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| Ronchetti (Moore, Journal) |
Ronchetti this week announced that, if elected, he would not put his pen to a single piece of legislation until lawmakers gave him his way on crime:
Nothing will get through the Legislature until we protect the people of this state. We'll veto everything until we make sure we protect our citizens.
No funding for public schools? For CYFD? For state police?
Ronchetti's pledge to "veto everything" is pure hyperbole but it does reveal that when it comes to gridlock he might outdo previous GOP Governors Susana Martinez and even Gary Johnson who earned the moniker "Governor No" after casting more vetos than any chief executive in state history.
Governing by veto is neither practical or possible but with the election clock ticking away and Ronchetti still behind MLG, he sees crime as his last best hope to close the gap in crime-ridden and populous Bernalillo County and give himself a shot at a statewide upset.
The GOP hopeful is also trying to put more meat on the relatively skimpy bones he has offered as solutions to crime. He is now advocating expanding the "three strikes" law that ensures anyone convicted of three violent felonies is sentenced to life in prison with parole. He wants to add more crimes to the list of convictions that would count as a "strike," a proposal that has been rebuffed since the Legislature passed three strikes in 1994.
The narrative of the final weeks of Campaign '22 is shaping up as crime or abortion choice for many voters. Expect to hear much about each when Ronchetti and MLG face off at the first of two televised debates on KOB tomorrow night at 7 p.m.
Meanwhile, Republicans are going all crime all the time in the competitive state House races and MLG and company are on abortion like white on rice as they see their pro-choice messaging appealing not only to Democratic women but pro-choice Republican women.
Several consultants we interviewed opined that Ronchetti would be better off dropping his ad calling for a statewide referendum on abortion, with one saying:
The more he talks about the topic, the worse it gets. He should keep crime front and center and address the pro-choice ads by saying outside special interests are trying to make this a one issue campaign, but it is much more than that.
Ronchetti has probably been hearing that a lot and has opted to cast his veto, something he longs to do from the Fourth Floor of the Roundhouse but that continues to look elusive.
ODDS AND ENDS
ABQ Senator Linda Lopez may not end up empty-handed after being defeated in her bid to unseat Stewart as President Pro Tem at the caucus. Roundhouse analysts say because of her seniority she would be in line to take over the chairmanship of the Senate Rules Committee if Sen. Daniel Ivey Soto is removed because of the sex harassment charges against him. Lopez was majority whip until she decided to take on Stewart for Pro Tem and she was previously a longtime chair of Senate Rules.
(On Thursday, Ivey-Soto resigned as Rules Committee chairman).
Southern Dem congressional hopeful Gabe Vasquez comes with a new ad that takes on GOP Rep. Yvette Herrell's support of an abortion ban even in cases of rape, incest or when the woman's life is in danger. The ad is accurate but might be more powerful if it also had a female presence in addition to Vasquez's narration. . . Herrell is brining in Sen. Ted Cruz to campaign with her in Las Cruces Monday. She says its part of the Truth and Courage PAC Bus Tour.
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(c)NM POLITICS WITH JOE MONAHAN 2022
(c)NM POLITICS WITH JOE MONAHAN 2022