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NM SIC nixes Russian investments
New Mexico’s State Investment Council yesterday voted unanimously to divest all investments from Russia. The move followed a request from Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham earlier this month in which she asked the SIC “to conduct a swift and thorough examination of your portfolios for any investments that may benefit the Russian government and its supporters in its war against Ukraine, and to take all lawful steps necessary to divest from those investments” in order to demonstrate the state’s “support for the people of Ukraine and disclaim any investments that may directly or indirectly aid the Russian government’s unjustified war.” Following the meeting, which was held by phone, an SIC spokesperson told the Albuquerque Journal that most of the state’s close to $8 million invested in Russian stocks and bonds comes from one investment account with stock in Russian tech company Yandex. The Journal story also notes prior instances of state divestment for political reasons: In 2007, the SIC divested approximately $45 million from publicly traded companies doing business with the government of Sudan, and the state’s Educational Retirement Board in 2020 divested from two private prison companies.
Mixed verdict for Griffin
A federal judge yesterday found Otero County Commissioner Couy Griffin guilty of entering a restricted area during the Jan. 6 riots at the US Capitol, but not guilty of disorderly conduct. US District Court Judge Trevor McFadden—who was appointed by former President Donald Trump—said the Department of Justice provided sufficient evidence to show Griffin knew he was entering a restricted area, noting video that showed him crossing three different walls he needed help over which to pass. “All of this would suggest to a normal person that perhaps you should not be entering the area,” McFadden said. The judge said DOJ did not provide enough evidence to prove Griffin intended to disrupt certification of the 2020 election. Politico, writing about the trial of the Cowboys for Trump founder, characterized the case as “a crucial milestone for prosecutors as they seek plea deals and convictions for hundreds of members of the Jan. 6 mob who crossed into Capitol grounds, which had been restricted that day” due to former Vice President Mike Pence’s presence. “McFadden had been openly skeptical of the case against Griffin, whose case was among the most marginal of the nearly 800 defendants charged for their actions that day.” Griffin, who faces a maximum one year prison sentence, will be sentenced June 17.Following the verdict, Griffin described himself as “halfway pleased” with the outcome. “I stand proud of where I’m at today and the fight that I’ve been in over the course of the last year-and-a-half.” Griffin is one of only three riot defendants who requested a bench trial, the Associated Press reports, and says he doesn’t regret not having a jury trial. “If I was anywhere but Washington, DC, I would say, ‘Go with a jury trial,’” Griffin said. “You can’t get a fair jury trial in Washington, DC, if you’re someone like me, a strong conservative.” Back at home, the state Democratic Party reacted to the verdict by calling out New Mexico Republicans for not denouncing Griffin. “Anyone who continues to support Griffin and his actions on January 6th has no place representing New Mexicans at any level of government,” DPNM Chair Jessica Velasquez said in a statement.
Ivey-Soto denies most allegations
State Sen. Daniel Ivey-Soto, D-Albuquerque, who stands accused by numerous women of sexual harassment and verbal abuse, among other allegations, denies it all. Well, almost. Ivey-Soto tells Santa Fe New Mexican columnist Milan Simonich he did, in fact, use the term “lips and hips” to refer to two female leaders at Common Cause New Mexico, one of the eight organizations that issued an open letter earlier this week calling for Ivey-Soto to resign or be removed from the Senate. “Matthew McConaughey used ‘Lips and Hips’ for rivals at an ad agency in How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days,” Ivey-Soto told the paper. “I guess I’ve watched too many movies.” Ivey-Soto denies the other new allegations, and continues to deny lobbyist Marianna Anaya’s allegations of sexual harassment, again repeating claims that he wouldn’t have made advances at her because he knew she was a lesbian: “I never try to get a Jehovah’s Witness to vote, and I’ve never made a pass at a lesbian,” Ivey-Soto told Simonich. “There’s just no return on investment.” Ivey-Soto has previously made mention of Anaya’s sexual orientation as an explanation for why the allegations are false, even though various studies have shown LGBTQ Americans experience higher rates of sexual and other types of workplace harassment.
COVID-19 by the numbers
New cases: 117; 516,628 total cases
Deaths: 14; Santa Fe County has had 259 deaths thus far; there have been 7,171 fatalities statewide. Hospitalizations: 115; Patients on ventilators: 14The state’s most recent report on COVID-19 geographic trends for the week of March 14-20, shows Santa Fe County with a daily case rate per 100,000 of 8.5—higher than more than 20 other counties in the state. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s “community levels” tracking system—which uses case rates along with two hospital metrics in combination to determine the state of the virus on a county level—all of New Mexico’s counties currently have “green”—aka low—levels, except for Cibola County, which is yellow for “medium” levels. That assessment updates on Thursdays.Breakthrough cases: According to the most recent weekly vaccine report, between Feb. 21-March 21, 50.9% of COVID-19 cases were among people who had not completed a primary vaccination series; 21.5% were among those who had completed the series but had not received a booster; and 27.6% were among those who were fully vaccinated and boosted. For hospitalizations, those figures change to 71.4%, 13.1% and 15.4%. The percentages shift to 74.7%, 16.2% and 9.1% for fatalities.
Vaccinations: 91% percent of adults 18 years and older have had at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine and 78.3% have completed their primary series; 45.5% of adults 18 years and older have had a booster shot; 12-17-year-old age group: 71.2% of people have had at least one dose and 61.6% have completed their primary series; Children ages 5-11: 39.3% have had at least one dose of the Pfizer vaccine and 31% have completed their primary; Santa Fe County: 99% of people 18 and older have had at least one dose and 87.2% have completed their primary series.
Resources: Vaccine registration; Booster registration Free at-home rapid antigen tests; Self-report a positive COVID-19 test result to the health department; COVID-19 treatment info: oral treatments Paxlovid (age 12+) and Molnupiravir (age 18+); and monoclonal antibody treatments. Toolkit for immunocompromised individuals. People seeking treatment who do not have a medical provider can call NMDOH’s COVID-19 hotline at 1-855-600-3453.
You can read all of SFR’s COVID-19 coverage here.
Listen up
In just over one week, adult recreational cannabis sales will be legal in New Mexico (April 1, no joke). Just in time, the Growing Forward podcast returns for its fourth season to look at the state’s readiness for legal sales (the state says there will be ample cannabis; some state growers disagree). Hosts Megan Kamerick and Andy Lyman also discuss how cannabis-related bills fared during the most recent legislative session and take a deep dive into the science of cannabis. Guests include: Kristen Thomson, director of the New Mexico Cannabis Control Division, and Smoke ‘n Science podcast host Riley Kirk. For even more on the latest with recreational cannabis, be sure to check out SFR’s most recent edition of the monthly Leaf Brief newsletter.
Face the music
Back in 2013, renowned pianist Jeremy Denk recounted in the New Yorker his experience taking music lessons at the age of 10, when his family moved to Las Cruces, from a teacher named William Leland who taught at New Mexico State University. “He insisted that I get a new black composition notebook for his weekly comments.” Leland’s notes, Denk writes, were “surprisingly visual.” He drew stars by hand “giving nuance to his praise: sometimes the stars were beaming with pride, sporting halos or crowns; sometimes they had sidelong glances, to reflect mitigated success; some stars were amputees, and limped on crutches; and sometimes things were so generally disappointing that he drew a slug, or a caterpillar, or even, on one terrible occasion, a toilet.” That essay, “Every Good Boy Does Fine: A life in piano lessons,” formed the basis of Denk’s new memoir, which published this week and has the same title (the subtitle is slightly different: “A love story, in music lessons.”) Denk, a MacArthur “genius” fellow, talks more about his life in music, including his lessons in New Mexico, during interviews this week with CBS news and Fresh Air; he also chats about books with the New York Times.
Fancy cupcakes and more
Cowboys and Indians magazine profiles New Mexico native Alana Yazzie (Diné), a lifestyle and food blogger who “elevates her childhood recipes from New Mexico and puts a twist on tradition with new recipes” on her blog, TheFancyNavajo.com. “Food and cooking have always been a huge part of my life,” Yazzie tells C & I. “I grew up in a family that loves to cook, bake, and host parties. At a young age, I realized how food brings everyone together, and at a young age, my family involved me in the cooking process. As I grew older, I took a greater interest in learning about Native foods and how to cook them after moving away from home to go to college” (she now lives in Phoenix). Blue corn is prevalent in Yazzie’s recipes, she says, because it’s “a prominent ingredient in a lot of Native and Indigenous cultures. I grew up having blue cornmeal in mush or pancakes that we ate for breakfast. There were only a couple of ways I had seen it prepared. A lot of the blue corn baking recipes are new recipes that I created to show other ways to prepare this staple.” The story includes one of Yazzie’s recipes for blue corn cupcakes (you can watch her make them on YouTube as well).
In and out like a lion
The National Weather Service said it might snow last night and, from the looks of it, they were right! As for this morning, we face a 10% chance of more snow showers before 9 am, but otherwise today will be mostly sunny with a high near 47 degrees and northwest wind 10 to 15 mph increasing to 15 to 20 mph in the afternoon.
Thanks for reading! Because she read all of Anais Nin’s diaries when she was in her 20s, The Word retains a slight fascination with the writer and, thus, deeply enjoyed this NY Times story about Nin’s home in Los Angeles, particularly the comments.
