Roswell Daily Record
Vol. 121, No. 17 50¢ Daily / $1 Sunday
INSIDE NEWS
REPAIRS COULD TAKE TO AUG ’13 WASHINGTON (AP) — Despite a billionaire history buff’s pledge of $7.5 million to speed up repairs on the Washington Monument, officials say the complex work could last until August 2013 — two years after the landmark was damaged by an earthquake. Businessman David Rubenstein said he was ... - PAGE A5
THE VOICE OF THE PECOS VALLEY
January 20, 2012
FRIDAY
www.rdrnews.com
Fiery debate tops bizarre day
NOR TH CHARLESTON, S.C. (AP) — The race for the Republican presidential nomination took a tur n toward the South Carolina surreal Thursday as Rick Perry dropped out, Newt Gingrich faced stunning allegations from an ex-wife and Mitt Romney struggled to maintain a shaky frontrunner’s standing. An aggressive evening debate capped the bewildering day. Former Sen. Rick Santorum played aggressor for much of the night, trying to inject himself into what
seemed increasingly like a two-way race with little more than a day remaining until the South Carolina polls open on Saturday. He accused Gingrich and Romney of “playing footsies with the left” when it came to health care. Both men rejected the allegations. The debate began a few hours after first word that Romney had been stripped of his Iowa caucus victory, only to be stung a few hours later by Perry’s withdrawal and endorsement of Gingrich. Gingrich, in turn, was
accused by an ex-wife of seeking an open marriage so he could keep his mistress. Nine hours after Perry exited one stage, the four remaining contenders walked onto another for a final pre-primary debate. angrily Gingrich denounced the news media for putting his ex-wife front and center in the final days of the race. “Let me be clear, the story is false,” he said. Santorum, Romney and Paul steered well clear See GOP, Page A3
AP Photo
Shed fire
Spring: dry, warm, windy
TOP 5 WEB For The Past 24 Hours
• New map pairs Adair, Burt in District 33 • Campus Educational Center under way • CEO addresses CoA on RRH sale • Local pols react to gov • Goddard bench key in 70-59 win
INSIDE SPORTS
Mark Wilson Photo
Firefighters contain a blaze to a small storage unit near the corner of South Mulberry Avenue and East Bland Street, Thursday evening. Fire officials on the scene said that there were no injuries in connection with the blaze, that the shed was full and that the cause of the fire is under investigation.
WESTBROOK EXTENDS CONTRACT OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — The Oklahoma City Thunder signed All-Star point guard Russell Westbrook to a multiyear contract extension on Thursday. Westbrook was set to become a restricted free agent at the end of the season, meaning the Thunder would have had to match any offer he received from another team. Instead, they locked him up with a new deal 15 games into this season. ... - PAGE B1
TODAY’S OBITUARIES • Charles R. Hare • Dick Mandonado • Daniel Mandonado • Wayne Milner - PAGE A6
HIGH ...79˚ LOW ....33˚
TODAY’S FORECAST
CLASSIFIEDS..........B5 COMICS.................B3 FINANCIAL .............B4 GENERAL ..............A2 HOROSCOPES ........A8 LOTTERIES ............A2 OPINION ................A4 SPORTS ................B1 WASHINGTON .........A7 WEATHER ..............A8
INDEX
Joint Chiefs head visits Israel, presses for restraint with Iraq JERUSALEM (AP) — The top U.S. general, visiting Israel at a delicate and dangerous moment in the global standof f with Tehran, is expected to press for restraint amid fears that the Jewish state is nearing a decision to attack Iran’s nuclear program. Thursday’s arrival of Ar my Gen. Martin Dempsey, just four months after he took of fice as chair man of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, underscores Washington’s concer n
about a possible Israeli military strike. It also spotlights key questions at the center of the global maneuvering to prevent an Iranian bomb: •How ef fective are the current economic sanctions in pressuring Iran’s leadership? Israel wants a far tougher regime, while the Americans seem confident the current path will suffice. •Could aerial bombardment or missile strikes, the expected Israeli military toolkit, damage nuclear
installations deep underground enough to be worth a counterstrike from Iran? Some think Israel is mainly saber-rattling to scare gover nments into tougher sanctions. •Might covert activity suffice? Iranian scientists and military officials have been killed, computer viruses unleashed, a missile base blown up. Fingerpointing and denials abound; evidence about who’s behind it all does See ISRAEL, Page A3
ALBUQUERQUE (AP) — A three-week surge of winter weather has helped pull New Mexico from the brink of a record-dry year, but officials said Thursday the state appears to be set up for another dose of dry, windy and warm weather this spring. New Mexico is coming off of what forecasters with the National Weather Service have logged as the state’s sixth driest year on record. It would have been one of the worst had a series of storms not dumped muchneeded snow and rain around the state in December. The result was an “infiSee WEATHER, Page A3
Racquetball at 94
Mark Wilson Photo
Ervin Marsh, still going strong at 94, plays racquetball at the Roswell Racquet Club with his buddies, Thursday afternoon. He said that he's been playing for more than 50 years and plays now for exercise.
NATO chopper crash in southern Afghanistan kills 6
KANDAHAR, Afghanistan (AP) — A NATO helicopter crashed in southern Afghanistan on Thursday, killing six members of the international military force, the U.S.-led coalition said. The coalition said in a release early Friday morning that there was no enemy activity in the area
at the time of the crash in southern Afghanistan. The cause of the crash is still being investigated. The coalition did not disclose the nationalities of those killed. The helicopter crash occurred on the same day seven civilians were killed outside a crowded gate at
Kandahar Air Field, a sprawling base for U.S. and NATO operations, after a suicide attacker set off a vehicle laden with explosives. The Taliban claimed responsibility, claiming they were targeting a NATO convoy. It was the second suicide bombing in as many days in southern
Afghanistan, officials said. The coalition said no NATO troops were killed. It does not disclose information about injured troops. Two witnesses told The Associated Press that they suspect the suicide car bomber was trying to hit See NATO, Page A3
Jeanine Corn Best seeks Ward III City Council seat JULIA BERGMAN RECORD STAFF WRITER
Jeanine Corn Best
Jeanine Cor n Best, a businesswoman and owner of Best-Cor n Ranch in northeastern Lincoln County, says she is running for the Ward III City Council seat during the municipal election in March. The ward is currently represented by Councilor Judy Stubbs. Best’s family has a rich history and deep roots in New Mexico and Roswell.
Her grandfather, Wade Hampton, borrowed $500 from a local bank at the age of 9 to start a ranch, now known as Best-Corn Ranch. The far m, which has been in Best’s family for three generations, was passed down to her from her father William. Best is also the owner of Copy Rite, which has locations in Roswell and Ruidoso. She also spoke candidly of one of her businesses that failed, the Grace Cor n Heritage
House. The house, which she calls a “business strictly from the heart,” belonged to her grandmother. Best used the house as a venue to host events, but after a seemingly lack of interest from the community, she has leased the building as office space. “You’ve got to have failure to have success,” she said, “I had to utilize it in a different manner. There’s a lot of things out there that you have to utilize in a different manner to make it work.”
Best has lived in the same house and slept in the same bedroom for 49 years. A single mom of three kids — Jacquie 18, Jamie 14, Jasper 11 — Best decided to run because, “My kids are at the age now where I can give back to community. I think it’s time to help Roswell a little bit and give back, because Roswell has been good to me. It’s been good to my family,” she See BEST, Page A3