The Eastern New Mexico News - Serving Clovis, Portales and the Surrounding Communities

New Mexico’s unpaid, part-time Legislature has 15 members who are attorneys, including both the speaker of the House and the majority leader of the Senate. There are only two medical doctors, and one of them is retired. Perhaps... — Updated 3/25/2023

Change at the New Mexico Legislature usually comes in small steps taken over a long period of time. That’s especially true with gun laws. The last significant changes came in 2019 with a bill to expand background checks and in 20... — Updated 3/4/2023

During the 2013 session of the New Mexico Legislature, Rep. Mary Helen Garcia introduced House Memorial 79, “celebrating the adventurous life of former State Rep. J. Paul Taylor.” I was working in Santa Fe covering the Legislat... — Updated 2/25/2023

Term limits can be incredibly liberating, as former Republican Gov. Gary Johnson demonstrated when he professed his love for marijuana shortly after winning reelection in 1998. Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham has the twin advantages... — Updated 2/14/2023

Did they ever pry that gun away from Charlton Heston, or did they just bury him with it? Inspired by Heston, U.S. Rep. Ronny Jackson, R-Texas, made a similar vow recently, though it will be tougher to bury him with the object of... — Updated 1/28/2023

I was walking along a public sidewalk the other day when a woman’s voice came from a nearby house informing me that I was being recorded. So, I belted out a medley of Broadway show tunes. There was once a time when constant... — Updated 1/21/2023

The last time the New Mexico State University Board of Regents set out to pick a new leader, after having unceremoniously ridded themselves of Garrey Carruthers, they had a hard time picking between the two finalists for the job.... — Updated 1/10/2023

Attorneys seeking to overturn the will of voters who approved a constitutional amendment in 2020 reforming the state Public Regulation Commission had to make two conflicting arguments. The first was that voters weren’t bright... — Updated 12/17/2022

In June 2012, I succumbed to the hype and joined with millions of others to watch Nik Wallenda attempt to cross over Niagara Falls on a high wire. A few minutes into the walk I realized that, because so much of the promotion had... — Updated 12/10/2022

In a year of national political turmoil and upheaval, it proved to be a status quo election in New Mexico. The only real changes came as a result of redistricting, most notably in the 2nd Congressional District. The victory by Gabe... — Updated 12/3/2022

During an interview for a podcast before the election, I referred to the elusive youth vote as “fool’s gold.” Young voters are too busy raising their families and starting their careers, I said. They aren’t as invested in... — Updated 11/26/2022

If Yvette Herrell wins re-election, will that disprove the lawsuit filed by the Republican Party now pending in the state Supreme Court alleging gerrymandering? Earlier this month, the Supreme Court moved to take control of the... — Updated 11/5/2022

New Mexico voters have proven eager in past elections to change our antiquated state constitution every time they get the opportunity. There have been 10 proposed constitutional amendments on the ballot in the last four elections,... — Updated 10/29/2022

I was disappointed to learn that filmmakers plan to resume production on “Rust,” and urge state regulators to keep a much closer eye on that set this time. I can’t imagine why anybody would want to see the film now, other... — Updated 10/25/2022

During the next few weeks, voters will get their first chance to weigh in on the recent rulings by our new Supreme Court, with its 6-3 conservative majority. The unelected and unaccountable justices are not likely to notice or... — Updated 10/15/2022

Every two years, those running for office tell us this will be the most important election of our lives, and I always roll my eyes and mumble, maybe for you. This year’s election, which starts with early voting on Tuesday, is... — Updated 10/8/2022

The 14th Amendment, passed in 1868, was one of three changes made to the Constitution during the Reconstruction Era designed to ensure that Southern states didn’t slip back into their old ways. The most controversial section th... — Updated 9/24/2022

The state Supreme Court has come out against proposed reform to the bail system, setting up a potential clash with Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham if she is re-elected in November. During a public safety press conference in January,... — Updated 9/17/2022

My parents started a college fund for me when I was still in my mother’s womb. When I was a little kid, anytime I got money in a birthday or Christmas card, some would go into the college fund. When I graduated from high... — Updated 9/10/2022

The abandoned seed barn off West Amador Avenue in Las Cruces has stood for decades as a giant monument to lost industry. The city has had big plans in the past to breathe new life into the old structure. In 2015 it was going to be... — Updated 9/3/2022

Democrats in the state Legislature went to a lot of trouble to gerrymander the 2nd Congressional District, and now their colleagues in Washington, D.C., are squandering it. After rejecting all of the proposed maps of an... — Updated 8/20/2022

Our nation’s efforts to secure the release of WNBA star Brittney Griner from Russian prison demonstrate how conflicted we are on the enforcement of cannabis laws. It was announced recently that the United States has agreed to... — Updated 8/13/2022

“Will you still need me; will you still feed me; when I’m 64?” I was 8 years old when the Beatles released that song in 1967, and it seemed quite probable to me then that I would need help feeding myself by the time I hit... — Updated 8/6/2022

State Rep. Rebecca Dow of Truth or Consequences, who finished second in a five-person race for governor in the Republican primary election in June, has agreed to pay a $500 civil penalty to settle a bitter dispute with the State... — Updated 7/30/2022

I doubt if there is any law on the books that is more flagrantly and routinely violated every year by otherwise law-abiding residents of our state than city restrictions on fireworks. Under the “Safe and Sane” fireworks law,... — Updated 7/9/2022