Who was one Albuquerque homeowner trying to scare off with his shotgun? The Senate killed the domestic partnership bill, but what would it have done? What did legislators find at the Governor’s Office after passing the budget? New Mexico Democrats are fudging which rules to speed up ballot counting? 1) Police say a man opened his front door with a sawed-off shotgun and fired two shots in the air because: a. Burglars were breaking in.b. His neighbor’s dogs were in his yard.c. Someone was stealing his car. d. Three young boys tried to sell him candy. 2) The state’s Senate Judiciary Committee blocked a domestic partnership bill that would have: a. Allowed gay marriage in New Mexicob. Given certain unmarried couples the same rights as married couplesc. Let immigrants become citizens after being married only six monthsd. Lowered the age at which a person can get married to 15 3) The state Legislature passed the budget. When legislators showed up at the Governor’s Office to deliver it, they found: a. Nothing—the office was emptyb. A man with a sawed-off shotgun c. Former President Bill Clinton, looking a little worse for wear after that Super Bowl partyd. A rowdy group of protesters 4) To force the caucus count to move along more quickly, the New Mexico Democratic Party is flubbing rules regarding: a. Voter signatures on provisional ballotsb. Makeshift ballotsc. Inconsistencies between the number of voters who signed in and the number of votes castd. All of the above
Answer Me This
ANSWERS 1) D. Three middle-schoolers were selling candy door-to-door last week for a fundraiser. Police say the homeowner answered the door with a sawed-off shotgun and fired shots into the air. The boys ran home. Police took the man’s gun and charged him with assault with a deadly weapon. 2) B. The bill would have given some unmarried couples—heterosexual and homosexual—the same rights as married couples, such as medical leave to care for a partner, the authority to make end-of-life decisions, property rights, pension, inheritance, etc. The measure, House Bill 9 sponsored by Rep. Mimi Stewart, passed the House narrowly, but was tabled in the Senate. Gov. Bill Richardson chided the Senate committee that stalled the bill. The Albuquerque contingent was split, with Sens. Kent Cravens and William Payne opposing the measure, and Sens. Cisco McSorley and Linda Lopez voting in its favor.3) A. The office was empty, so Lt. Gov. Diane Denish took the bills, and Richardson’s people got angry. Why does this matter? If bills are presented to the governor before the last three days of the session, Richardson has to act on them with a signature or a veto before the session is over.If he delays accepting them, he’ll leave legislators without much time to override a veto. 4) D. The deal between the NM Dems and the Clinton and Obama campaigns allows the party to break from the usual guidelines. If the state had run the election, some of this rule breaking would be considered illegal.
