Free Republic

The “emergency” special session called by Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham ended this week with all five Democrat-sponsored bills passed, some on party-line votes. However, the real headline was the deep partisan divide and the governor’s furious reaction to Republicans for opposing her vaccine legislation. The two-day session, which cost taxpayers an estimated $250,000, was ostensibly meant to offset federal funding cuts. But much of the time was consumed by heated exchanges over decorum and the content of the Democrats’ agenda, which Republicans said was drafted in secret and offered little room for participation. House Minority Leader Gail Armstrong (R-Magdalena) told...

Two days before lawmakers gather for a special session on Medicaid, Republican senators in New Mexico are urging their colleagues to confront what they say is an even more urgent crisis: the state’s broken medical malpractice system. At a forum on Monday in Bernalillo, the Senate GOP’s five-member “Medical Malpractice Legislative Task Force” heard from doctors, patients, and state officials about the crushing burden malpractice costs have placed on New Mexico’s health care system. The message was clear: without reform, doctors will continue fleeing the state, leaving patients without critical care. Republicans blasted Democratic leaders and Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham...

A Navajo Nation man charged by federal prosecutors with running a vast illegal cannabis cultivation and distribution ring pleaded guilty Tuesday to 15 felony crimes and faces up to life in prison, the U.S. Attorney’s Office announced. Dineh Benally, 48, admitted in his federal plea agreement that he operated more than 30 farms covering some 400 acres on land obtained from Navajo Nation members. He also admitted hiring illegal Chinese workers to grow cannabis on his farms. Benally entered the plea on Tuesday in U.S. District Court in Albuquerque before U.S. Magistrate Judge John F. Robbenhaar. Benally also admitted that...

New Mexico’s National Guard Adjutant General announced Monday that Guardsmen will soon be deployed to Española, a town of roughly 10,000 people in northern New Mexico whose leaders recently asked for state help dealing with a crime, drug and housing crisis. Española will be the second New Mexico city to receive National Guard troops this year. Albuquerque, the state’s biggest city, has seen a monthslong troop deployment in support of the Albuquerque Police Department. Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham authorized the deployments to both cities in emergency orders that cite rising crime and short-staffed law enforcement agencies. The governor’s Aug. 13...

SANTA FE — New Mexico is planning a sequel to its “Breaking Bad”-themed anti-littering campaign. Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham’s office announced Monday a new Spanish-language installment of the campaign featuring the Salamanca brothers will be released this week. The Salamancas, twin brothers referred to on the show as The Cousins, are prolific hitmen for a drug cartel in “Breaking Bad,” which was filmed in New Mexico and generated a cult following over its five seasons before ending in 2013. Real-life brothers Daniel and Luis Moncada, who play the twin brothers on the TV show, teamed up with “Breaking Bad” producer...

TAOS — The sidewalks along the Rio Grande Gorge Bridge are usually thronged with tourists every day of the week. Sightseers peer over the bridge’s 4-foot tall railings into the viridescent water coursing through the canyon 600 feet below. Couples and families stop to take selfies against some of the most dramatic backdrops New Mexico has to offer. But on Monday, the bridge was conspicuously empty — save for drivers thrumming across the 1,280-foot span, where a bundle of flowers and dozens of rosaries along the metal railings memorialized a local teen’s suspected suicide over the weekend. It is the...

Starting November 1, Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham plans to make New Mexico the first state in the nation to provide no-cost child care to every family, regardless of income. That means even millionaires’ children will be entitled to “free” (taxpayer-funded) daycare — all at the expense of hardworking taxpayers. At a press conference in Santa Fe, the governor boasted that so-called “universal child care” is the “backbone” of her plan to support families. “There are so many people across the country that say [universal child care is] impossible — not impossible,” Lujan Grisham said, adding that she believes subsidizing care...

In the wake of the assassination of Charlie Kirk, founder of Turning Point USA, a doctor in Albuquerque has drawn national attention and condemnation for social media posts in which he appeared to celebrate the violence. Dr. John R. Vigil, identified in his public profile as board-certified in Addiction Medicine (not Virgil), a Fellow of the American Society of Addiction Medicine, a Master Addiction Counselor, and associated with the University of New Mexico School of Medicine and JRV Medical Group, posted two messages on Facebook following Kirk’s death. In one, he reportedly wrote: “If you’re looking for sympathy from me...

Key Points:Gov. Spencer Cox called social media “a cancer on our society,” urging people to disconnect. Cox said videos of violent incidents like the murder of Charlie Kirk are harmful for viewers. A UK survey found 70% of teenagers have encountered real-life violence online. Announcing that a suspect in the Charlie Kirk murder is in custody Friday morning, Utah Gov. Spencer Cox spoke earnestly about what he called “moral clarity,” “internet fury” and the need to disconnect from social media and devices and to connect instead with one another. He called social media “a cancer on our society right now,”...

New Mexico’s clean energy and environmental advocates are recoiling from energy policy shifts set in motion by the Trump administration this week, including the possible rollback of a major scientific finding about climate change and the delay of rules regulating oil and gas emissions. For a big oil- and gas-producing state like New Mexico, the consequences could be far-reaching, state officials say. But Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham’s administration is sticking to its own clean energy policies, and a state board in the coming weeks will hold a hearing to consider the adoption of a clean fuels rule. “ The proposal...

Radical leftist agitators are planning a series of coordinated demonstrations across New Mexico on June 14, targeting President Donald Trump with what they’re branding as “No Kings” protests. But what organizers portray as “peaceful protests” have all the hallmarks of the kind of far-left mob activity that has already sparked violent insurrections in places like Los Angeles, where criminal aliens and anarchists recently clashed with federal law enforcement officers. The so-called “50501 Movement”—standing for 50 protests, 50 states, one movement—has aligned with fringe progressive groups to launch what they claim is a “nationwide day of defiance” against Trump’s leadership, coinciding...

Sandia Peak Tram partnered with the city and Albuquerque Police Department to raise money for a K-9 training facility dedicated to Rebel, a police dog shot and killed by officers during an armed confrontation with a suspect last week. Starting Monday, the tram will donate $1 from each ticket sold to APD’s K-9 Unit, Sandia Peak Tramway President Ben Abruzzo announced at a Friday news conference. The “Rides for Rebel” fundraiser will end June 29. The facility will be named for Rebel, an 8-year-old Belgian Malinois who was shot in the face by officers during a confrontation with Jorge Dominguez...

A dairy farmer says his livelihood was upended Tuesday when federal agents raided his operation in Lovington and arrested nearly a dozen workers. Isaak Bos said masked Homeland Security Investigations agents armed with rifles swept onto the property without warning, brushing past signs asking visitors to check in as a protective measure against H5 bird flu. Bos said the surprise raid followed an audit of the dairy’s employment records a few months ago. The dairy was not accused of wrongdoing, but Bos said he was required to fire 24 employees on the spot Tuesday, as well as the 11 who...

Officer Timothy Ontiveros of the Bloomfield Police Department has died from injuries sustained during a violent encounter earlier in the week. The incident occurred during a traffic stop, where Ontiveros was shot in the neck and shoulder by 58-year-old Dennis Armenta. A fellow officer returned fire, fatally shooting Armenta. Ontiveros was transported to the University of New Mexico Hospital following the shooting, where he underwent extensive treatment. Despite the efforts of medical staff and support from his fellow officers, Ontiveros succumbed to his injuries on Sunday. “We’re really sad and disheartened on the current events that happened with Officer Ontiveros’s...

Snobby, entitled wealthy liberals from all over the country have turned Santa Fe, New Mexico into their own playground. So we went for three days to see how that is impacting their community.

A recent article by the far-left outlet NPR highlights a growing trend of liberal Texans fleeing the Lone Star State for New Mexico — a move applauded by progressive politicians and activists hoping to transform the rural, resource-rich state into a safe haven for far-left policies. According to NPR, over 34,000 Texans relocated to New Mexico between 2022 and 2023, more than from any other state. Many cited Texas’ conservative laws protecting unborn life, religious freedom, and children from radical gender ideology as reasons for their departure. The report framed these policies as “oppressive,” while praising New Mexico’s left-wing agenda....

A sprawling fentanyl trafficking network stretching from Albuquerque to Salem, Oregon, has been shattered by federal authorities in what’s being called one of the largest operations of its kind in U.S. history. The takedown, made public this week, culminated in a massive sweep across New Mexico, Arizona, Nevada, Utah, and Oregon. Federal agents with the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration seized staggering amounts of contraband: over 4 million fentanyl pills, $4.4 million in cash, 79 pounds of meth, along with heroin, cocaine, and more than 41 firearms, according to records from the U.S. District Court in Albuquerque. At the helm of...

New Mexico Democrat Rep. Gabe Vasquez is facing sharp criticism after touting his vote against the Laken Riley Act and attacking President Donald Trump’s immigration policies during an April 16 town hall event. At the meeting, Vasquez proudly announced his opposition to the legislation, which was signed into law by Trump on January 29. “I did. I voted against [the bill],” Vasquez declared to cheers from the audience. He added, “Because due process is a fundamental part of who we are as Americans,” attempting to frame his opposition as a defense of constitutional rights — despite the clear public safety...

Federal authorities have charged 40-year-old Jamison Wagner of Albuquerque with two counts of arson tied to politically charged firebombing attacks on both a Tesla showroom and the Republican Party of New Mexico headquarters, labeling the incidents as acts of domestic terrorism. Wagner, a self-styled radical, was arrested on April 12 following an extensive federal investigation involving the FBI, ATF, Albuquerque Police, and other law enforcement agencies. According to a profile he has on “500 Queer Scientists,” he describes himself as “queer and I am an electrical engineer.” It has been independently verified through voter registration records that Wagner is a...

In a dramatic and unmistakably vindictive move, Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham unleashed a political tantrum on Friday, vetoing a slate of bills—most notably Senate Bill 315, which would have designated the tortilla as New Mexico’s official state bread. The veto wasn’t about bread, though—it was about revenge. The governor’s veto message dripped with frustration as she lashed out at the Legislature, blaming Democratic leadership in both chambers for failing to move forward with her policy priorities. Instead of working collaboratively or responsibly, the governor torched legislation ranging from cultural designations to tax relief and public safety funding—effectively using her veto...