Roswell Daily Record THE VOICE OF THE PECOS VALLEY
Vol. 120, No. 300 50¢ Daily / $1 Sunday
INSIDE NEWS
HIGH-TECH TYCOONS
SEATTLE (AP) — The tycoons of cyberspace are looking to bankroll America’s resurgence in outer space, reviving “Star Trek” dreams that first interested them in science. Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen made the latest step Tuesday, unveiling plans for a new commercial spaceship that, instead of... - PAGE A2
December 14, 2011
US House passes tax cut bill, 234–193
WEDNESDAY
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WASHINGTON (AP) — Republicans Defiant pushed legislation through the House Tuesday night that would keep alive Social Security payroll tax cuts for some 160 million Americans at President Barack Obama’s request — but also would require construction of a Canada-toTexas oil pipeline that has sparked a White House veto threat. Passage, on a largely party-line vote of 234-193, sent the measure toward its certain demise in the Democratic-controlled Senate, triggering the final par-
tisan showdown of a remarkably quarrelsome year of divided government. The legislation “extends the payroll tax relief, extends and reforms unemployment insurance and protects Social Security — without job-killing tax hikes,” Republican House Speaker John Boehner declared after the measure had cleared. On a long day of finger pointing, however, House Democrats accused Republicans of protecting “millionaires and billionaires,” and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., derided
Holiday dances
the GOP-backed pipeline provision as “ideological candy” for the tea partyset. Voting in favor of the legislation were 224 Republicans and 10 Democrats, while 179 Democrats and 14 Republicans opposed it. At its core, the measure did include key parts of the jobs program that Obama asked Congress to approve in September. The Social Security payroll tax cuts approved a year ago to help stimulate the economy would be See HOUSE, Page A3
AP Photo
House Speaker John Boehner of Ohio, accompanied by fellow Republican leaders, meets with reporters on Capitol Hill, Tuesday, before a vote to renew an extension of the payrolltax cut.
State may get Creative JULIA BERGMAN RECORD STAFF WRITER
TOP 5 WEB
For The Past 24 Hours
• Fire Chief Salas retiring • Commissioners will vote on redistricting... • Adopt-a-thon a sucess, 33 animals found... • ‘Beyond’ film crew brings alien invasion... • Roswell honors veterans at Wreaths...
INSIDE SPORTS
Feds to reduce NG presence
Mark Wilson Photo
The Rac-A-Taps perform holiday dances for residents of Casa Maria Health Care Center Tuesday morning.
BOWL GAME GUIDE
Like it or not, the BCS championship game will be a rematch between LSU and Alabama. Oklahoma State complained it should have had a shot at the top-ranked Tigers, BCS bashers had more fodder for the weneed-a-playoff debate and many fans scrunched up their noses at the thought of another field goal-kicking contest like the previous incarnation of the Game of the Century. - PAGE B1
TODAY’S OBITUARIES
• Diana Johnson-Lovett • Willie E. Hall Sr. • Dr. Randall W. Briggs • Gloria Mac Ewen • Ara Lee Stephens • Melvin “Dick” Voight - PAGE A7
HIGH ...60˚ LOW ....31˚
TODAY’S FORECAST
CLASSIFIEDS..........B6 COMICS.................B4 FINANCIAL .............B3 GENERAL ..............A2 HOROSCOPES ........B6 LOTTERIES ............A2 OPINION ................A4 SPORTS ................B1 WEATHER ..............A8
INDEX
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Obama administration is planning to reduce the number of National Guard troops deployed at the U.S. border with Mexico, the spokesman for a Texas congressman said Tuesday. The force will be reduced from 1,200 troops starting next year, said Mike Rosen, spokesman for Rep. Michael McCaul, R-Texas. The exact number of National Guard personnel that will stay on the border is unclear, Rosen said. The remaining troops are expected to be in place until the end of 2012 and will focus on intelligence operations, Rosen said.
McCaul’s office said he was told about the change in strategy by an administration official. Neither the Defense nor Homeland Security departments immediately responded to requests for comment Tuesday. President Barack Obama ordered the troops to the border last year to help Border Patrol agents watch for illegal crossers and drug and human smugglers. The first of the 1,200 troops arrived in California, Arizona, New Mexico and Texas in August 2010, and were expected to be in place for about a year. Earlier this year, Obama
extended that deployment. The Guard troops don’t have arrest power and have spent much of their time monitoring the 2,000-mile border and alerting Border Patrol agents to suspicious activity. The deployment was to have ended at the end of the year. The current deployment is the second such troop deployment on the southern border. From 2006 to 2008, under the direction of President George W. Bush, thousands of troops worked along the Mexican border as part of “Operation
Still in its beginning stages, the Creative New Mexico Steering Committee was established to explore the idea of creating a statewide advocacy organization to promote New Mexico’s creative and cultural economy. Established in June, the committee’s members include representatives from entities such as the New Mexico Humanities Council, Creative Santa Fe and Creative Albuquerque. Craig Newbill, executive director at the New Mexico Humanities Council, held a meeting to discuss the ini-
‘Christmas Trek’
See STATE, Page A3
Mark Wilson Photo
Actors in “Christmas Trek,” a play about aliens visiting from another planet, perform for Peachtree Village residents and guests, Tuesday evening. The special show was written for Peachtree Village and was directed by Michael Christopher.
Another NMLEA board suspends cases against cops But Chaves County Sheriff James Coon, the storm board’s sheriff representative, said other board members had lost faith in Jackson. “The board has a vote of no confidence on Mr. coming Jackson,” Coon said. “The cases are so old it’s ALBUQUERQUE (AP) — Winter storm war nings and advisories are in effect as more snow and rain make their way across portions of northern and central New Mexico. Forecasters with the National Weather Service say rain will continue to spread over the lower elevations into today while up to a foot of snow is expected in some of the higher elevations. The Santa Fe and Albuquerque areas could see at least a couple of inches of snow overnight. State transportation
See STORM, Page A3
ALBUQUERQUE (AP) — The New Mexico Law Enforcement Academy voted Tuesday to suspend cases against police officers who had been disciplined after board members said they had no confidence in a prosecuting attor ney appointed by the attorney general’s office. Board members voted 71 to suspend cases assigned to attorney Matt Jackson, whom board member Nate Korn called “inept” and “unprepared” during administrative hearings to remove disciplined officers’ certifications. Kor n said Jackson’s actions created a backlog in cases and allowed disciplined or fired officers to keep their state certifications. He presented examples alleging that Jackson failed to call in key witnesses and was often illinfor med for hearings, charges that Jackson disputed. The vote at an emergency meeting came after the Albuquerque Jour nal
See GUARD, Page A3
embarrassing.”
reported that at least 60 police officers statewide have been disciplined or fired by their departments but are still licensed to carry badges and guns, and could work for other agencies, due to a backlog of administrative hearings. Some of the disciplined officers later faced criminal charges, the newspaper said. Board members with the academy, the state body that certifies people to be law enforcement officers, blamed Attorney General Gary King, chair man of academy’s board, for not making the state’s case for sanctions against the troubled officers during administrative hearings. Cases in the attorney general’s office
sometimes were neglected for months and requests to address the cases went unanswered, they said. On Tuesday, King defended his of fice’s actions and called Jackson a qualified attorney with years of experience. He said the charge that his office wasn’t aggressively pursuing the cases was “flatly false” and challenged the board for telling him who his office should appoint to represent the state during administrative hearings. “It’s inappropriate for the board to determine which attorney I should appoint,” King said at the meeting at the Albuquerque Police Academy. But Chaves County Sheriff James Coon, the board’s
sheriff representative, said other board members had lost faith in Jackson. “The board has a vote of no confidence on Mr. Jackson,” Coon said. “The cases are so old it’s embarrassing.” Jackson defended his work as a prosecutor and said the problem was that the New Mexico Law Enforcement Academy often had an open director position and that prevented him from getting all the necessary information. “I (have) learned from my mistakes,” Jackson said. “I have prosecuted every case to the best of my ability with the facts I’ve been given.” King also said he believed that some board members may have violated open meetings laws before calling for an emergency board meeting last week, a charge board members denied. State law requires that police departments notify See BOARD, Page A3