Un hombre del campo: A man of the country.
I am referring to State Rep. Martin Zamora and was refreshed to read his opinion piece on the Stop Insider Trading Act (H.R. 7008), which recently passed in the U.S. House of Representatives. Zamora is certainly a man of this country. He is a farmer and rancher from Clovis and represents House District 63 in the New Mexico Legislature, where he began serving in 2019. He is the Republican candidate in the Nov. 3 election to represent District 3 in the U.S. House of Representatives.
In his article, Zamora points out that his opponent, incumbent District 3 Rep. Teresa Leger Fernandez, did not vote for the Stop Insider Trading Act. He also points out that when Leger Fernandez – whose congressional salary is $174,000 per year – took office in 2021 her disclosed net worth was $1.38 million. Her most recent filing, he said, shows $2.19 million, an increase of nearly 60%.
“That’s her business, and I’m not here to tell any family what their bank account should look like,” Zamora wrote. “But when you’re a sitting member of Congress with access to information the rest of us don’t have, and you vote against a bill that would simply require you to be transparent about how and when you trade, people are entitled to ask why.”
The Ethics in Government Act of 1978 includes provisions for executive branch officials, their spouses and dependent children to establish blind trusts, but that law does not extend to congressional representatives. Insider trading has long been a concern in government and the purpose of H.B. 7008 is to prevent members of Congress from engaging in this practice, which is not only unethical but also illegal. All 218 House Republicans and 13 Democrats voted to approve the legislation. The bill, which also includes some unrelated provisions regarding voter identification in federal elections, is awaiting action in the Senate.
Why didn’t more House Democrats vote to pass this reasonable and needed bill? Do they want to retain power over buying and selling shares of companies they regulate? Maybe we should ask them. Our politicians are elected to represent us, but the financial growth of many makes me wonder if $174,000 plus expenses is enough to interest them in serving us.
The Daily Lobo reports from the Leger Fernandez campaign site that she supports reducing “the burden of student debt” and eliminating undergraduate tuition at public colleges and universities for most students. She claims, “The federal government has a responsibility to help our students succeed through higher education.” This all sounds great, but government can’t take on the financial burden of public colleges.
Also from her website, Leger Fernandez says, “I strongly support humane, comprehensive immigration reform. We must treat everyone with dignity, provide a path to citizenship for undocumented dreamers and other law-abiding immigrants.”
If you listen to her party, “comprehensive immigration reform” means abolishing our existing laws of controlled immigration and opening the borders to the chaos we saw under the Biden administration. Does it sound like she is advocating for an open-border policy? And by the way, undocumented dreamers are not law-abiding immigrants. An interesting oversight for a lawyer.
When looking at Leger Fernandez’ endorsements and her record, it is easy to see her liberal-left persuasion is now adopting socialist values. I can see why Martin Zamora felt he could better represent the people of our Third Congressional District. I personally agree.
Tom Wright is a Santa Fe columnist and El Rito Media investor.
