In the News

ALBUQUERQUE, New Mexico — New Mexico Gov. Susana Martinez signed a bill Sunday that would give state judges full access to the criminal histories of violent offenders, including some juveniles. The measure and another related bill also signed Sunday at the New Mexico State Police headquarters in Albuquerque will allow judges to use the information, including juvenile records, when making sentencing and bail decisions. “As a career prosecutor, I know firsthand how important it is for our judges to have the most complete criminal history of a defendant,” Martinez said. “It allows them to make better decisions in bail and … Read More

SANTA FE, New Mexico — Initiatives aimed at improving educational opportunities, rural cemeteries and state-contract preferences for military veterans were signed into law Friday by New Mexico Gov. Susana Martinez. The Republican governor signed a package of five bills at an American Legion hall in Albuquerque. One new law will allow taxpayers to voluntarily donate money from their state income tax returns to a fund that helps pay for rural veteran cemeteries. Martinez says that will build on funding approved in 2014 for state veterans cemeteries in Fort Stanton, Gallup, Angel Fire and Carlsbad. New Mexico is home to two … Read More

SANTA FE — Gov. Susana Martinez signed legislation Thursday increasing New Mexico’s penalties for possessing, distributing or manufacturing child pornography. However, although she signed the bill, the two-term Republican governor said she sees a flaw in it — a provision that exempts consensual “sexting” by teenagers. Attorney General Hector Balderas, a Democrat, also opposed the provision during this year’s 30-day legislative session, arguing it creates a dangerous loophole. But some lawmakers said the provision was important to ensure that teenagers between the ages of 14 and 18 who engage in “sexting,” or electronically sending sexually explicit images, are not charged … Read More

Offenders convicted of possessing, distributing and manufacturing child pornography in New Mexico will face tougher prison sentences after Gov. Susana Martinez signed a bill into law Thursday that increases penalties for such crimes. Martinez, while praising the new law, said the state also needs a law that allows prosecutors to charge people who own child pornography for each image they possess. The initial version of the bill, introduced by state Reps. Sarah Maestas Barnes, R-Albuquerque, and Randal Crowder, R-Clovis, would have done this. “While I supported the original legislation that would have closed the per-image loophole created by the Supreme … Read More

The Spanish were here long before any other Europeans, founding St. Augustine, Florida, more than 50 years before the Pilgrims set foot on Plymouth Rock, and their political influence is still felt strongly across America today. Democrats might claim they own the Latino vote, but America is filled with influential Latinos who also happen to be conservative Republicans. Two even happen to be the leading Republican presidential candidates. In 2004, George W. Bush scored an estimated 44 percent of the Latino vote, helping him edge out John Kerry. That number dropped to 23 percent for Mitt Romney in 2012. With … Read More

In New Mexico, illegal immigrants will no longer be able to obtain a state driver’s license — but they will have access to a driver’s authorization card. After a heated five-year struggle with legislative Democrats, RepublicanGov. Susana Martinez finally checked off the item at the top of her to-do list: reforming the increasingly problematic 2003 law that let illegal immigrants obtain driver’s licenses. Ms. Martinez said in a statement Tuesday that she “looks forward” to signing House Bill 99, which won final approval Monday with a 65-1 vote in the House, just days before the end of the brief 30-day … Read More

WASHINGTON, Jan. 29, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — The following is attributable to USHCC President & CEO Javier Palomarez: The USHCC is proud to endorse Governor Susana Martinez as a candidate for Vice President of the United States. Our endorsement of both Governor Martinez and Secretary Julian Castro is not an endorsement of a particular presidential candidate or party, but rather a firm recommendation to the future Presidential nominee of each party. On the heels of yesterday’s Republican debate, we urge all participating candidates to seriously consider Governor Martinez as their running mate. As New Mexico’s first female governor and the … Read More

New Mexico Gov. Susana Martinez blasted the EPA for accidentally flooding the Animas River with toxic orange wastewater, calling on the agency to hold itself to the same standard for the disaster as it would a private entity. “Imagine what would happen if a private company caused this waste spill,” the Republican governor said in a Friday statement. “This was caused by the EPA and the EPA should demand the same of itself as it would of a private business responsible for such a spill, particularly when it comes to making information available to the public and state and local … Read More

A crackdown on document fraud has sent the number of driver’s licenses issued to illegal aliens in New Mexico plunging by 70 percent, while revealing that the state likely issued tens of thousands of bogus licenses after becoming the first state to adopt the controversial policy a dozen years ago. Last year, New Mexico issued 4,577 licenses to foreign nationals, down sharply from the 2010 high of about 15,000. Officials in the administration of Gov. Susana Martinez, who opposes the policy but has been unable to get it repealed, say the huge drop came as soon as new procedures were … Read More

The Taos News endorsed Governor Susana Martinez for re-election today, citing the fact that she has helped Taos when it’s in a crisis and that “New Mexicans can count on help from her during times of natural disasters.”  This comes on the heels of the Las Cruces Sun-News and Roswell Daily Record endorsements. Except From The Taos News: “Gov. Susana Martinez has helped Taos County in crisis, such as during the natural gas outage in February 2013.  During fires and floods in other parts of the state, her office has come to the aid of affected citizens.  New Mexicans can count on help from her during times … Read More