I spent part of my childhood in Southeastern New Mexico and part of me
still considers it "home".  For years I've scratched my head in wonder
as the residents of that area filed into the voting booth to send
conservative ideologues to Washington to represent them.  That may be
changing - and that makes this largely unknown district very important
in the national balance of power.



The Second Congressional District basically consists of everything in
New Mexico south of Albuequerque.  The Democrats have found a quality
candidate in Harry Teague
- a high school dropout who went to work in the oilfields for $1.50 an
hour and slowly worked his way up to owning his own oilfield service
company.  Meanwhile, Republicans settled on Ed Tinsley to represent
their interests - and to carry out their war on the working man.





The rumor is that there isn't much difference between the two men.  If
you dig into Tinsley's past, however, you can easily find out that this
is a heinous lie. 



Tinsley has been widely questioned about whether or not he actually
lives in the district or if he spends more time at his "second home" in
Santa Fe.  But it isn't just his home that takes him away from the
district - it's everything in his life, from his kids going to college to every one of his business interests to his "public service" as a Board Member and President of the National Restaurant Association.

It is in his role of NRA Board member that Ed Tinsley actually tips his hand about how he hates his own workers.  It sounds like campaign spin, I know, but I don't know how else to characterize someone who testifies to Congress that his employee should not be able to touch her retirement account to keep her daughter alive - or who thinks that the real problem with workers is that they are simply too stupid to save the pittance he calls their paycheck.

Then there is this nice little discovery where we find out that the NRA is anti-minimum wage and pro-drunk driving.  Those who follow lobbyist-politics regularly will recognize the name of Lee Culpepper - you can usually find him shilling for Walmart.  So long as he's fighting the idea of a living wage, he's happy.  But the full quote from the NRA release makes it clear - this group wants to be shielded from lawsuits of drunk-driving victims. 

The Republican Party has waged a class and economic war against the working man since 1980.  Ed Tinsley wants to continue that war - he has his foot on his workers' throats and he likes it.  They are dependent on him and he enjoys telling them it's their own damn fault.  Ed Tinsley in Congress would not only be a disaster for New Mexico, but for the entire country.