Blue America Endorses Antoinette Sedillo Lopez for Congress (NM-01)

New Mexico’s first congressional district— basically Albuquerque— is nice and blue and it’s not going to fall into Republican hands any time soon. Hillary beat Trump 51.6% to 35.1% and the PVI is D+7. The Congressmmeber, Michelle Lujan Grisham, is leaving hereat to run for governor. She’s garden variety Democrat, not terrible, but nothing to write him about. There’s an opportunity for a serious upgrade by electing Antoinette Sedillo Lopez, who we’ve talked about here before. I asked here to introduce herself with a guest post about the Economic Justice clinic she founded in Albuquerque, below.

Predatory Institutions-- Another Barrier to Overcome
-by Antoinette Sedillo Lopez
Candidate for Congress, NM-01

Unfettered financial institutions are a threat to working people and the poor. People in poverty are extremely vulnerable to economic exploitation. And this happens at all levels. Too many working people here in New Mexico live in poverty. Exploitation by predatory lenders has been on the rise here, and too many are trapped in a cycle of debt. As a clinical teacher and as an executive director of a domestic violence agency, I’ve met with many folks who were trapped in payday or title loan agreements, who had already paid two or three times the amount of debt but who were being hounded by a creditor.

I will never forget the woman who borrowed $300 for her daughter’s cheerleader uniform who had already paid over $1,000 dollars on the debt in payments of interest and fees as she kept renewing the loan. After two years of payments, she still owed $300 on the loan. She came into our Economic Justice clinic to ask about bankruptcy because this debt had put her behind on other debts she had, including  health care bills. This woman was technically “judgment proof” which means that she did not have enough income or assets so that a creditor could legally garnish her wages or take away her personal property. However, she was living in distress with the constant hounding by creditors and she wanted it to stop.

This story, out of the many stories of people who are exploited by excessive interest rates and fees charged by payday lenders, title lenders or other financial institutions, are why I am running for Congress. Stories of parents doing regular things in their daily lives but being exploited by a broken financial system have devastated people here in New Mexico.

The story of a mother buying her daughter a cheerleading uniform resonates with me because of how innocuous it is-- it’s merely a parent wanting her child a chance to participate. I know what it means to strive to achieve goals that seem beyond your reach. And, it starts in school. When you want to participate and to achieve. When you achieve one goal, it makes achieving the next one easier. Being a cheerleader builds your confidence. An aspect of social justice is that everyone should have access to opportunity and on an even playing field.   Economic justice means that our economic institutions should not exploit or punish people because of their economic status. Both of those principles were violated by what happened to our former client and her daughter. The cost of the cheerleader uniform was a barrier to this teenager’s aspiration. And, this was compounded by the exploitation of their economic status by the high fees and interest rates charged by a payday lender.

Under the current leadership of this country, basic ideas of social and economic justice are meaningless. The goal of this administration is to create a stronger oligarchy where the wealthy and privileged control our government and institutions, and they alone have opportunity to achieve. That is not who we are as a country. I am running for Congress as a strong progressive because I believe that our system is broken and that everywhere we look people are being exploited. Whether it be financial institutions, corporations not paying a living wage, or our skyrocketing healthcare costs, its everyday people and working people that have fallen victim to this broken system designed merely to exploit.

I have always fought for social and economic justice; I’ve fought to empower the voiceless. I fought the failures of our criminal justice system by creating an Innocence & Justice project here in New Mexico. And when New Mexico’s families were losing their homes, we instituted an Economic Justice clinic to fight back. I’m running for Congress because I believe we can do better by that mother looking to merely buy her daughter a cheerleading uniform. I’m running because I believe they deserve a fighting chance. With the the human and natural resources we have in this country, we can achieve social and economic justice for all. And, I along with other social justice warriors are fighting to create a government that works for everyone, and not just those at the top. We can and we will. Si se puede.

Taking Back The House Is #1 Priority But Winning Open Blue Seats For Progressive Reformers Is Also Crucial

People aren't thinking much about the Albuquerque congressional district, NM-01. It's a safely blue district and the incumbent, dull backbencher Michelle Lujan Grisham is stepping down to run for governor, leaving 8 or so candidates vying for the nomination to take on some Republican destined for defeat (either Michael Hendricks or Janice Arnold-Jones). The candidates I've dug up so far are lobbyist Annie Chavez, retired law professor Antoinette Sedillo Lopez, attorney Damian Lara, former U.S. Attorney Damon Martinez, former state Democratic Party Chairwoman Deb Haaland, physicist Dennis Dinge, Edgewood Mayor John Abrams and Albuquerque City Councilman Pat Davis.

Obama won the district both times, 60-39% against McCain and 55-40% against Romney. Even Hillary managed to win-- beating Trump 51.6% to 35.1%, his worst performance in the state. The PVI is D+7, unchanged from 2 years ago. The district is 49% Hispanic. DCCC chair Ben Ray Lujan, from the district just to the north, has pledged neutrality in the primary and, unlike in many districts, seems to be keeping his word so far.

The frontrunners in the money race are Antoinette Sedillo Lopez ($330,249.14), Deb Haaland ($262,098.06) and Damon Martinez ($211,001.49) who have all had strong fundraising quarters. Superficially all three seem to be qualified in their own ways, two of them come to the race with significant baggage.

Deb Haaland, as state party chair, has a checkered history with the local progressive base. As party chair last year, she committed to administering a straw poll at the state convention, only to reverse that decision and pull the straw poll at the last minute when she saw it would be a big win for Bernie. This decision infuriated local progressives, who saw it as a betrayal and an attempt to suppress Bernie support during last year's primaries. Needless to say, the decision resulted in a disaffected progressive base, and led to calls for her to step down as chair. An ardent Clinton supporter, her machinations led to her being called the Debbie Wassermann Schultz of New Mexico. Bernie went on to win Bernalillo County 38,247 (50.9%) to 36,937 (49.1%) despite Holland's bias and interference.

Former US. Attorney Damon Martinez has also recently gotten in to some hot water over allegations of racial bias in an ATF sting operation that took place during his tenure. In a recent interview with NM In Depth, a local journalist pressed him on the issue, and the former U.S. Attorney offered few answers on the allegations. Their analysis shows some significant over-representation in arrests made by communities of color. Earlier this summer, Martinez was also called out by the Santa Fe New Mexican for his refusal to prosecute bad cops. I suspect that Martinez will continue to have to answer questions surrounding his tenure as U.S. Attorney.

We'll be watching as the race continues to develop, but it does seem that at least some of the leading candidates in the race offer the Republicans needless and dangerous openings to exploit in the general. Meanwhile, it's worth mentioning that Antoinette Sedillo Lopez has been endorsed by New Mexico's former Attorney General Attorney General Patricia Madrid, local progressive icon Eric Griego and by national progressives Raul Grijalva, chairman of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, Ruben Gallego (D-AZ) and Jamie Raskin (D-MD).

Batch Of Good Candidates Running For The Open Albuquerque Congressional Seat

Michelle Lujan Grisham was been a dull backbencher in Congress since she was elected to the Albuquerque seat (NM-01) in 2012. The district includes almost all of Albuquerque and almost all of Bernalillo County, as well all of rural Torrance county and small bits of Sandoval, Santa Fe and Valencia counties. The district in nearly half Hispanic and has turned safely blue. Obama beat McCain there 60-39% and then beat Romney 55-40%. Hillary beat Señor Trumpanzee 51.6% to 35.1%. Last year's primary was very close but Bernie edged Hillary because of his one point lead in Albuquerque.

Lujan Grisham is running for governor so the House seat is open. Steady with a PVI of D+7, the race has attracted at least 8 Democratic contenders. It looks like all of them or almost all of them are trying to claim the progressive mantle. Albuquerque City Councilman Pat Davis, who is openly gay, has a progressive history in local politics. Former state Democratic Party chair Deb Haaland seems to be a progressive as well-- and has been endorsed by Ro Khanna-- and she says she will sign on as a cosponsor of John Conyers' H.R. 676 (Medicare-for-All) if she's elected. Damian Lara doesn't mention Medicare-For-All, just protecting Obamacare. Same with Annie Chavez. Dennis Dinge seems to be calling for the states to decide what kind of healthcare they want, the conservative position. A couple others-- Damon Martinez and John Abrams have non-functional websites. The most impressive candidate as far as I can tell is Antoinette Sedillo Lopez. The first line on her issues page is "I support a ‘Medicare for All’ plan and will co-sponsor and champion legislation that truly makes healthcare universally accessible to all."

Sedillo Lopez has been endorsed by 5 dependable progressive signifiers: Raul Grijalva, Ruben Gallego, Jamie Raskin, Maryland State Delegate Joseline Peña-Melnyk and former state Senator Eric Griego, who said she will be the Latina Elizabeth Warren when she gets to Washington. People who know her expect to see another former progressive law professor-- like Raskin and Warren-- inspiring and leading in Congress. Raul Grijalva: "Antoinette will be an ally in the fight for working people, and I am proud to support her. Whether it's protecting DREAMers from deportations or fighting for environmental justice, I know that Antoinette stands for true progressive values."

I think we found a live one-- and we'll be getting to know more about her in coming weeks and report back. (Meanwhile, the Republicans are running some guy named Michael Hendricks.) The only candidates who have raised any significant money so far are Sedillo Lopez ($201,422), Debra Haaland ($151,655) Damian Lara ($87,000-- mostly self-funded) and Pat Davis ($68,211).