JIM HIGHTOWER IN SANTA FE

As published in The Santa Fe New Mexican
Aug. 18, 2004

Populist agitator, author and radio personality Jim Hightower backed Ralph Nader for president four years ago. But on Wednesday he told a Santa Fe audience that he's supporting Democrat John Kerry this year.

"Ralph Nader is a longtime personal friend of mine," Hightower said. "I love the man. But I do not support him for president."

Referring to the Bush administration, Hightower said, "These people are not only nuts, they're dangerous. We've got to unite and get him out."

Hightower, wearing his trademark straw cowboy hat, spoke before about 200 people at a luncheon at the Eldorado Hotel. The event was sponsored by KSFR, Santa Fe Public Radio.

A former Texas state commissioner of agriculture, Hightower is known for his down-home style. He didn't disappoint his audience Wednesday as he sprinkled his speech with phrases like, "This makes me happier than a hog in a fresh wallow," and wisdom such as "Even a dead fish can go with the flow."

The luncheon doubled as a book-signing for Hightower, who sold and autographed several copies of his latest work, Let's Stop Beating Around the Bush.

Referring to himself as "an itinerant book hustler," Hightower said his 57-city book tour is designed to "spread the populist gospel. I want to raise some issues, raise some hope and raise some hell along the way."

Said Hightower, "You can fight the gods and still have fun."

Despite his decision not to support Nader this year, Hightower was critical of efforts by some Democrats to curtail Nader's campaign.Democrats in several states have challenged the Nader organization's attempts to get a place on the ballot.

In New Mexico, Democrats have been vocal in pointing out that the Nader campaign hired a Republican-owned organization to gather petition signatures. Nader must have more than 14,000 signatures by Sept. 7 to get on the ballot in New Mexico.

"Efforts by Democrats - some Democrats - to assail the Nader campaign are destructive," Hightower said. "Don't worry about Ralph. Push ahead."

Even though Hightower wants Kerry to win in November, he said "Beating Bush is a progressive victory. It's an essential step, but it just gets us back to square one. We're going to have to be in the face of the Kerry Edwards administration. Our fight is not for Kerry. Our fight is to take back this nation."

He described Kerry as "the lesser of two elites." But he added, "Franklin Roosevelt was an elite. It's certainly possible to rise above your class.

"Kerry will only be as good as we make him," Hightower said. "We'll cheer at his inauguration, but the next day we'll be across the street at LaFayette Park saying, 'Where's that health care for everyone?' "

Hightower said it's up to citizens to take action in their own communities and not wait for leaders to do it for them.

"It's no longer enough to be progressive. We've got to be aggressive," he said. "The powers that be are regressive. They're stealing faster than a hog eats supper."

In his travels, Hightower said, "I see a very different America than the one they show you in the media. People are not cowering in fear, not marching in lockstep with the commander in chief and not rolling over for corporate interests."

He praised Santa Fe for being one of several cities to pass its own Living Wage Ordinance instead of waiting for the federal government to raise the minimum wage by $1.

He also praised communities that have "stood up to Wal-Mart" by thwarting the giant discount store's plans for new stores.

"People are asking the right question - 'Whose town is it?' " Hightower said.

ROUNDHOUSE ROUND-UP: INTRODUCING THE GOV

As published in The Santa Fe New Mexican
August 19, 2004

It used to be that Gov. Bill Richardson had to give reporters jobs in his administration before they started singing the governor's praises in public.

But after last week, that doesn't seem to be the case anymore.

As reported by The Albuquerque Tribune, three Albuquerque television news anchors gave introductions for Richardson at the recent Border Governors Conference, reading scripts written by the governor's office.

And apparently one of them was downright sparkling.

Monica Armenta of KOB-Channel 4 reportedly credited Richardson for "one of the most dramatic economic turnarounds in U.S. history" and said he "has done more for New Mexico in two legislative sessions than any previous governor accomplished in decades."

Richardson, according to the account, referred to Armenta as "the Katie Couric of New Mexico."

That hurts.

I thought I was the Katie Couric of New Mexico.

If nothing else, the governor's cozy relationship with the TV news folk has united people with disparate views.

In an e-mail newsletter, state Republican chairman Alan Weh referred to the introductions: "Unfortunately we encounter the media's liberal bias on an almost daily basis; here is a blatant example we wanted to share ..."

Weh gave the phone numbers of the two stations, urging readers to call " if you think that three news anchors subjectively stumping for Governor Richardson is biased or inappropriate ..."

Meanwhile, on the left, Jim Naureckas, editor of Extra, a publication of the New York-based organization Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting, agreed that such an introduction was inappropriate.

In a telephone interview Wednesday, Naureckas said, "News anchors are not expected to be entangled with the governor's office. Reading P.R. handouts from the governor's office is entanglement."

Naureckas added, "A lot of people have serious doubts that news media is as impartial as it claims to be. Stories like this confirm those suspicions."

But two of the three anchors said Wednesday their roles in the introductions were significantly less than Armenta's. Armenta couldn't be reached for comment Wednesday.

Nelson Martinez, also of KOB, said all he did was say the names of the various governors and where they were from. The only compliments he gave were directed to an old table at the conference on loan from the Palace of the Governors.

"My script was very cut and dry," Martinez said. He said he wouldn't have said the same things his colleague did. "I know where the line is," Martinez said.

Cynthia Izaguirre of KOAT Channel 7 said, "to be lumped in with remarks by another anchor is libel."

The only thing she said about Richardson was that he was "a very busy man," Izaguirre said. "The governor and I have had some tough interviews."

Who's the brain?: An e-mail advertising the debut of a new anti-Bush film Bush's Brain - a critical profile of political adviser Karl Rove - excitedly announced that the film would be showing in major cities later this month.

But the list makes me wonder how serious the folks in charge of this are about trying to affect the election.

Of the 19 cities listed, nine are in California - one of the bluest of the blue states by virtual every estimation - while four are in Texas, where George W. Bush would have to forget the Alamo to come even close to losing. The other cities include the Democratic strongholds of New York, Chicago and Washington, D.C.

Nothing in Ohio, Florida, Pennsylvania, or New Mexico.

Somehow, I don't think Karl would have done it this way.

TERRELL'S SOUND WORLD PLAY LIST

Sunday, August 15, 2004
KSFR, Santa Fe, N.M.
Now Webcasting:
10 p.m. to midnight Sundays MDT
Host: Steve Terrell
Co-host: Laurell Reynolds

OPENING THEME: Let it Out (Let it All Hang Out) by The Hombres
I Want to See You Bellydance by The Red Elvises
You Broke My Mood Ring by Root Boy Slim & His Sex Change Band
Everybody's Gonna Be Happy by The Kinks
Abra Cadavaer by The Hives
Greasy Heart by The Jefferson Airplane
Gypsy Eyes by Jimi Hendrix
Jenny I Read by Concrete Blonde
Uncomplicated by Los Lobos

Monsters of the Id by Mose Allison
Wake Up Sally by Stan Ridgway
For A Thousand Mothers by Jethro Tull
Flowers and Beads by Iron Butterfly
The Letter by P.J. Harvey
The Gnome by Pink Floyd
Let's See Action by The Who

Isley Brothers Set
Shout
Hello I'ts Me
I Turned You On
Fight the Power
Ohio/Machine Gun

I Know You Are There by The Handsome Family
About To Begin by Robin Trower
Indian Summer by The Doors
Kiss From an Old Flame by Mercury Rev
Melt Away by Brian Wilson
Rivendell by Rush
Port of Amsterdam by David Bowie
CLOSING THEME: Over the Rainbow by Jerry Lee Lewis

SANTA FE OPRY PLAY LIST

The Santa Fe Opry
Friday, August 13, 2004
KSFR, Santa Fe, NM
Now Webcasting
10 p.m. to midnight Fridays MDT
Host: Steve Terrell

OPENING THEME: Buckaroo by Buck Owens & The Buckaroos
Shakin' the Blues by Gail Davies & Robbie Fulks
The Boys From Alabama by Drive-By Truckers
New Fashioned Imperialist by Jason Ringenberg
King of Fools by Billy Joe Shaver
Pigeon Heart by Marah
Union Square by Eric Ambel
Innocent When You Dream by Elvis Costello
They Call The Wind Mariah by The Buckerettes

Sputnik 57 by Jon Langford
Blinding Sheets of Rain by The Old 97s
Robot Moving by Jon Dee Graham
Madman by Chrissy Flatt
Stranger in the Mirror by Jody Reynolds & Bobbie Gentry
Are You Still My Girl? by Joe West
Been a While by ThaMuseMeant
On the Sea of Galilee by Emmylou Harris & The Peasall Sisters
The Bum Hotel by Uncle Dave Macon

Crow Hollow Blues by Stan Ridgway
My Sister's Tiny Hands by The Handsome Family
The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance by Gene Pitney
Richland Woman Blues by Maria Muldaur
Uncle Smoochface by Michael Hurley
New White House Blues by Peter Stampfel & The Bottle Caps
Shake That Thing by Mother McCree's Uptown Jug Champions
I Love Onions by Susan Christie

Beautiful Dreamer by Raul Malo
Wild Irish Rose by George Jones
Foot of the Bed by Tres Chicas
Green Green Rocky Road by Dave Van Ronk
Single Girl by 16 Horsepower
That's the Way Love Goes by The Harmony Sisters
Jacob's Ladder by Greg Brown
CLOSING THEME: Comin' Down by The Meat Puppets

Steve Terrell is proud to report to the monthly Freeform American Roots
Radio list

NADER'S NEW HELPER: ROD ADAIR

As published in The Santa Fe New Mexican
Aug. 13, 2004


Although backers of Ralph Nader’s bid to get on the New Mexico ballot say they’re confident he’ll make it, a prominent conservative Republican is trying to help make sure Nader can overcome Democratic efforts to block him.

State Sen. Rod Adair, R-Roswell, on Thursday asked the nearly 24,000 recipients of his e-mail newsletter to sign petitions seeking a ballot slot for Nader, who is running as an independent presidential candidate.

“We happen to believe that every candidate — right or left of center — should be on the ballot,” Adair wrote, attaching a download of the official Nader petition for his readers to sign and distribute.

The national Democratic Party, fearing Nader will be a spoiler for their presidential candidate in a close race with incumbent Republican George Bush, has lined up an army of volunteers in 20 states to fight Nader’s ballot efforts by challenging the validity of petition signatures.

Nader supporters abandoned their effort to get him on the ballot in Arizona after Democrats challenged thousands of petition signatures there. In New Mexico, the Nader campaign has to gather more than 14,527 valid signatures by Sept. 7 to force election officials to list his name among the presidential choices.

Nader’s New Mexico coordinator, Carol Miller, said Thursday she is responsible for about 100 volunteers who have been traveling the state gathering petition signatures.

“We got about 100 signatures at the recent Ani DiFranco concert (in Santa Fe),” she said. Referring to the left-wing singer’s fans, Miller said, “I don’t think there were many Republicans in that crowd.”

Adair said Thursday that he decided to distribute the petitions because he didn’t like the way television news reports were handling stories of Republicans helping Nader get on the ballot.

“If the Republicans were trying to keep the Libertarians off the ballot,” he said, “we’d get fried.”

Adair said Nader’s presence helps the Bush ticket. But he said other parties, including the Libertarians, aid the Democratic ticket headed by John Kerry.

Libertarian presidential candidate Michael Badnarik has secured a spot on the New Mexico ballot.

Adair wrote in his e-mail that “the Republicans have never tried to block the Libertarian Party in New Mexico — and there is little doubt their votes in 2000 cost President Bush New Mexico’s five electoral votes.”

Libertarian candidate Harry Browne got just over 2,000 votes in New Mexico four years ago, when Bush lost to Al Gore by 366 votes.

State Democratic Chairman John Wertheim on Thursday said Adair’s mass e-mail “demonstrates conclusively that Ralph Nader’s effort to get on the ballot is not a legitimate effort. It’s an effort orchestrated by the Republican Party.”

Miller, Nader coordinator, said she believes state Democratic officials are following the advice of former U.S. Rep. Toby Moffett.

Moffett, a former ally of Nader's, told the New Mexico delegation to last month’s Democratic National Convention that polls show the best argument to use with potential Nader voters is: “Ralph is in bed with Republicans.”