Defund the police? Not Ronchetti’s view

Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham’s campaign can do better than resorting to distortions about her opponent’s positions as she conducts her reelection campaign.

Especially when, by doing so, a recent anti-Mark Ronchetti ad becomes unbelievable enough to be laughable.

Let’s face it: No New Mexico voter is going to believe the GOP candidate for governor wants to defund the police. Not when alarms about rising crime rates are central to his campaign.

Taking a debate statement out of context and stretching his opposition to the state budget don’t add up to proof Ronchetti is anti-law enforcement. Yet that’s the basic message of a video released earlier this week by Lujan Grisham’s campaign.

The ad claims “Mark Ronchetti will slash budgets for police and law enforcement agencies in every corner of New Mexico,” and goes on to use a debate statement to bolster that claim.

“They don’t want more money; they don’t want more guns,” Ronchetti said in a debate when discussing how to support police. The ad leaves out his follow-up comment, though: “They want to know that the governor of the state of New Mexico and their leaders back them up.”

When a sitting governor runs an ad like this, not only is it ineffective, it makes her appear nervous and vulnerable. And given Ronchetti’s propensity to fumble on key issues — his abortion stance is the political equivalent of a hologram — she doesn’t need to offer him any help.

Rather than make dubious claims about Ronchetti’s positions, the governor should continue to show how the two candidates differ on issues that matter to voters. Lujan Grisham will protect women’s reproductive rights more expansively than her opponent. She has expanded early childhood education and provided free college tuition, initiatives many Republicans oppose. She has been a leader on transitioning the state from dependence on fossil fuels to renewable energy — and on that issue, she and Ronchetti have starkly different positions. As for crime, much of what happens in neighborhoods across New Mexico is out of the hands of any governor. Mayors, city councils, county commissions and local law enforcement agencies are the ones dealing with crime.

Across the nation, crime has been increasing — but not just in cities or states run by Democrats, although that’s a favorite rightwing talking point. In fact, eight of the 10 states with the highest per capita murder rates in the country voted for Trump in 2020; New Mexico and Georgia are the only two blue-leaning states on that list.

Rather than make unfounded claims about Ronchetti and his position on the police, the governor should brag about the actions she has taken to support law enforcement.

Her recent budget increased state police pay by 16 percent and allocated $72 million to hire and train police officers in local law enforcement agencies around the state.

Another $800,000 for the Law Enforcement Training Assistance Fund will help local law enforcement agencies pay costs associated with certifying and equipping new police officers. Millions are being invested in improving state police facilities across the state, building a new public safety complex in Sandoval County and constructing a new emergency operations center in Luna County.

These are meaningful investments that show the governor wants to give police agencies the tools they need to do their jobs. Rather than exaggerating an opponent’s position, the governor would be better served sharing this record. TV sound bites aren’t enough to detail these accomplishments, and attack ads only work when the content is believable. They shouldn’t make a viewer laugh.