Campaign Committee issued its first endorsement of the election cycle to New Mexico State Senator Eric Griego, who is running for the District 1 spot in the Land of Enchantment. The seat is being vacated by fellow Democrat Martin Heinrich as he makes a run for an open Senate seat in 2012.

PCCC’s mission “works to elect bold progressive candidates to federal office and to help those candidates and their campaigns save money, work smarter, and win more often. We also advocate for bold leadership on the most important and pressing causes.”

The endorsement of Eric Griego falls in line with that mission and philosophy. In his campaign announcement, Griego calls out the broken and failed policies of the conservative movement that has crashed the country into our current deficit ditch. He is filling a void in the political debate that openly advocates for government to have a role in the life & livelihood of the people. Grover Norquist’s bathtub won’t be drowning anyone’s dreams if Griego is elected.

Via the New Mexico Independent

“The conservative Republicans running the U.S. Congress have declared war on working families,” Griego said in a statement announcing his decision. “They want to privatize and ration Medicare for seniors, gut Medicaid for the most vulnerable children and families, and change the promise of retirement with dignity for Americans who have worked their whole lives. We need a Congressman to be their voice and champion on Capitol Hill.”

Griego is a politician who comes from the non-profit world of grassroots social advocacy. He is the Executive Director of New Mexico Voices for Children, which proves that he gets it that trickle-down economics is an utter failure. We need to put more people on the Hill that can generate a bottom-up demand for economic stability and justice for the working poor and middle class.

PCCC reports that it raised $3 million in the 2010 election cycle and has set a goal of $3-$5 million for 2012. As of the writing of this post, they have raised $8K of the $10K preliminary goal for Griego’s candidacy. You can help pitch in at this link.

 

New Mexico Senior Deported After Parking Violation

We must secure the borders so that parking violations across this great land will cease for eternity, ushering in a new era of freedom from Traffic Survival School….or something.

U.S. immigration officials deported a pregnant Roswell High School senior after she was pulled from class Wednesday by a local police officer regarding a traffic ticket issued days before.

According to Roswell Police Chief John Balderston, Karina Acosta, 18, was given several days to provide proper identification after being cited for a parking violation and driving without a license on Nov. 29 but failed to do so.

RHS Student Resource Officer Charlie Corn, a 10-year RPD veteran, removed Acosta from class Dec. 5 regarding the traffic violation and detained her at the school before notifying U.S. immigration officials of her illegal status, according to Balderston.

linkage

Searching across the web for more information on this particular incident has yielded nothing besides the linked article. The scenario, however, is being played out across the country. Local law enforcement agencies are now taking it upon themselves to act as INS agents. When it comes to their involvement on school grounds, tension between officials becomes inevitable.

Roswell Independent School District Assistant Superintendent Mike Kakuska said the RISD has officially protested Acosta’s arrest with the INS and the Mexican Consulate.

“We are very, very concerned as a public school as to what happened the other day,” said Kakuska, addressing a group of about 50 parents who gathered at RHS Friday morning. “The police officer, without our knowledge, had this young lady brought into his office here at school and the detain orders were issued through him, not the Roswell schools.”

I’ve placed a phone call to Gov. Richardson’s office to see if he has any comments on the case.

tip of the hat to commenter Larry in New Mexico