Obama campaign hits N.M. airwaves

Senator’s TV ads first to appear ahead of Feb. 5 Democratic caucus

Steve Terrell | The New Mexican

1/18/2008 - 1/19/08

A little over a week after Gov. Bill Richardson pulled out of the presidential race, Barack Obama today will become the first Democratic presidential candidate to air television ads in New Mexico.

In anticipation of the Feb. 5 New Mexico Democratic Caucus, the Obama campaign also plans to open an office on Palace Avenue downtown next week, making the Illinois senator the only candidate to have headquarters in Santa Fe. The campaign already has offices in Albuquerque and Las Cruces.

In a conference call with New Mexico reporters Friday, Obama's campaign manager, David Plouffe, said that before Richardson dropped out, his candidate had not planned to actively campaign here.

"When Richardson withdrew," Plouffe said, "that day we began organizing (in New Mexico)."

Richardson had been expected to draw a huge "favorite son" vote among Democrats in the state caucus. However, he withdrew shortly after his single-digit showing in the New Hampshire primary, following a similar result in the Iowa caucuses. Richardson said last week he won't endorse any candidate before the Feb. 5 voting.

Plouffe praised the "grassroots volunteers" who began working the state for Obama even before the official campaign organization started to form here.

Gaye Pollitt of Santa Fe, who has been campaigning for Obama since December with a small but growing group of volunteers, said Friday that there are about 150 Santa Fe-area volunteers who use their own phones to contact Democratic voters.

Pollitt organized recent "watch parties" at the Santa Fe Bar and Grill to view television coverage of the Iowa caucuses and New Hampshire primaries, with the last event drawing about 60 people. She says her group meets at 7 p.m. Wednesdays at the downtown Santa Fe Public Library.

Plouffe said he doesn't know whether Obama will visit the state before the caucus. New Mexico is one of 22 states holding Democratic primaries or caucuses on Feb. 5. New Mexico Republicans aren't holding a caucus that day.

With the exception of Rep. Dennis Kucinich, who visited New Mexico last year, none of the other Democratic contenders have campaigned in the state this cycle.

The Hillary Clinton campaign has said the New York senator plans to appear in the state before the primary, but nothing yet is scheduled.

Although Clinton has yet to open a campaign headquarters in New Mexico — one reportedly is planned for Albuquerque — almost immediately after Richardson withdrew, she was endorsed by Lt. Gov. Diane Denish and Albuquerque Mayor Martin Chávez.

The third major Democratic candidate, John Edwards, also has some New Mexico support — former Attorney General Patricia Madrid for one. But his campaign has not been visible in New Mexico.

Because of the favorite-son factor as well as the fact more states are holding presidential-preference voting on the same day, this year's Democratic caucus in New Mexico is nothing like the one in 2004. For months leading up to the voting that year, many of the major Democratic candidates made frequent trips to the state.

According to the campaign-funds watchdog Web site opensecrets.org, Obama, as of the end of September, had raised $84,001 in New Mexico, virtually tied with Clinton, who had raised $83,271 in the same period. Richardson had raised more than $5 million in this state.

Plouffe said the new TV ad will run in the Albuquerque market, which covers most of the state, including Santa Fe. He said it also will run on state cable systems. He declined to say how many spots he bought or the total cost.

The ad deals with health care. Obama talks about his mother dying from cancer. "In those last painful months, she was more worried about paying her medical bills than getting well," Obama tells viewers. "I hear stories like hers every day."

Obama has said he supports mandatory health coverage for children and wants to aim for universal coverage by requiring employers to share costs of insuring workers and by offering coverage similar to that in a plan for federal employees. New Mexico has more than 400,000 uninsured people.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Contact Steve Terrell at 986-3037 or sterrell@sfnewmexican.com.