For Immediate Release Contact: Scott Forrester

November 21, 2011 505-934-5681

What Does $70k Buy You In The Martinez Administration?

A Rigged Bid for the Abq Downs Contract and Millions of $ for Contributors

Albuquerque, NM - Today New Mexico State Fair commissioners met and approved a lease agreement with the Downs of Albuquerque to build a casino at the State Fair grounds. This same group of folks has given over $70,000.00 to the Governors' campaign.

Today's meeting was defined as a "special session/ workshop" where no vote was to occur. Expo manager Dan Mourning - - who was appointed by Susana Martinez - made sure language was added last week to so a vote could take place, even though it was not expected and two state fair commissioners even stated they did not believe this was the intent of today's meeting.

Below is a statement from Scott Forrester, Executive Director of the DPNM:

"Running for Governor, Susana Martinez never let a day or a public appearance go by without endlessly decrying what she saw as pay-to-play in Santa Fe. Now, just 11 months in, Susana Martinez is already engaging in exactly the same behavior she accused the former administration of, and it's resulted in the first pay-to-play scandal of her administration.

The case is cut and dry: she received a $70,000.00 check and the contributors received a multi-million dollar state contract when no one was expecting a vote." You tell me how she can spin that into anything other than what it is: PAY-TO-PLAY."

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Background: Please see Joe Monahan's article this morning for a better picture of the relationships at the Downs:

DIRTY DEALING AT DOWNS?
Tom Tinnin

A Senior Alligator has a simple summation of the questionable activities going on over the awarding of a new racino and a 25 year lease to the Downs at ABQ at the NM Expo. He notes this newspaper report and wonders: "Problems ahead?" First, the news:

As chairman of the State Fair Commission from 1997 through 2002, Albuquerque businessman Tom Tinnin was passionate about the fair. Tinnin apparently hasn’t lost that fire. Upset with the Martinez administration’s handling of a new lease for the racetrack and casino at the state fairgrounds, Tinnin resigned his seat on the state Board of Finance. The resignation is just the latest fallout from the administration’s troubled attempt to award a new lease, and Tinnin’s resignation is further damage to the credibility of the process.

Governor Martinez decried "pay to play" during her campaign. The dicey Downs deal is now raising that question on her watch. Some of the players:

GOP National Committeeman and Republican attorney Pat Rogers is now representing the Downs. Former ABQ Public Safety Director and GOP Bernalillo County Sheriff Darren White landed a consulting agreement with the Downs when he was forced to resign from the city. He cut campaign commercials for Martinez. Dan Mourning, a former ABQ restaurant manger and close friend of White's, manages the state fairgrounds upon which the Downs is located.

And, as always, lurking in the background and connected to all the players is Jay McCleskey, the Guv's powerful political consultant as well as Republican activist and attorney Mickey Barnett. In addition, the three members of the panel appointed to evaluate proposals for a new racino at the Fairgrounds and a 25 year lease are all tapped in Republicans:

Gov. Martinez appointed three people to evaluate the confidential proposals and make a recommendation to fair general manager Mourning, a Martinez appointee... The three appointees are Chuck Gara, director of the Property Control Division of the state General Services Department; John A. Garcia, director of the city of Albuquerque’s Economic Development Department; and Garrett Hennessy, former intergovernmental affairs liaison for Mayor Richard Berry....

Top sources say there was a move to have a larger panel evaluate the proposals that would have included members not so tightly connected with the administration, but it didn't happen.

Laguna Development corporation--which runs an Indian casino--was the only other bidder to build a new racino, but the request for proposals was only out there for a month. The three member panel recommended to the fair commission that the Downs get the deal.

The extremely tight timeline for putting in a proposal to build a racino served to exclude bidders, especially for those from out of state, say sources following the action. That's where the concern about the deal being wired for the Downs comes in.

RED FLAGS FOR GUV

All of this and more has given Tom Tinnin pause. He's a highly respected businessman and longtime player in the state GOP whose name has often been floated as a possible party chair. And the State Fair Commission--all of whom are not Martinez appointments--are worried enough that they have delayed until December a final decision on giving the Downs permission to replace the current dilapidated racino.

Tinnin's resignation and the trepidation over this deal at the commission are major red flags for this new Governor who may be unaware of the long ties among the players involved. This deal signals the return of what we've often referred to over the years as the lobbying/consulting wing of the GOP that has warred with other factions. It started when the GOP lobbyists-consultants committed heresy by joining with GOP Governor Gary Johnson in supporting the legalization of drugs and picking up lucrative contracts as a result. That wing still operates, as illustrated by the machinations over this racino. It's more evidence that this new Governor needs to grab the reins and call on competing political and legal advice to keep her on the straight and narrow. In other words, what does Tom Tinnin know that this Governor should know?

For Immediate Release Contact: Scott Forrester

November 8, 2011 505-923-5681

Governor Martinez For Pay-to-Play and Reaps Reward of $70,000 Donor

Disregards "Bold Change" Promised To New Mexicans

Albuquerque, NM - Today's ABQ Journal digs deeper into the shady dealings around the proposed Casino at the State Fairgrounds, finding Governor Martinez and shadow governor Jay Mcleskey awarding the lucrative NM Downs contract to a donor who gave her $70,000!

Below is a statement from DPNM Executive Director Scott Forrester:

"While running for Governor, then-candidate Martinez led the charge on getting rid of pay-to-play in Santa Fe, but it turns out the Governor just wanted a piece of the action. This is pay-to-play at its worst. The insider dealing involved goes back years, and there is much more than meets the eye.”

"Defined Fitness - where Traci Moore Wolf is President - used to have Jay McCleskey on the payroll and lists Paul Blanchard as a part-owner. But Traci is also the Vice President at the Downs (also co-owned by Blanchard). Every step in the contract process was directly controlled by the Governor and her minions. To even pretend to be unbiased is completely ridiculous."

"This contract should be revoked and the RFP process re-opened for a truly open and transparent process. To ignore such an obvious conflict of interest is an ethical failing of massive scale, and an blatant flip-flop from what was promised to New Mexicans when running for Governor. The Governor's actions are politics as usual in New Mexico and not the "Bold Change” promised to New Mexicans."

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See Journal article below and background on Susana's stances on pay-to-play in Government when running for Governor in 09:

Downs Interests Gave Gov. $70,000
Abq Journal – 11/8/2011 - http://www.abqjournal.com/main/2011/11/08/news/downs-interests-gave-gov-...
By Charles D. Brunt and Sean Olson

People connected to the Downs at Albuquerque ponied up at least $70,000 to Gov. Susana Martinez’s campaign while competitor Laguna Development Corp. gave $1,000, according to campaign finance reports filed with the New Mexico Secretary of State’s Office.
People with ownership interest in the Downs also gave more than $50,000 to Martinez’s general election opponent, Democrat Diane Denish, since 2006.
The Downs and Laguna Development, the tribal-owned company that operates Route 66 and Dancing Eagle casinos west of Albuquerque, were the only two businesses that submitted bids to build a new multimillion-dollar casino and sign a 25-year lease with Expo New Mexico, home to the racino and the New Mexico State Fair.
Martinez spokesman Scott Darnell said the lease was put out to a competitive bid and campaign donations had nothing to do with any decisions regarding the Downs.
“The Governor makes decisions based on merit, as is evidenced by her appointment of an independent to the (Public Regulation Commission) and the fact that she has, at times, placed Denish contributors into key roles in her administration,” Darnell said in an email.
After reviewing the proposals, a three-member evaluation committee appointed by Martinez recommended that interim Expo general manager Dan Mourning — also a Martinez appointee — negotiate a contract with the Downs.
The governor-appointed State Fair Commission is set for an up-or-down vote Wednesday on whether to give the Downs, which has leased the 93-acre racino tract at Expo since 1985, another 25-year lease as part of the new deal.
Bill Windham, a Louisiana businessman and part owner of the Downs, gave Martinez’s gubernatorial campaign $15,000.
Windham and fellow Louisianan John S. Turner, who also owns part of the Downs, each owns about 25 percent of SunRay Park, a racino between Bloomfield and Farmington.
SunRay Gaming, which operates SunRay Park, gave Martinez’s campaign $45,000 in three contributions between June 2010 and January 2011.
Traci Moore Wolf, who became vice president of the Downs in May after Windham replaced then-majority owner Paul Blanchard as president, contributed $10,000 to the Martinez campaign.
Wolf also is president of Defined Fitness, a chain of gyms owned in part by Blanchard.
Blanchard still retains some ownership in the Downs, but Pat J. Rogers, an attorney representing the Downs in its negotiations with Mourning, has declined to say what percentage of the racino Blanchard, Windham and Turner currently own.
Prior to Windham becoming president, Blanchard owned 50 percent, and Windham and Turner owned 25 percent each. Turner remains the Downs’ secretary/treasurer.
Windham and Turner also contributed a combined $12,000 to Martinez’s challenger, Democrat Diane Denish, according to the Secretary of State’s office.
Between 2006 and 2010, SunRay Gaming gave Denish’s gubernatorial campaign $28,000, and the Downs at Albuquerque gave Denish $24,000 during that period. Blanchard, a close political ally of former Gov. Bill Richardson, donated $5,000 to the New Mexico Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee last year, according to the Secretary of State’s Office.
The State Fair Commission meets at 9 a.m. Wednesday at the UNM Continuing Education Center Auditorium, 1634 University NE.
The Downs was recently criticized in a Legislative Finance Committee audit for problems blamed in part on poor oversight by Expo officials. Among the criticisms was that the Downs owed Expo hundreds of thousands of dollars in racing revenues and increases in its $2 million annual lease payments that were required when the Legislature approved two one-year lease extensions.
Mourning said the Downs paid $215,000 it owed for race meet revenues last week, and plans to pay $420,000 it owes in lease increases on or before the end of the current lease, which he said expires Jan. 11.
According to a summary of the new lease, the Downs agreed to increase its lease payments from the current $2 million to $2.75 million beginning in 2014. Laguna Development had offered to pay $3 million by that year.
The Downs also has agreed to pay Expo additional revenues based on its “net win,” the amount of money wagered on slot machines less payouts and approved regulatory fees.
The Downs also agreed to: drop nearly $2 million in unspecified claims it says is owed by Expo; pay for all maintenance of the leased property, an expense currently paid by Expo; pay all electric bills on the leased property; pay $300,000 per year in cooperative advertising that cannot be used to “offset” lease payments; sponsor and pay rent for 12 events a year at Tingley Coliseum and four events per year at the horse arena; conduct the 17-day live horse racing during the State Fair; and make a number of specified capital improvements.
— This article appeared on page C1 of the Albuquerque Journal

BACKGROUND:

Susana on Pay-to-Play: People want to know what the rules are and if you have pay to play then it depends who your with, not what you bring to the table. It depends on what you are willing to pay and not what your willing to do to provide to New Mexicans as far as jobs are concerned. So corruption is number one and the removal of every aspect of our government. [54 Candidate Forum, Roswell, 19:00, 4/30/10]

Martinez: Running For Governor Because Tired Of Corruption. In a September 2009 op-ed, Martinez wrote, “One of the main reasons I have decided to seek New Mexico’s governorship is because I, along with so many of you, am sick and tired of reading about scandal after scandal and instance after instance of corruption. As someone charged with not just upholding the law – but also enforcing it – I feel like the bad actors in state government have left a stain on our great state and completely lost sight of their responsibilities.” [Martinez op-ed, Heath Haussamen on New Mexico Politics, 9/9/09]

Martinez Attacked Denish – “Public Will Have To Weigh Her Self-Serving Campaign Rhetoric” Against “Unethical Behavior Of The Richardson/Denish Administration.” In September 2009, Martinez wrote, “Now that she is running for governor, Denish is singing a different tune and claiming to be a champion of ethics reform. The public will have to weigh her self-serving campaign rhetoric against the overwhelming evidence of unethical behavior of the Richardson/Denish administration and determine whether her newfound positions are borne out of political convenience or true conviction. I look forward to having that debate. [Martinez op-ed, Heath Haussamen on New Mexico Politics, 9/9/09]

(ALBUQUERQUE) – Nearly one month into her term as governor and Susana Martinez has yet to fulfill a key transparency promise: providing comprehensive financial disclosure statements for all her appointees. 

“I applaud Susana Martinez’s call for more government transparency, but like many New Mexicans, I am waiting to see the rhetoric actually turn into action,” said Democratic Party Executive Director Scott Forrester. “Promises matter, and I would think this promise should be fairly easy to fulfill.” 

The following is excerpted from a Martinez commentary on transparency posted on NMPolitics.net in which she pledged to post financial disclosure statements for appointees on the internet: 

“In a Martinez Administration, everyone would be held to account, which is why I have a detailed plan to eliminate the corruption. As I proposed earlier this year, all appointments in my administration would be subject to comprehensive financial disclosure statements, which would be posted online for all to see.” [Only bold change will end rampant abuse in state government, 9/15/10, Susana Martinez, NMPolitics.net] 

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