The NM House and Senate passed Senate Bill 121, a bill that would ban so-called conversion therapy for individuals under 18 years of age. The bill is sponsored by Sen. Jacob Candelaria (D-Albuquerque) and Rep. Andrés Romero (D-Albuquerque). Conversion therapy, aimed at changing a person’s sexual orientation and/or gender identity, has been rejected by the American Psychiatric Association and the American Medical Association. “This discredited practice is not based on medical science. It’s based on dangerous misinformation. Being LGBTQ is not a mental disorder and we should not treat it as such. Children who undergo conversion therapy are more likely to attempt suicide, have depression, or partake in dangerous behavior. The bill includes language that would promote therapy that favors acceptance, support, and understanding for a person’s gender identity or sexual orientation, without attempting to change that identity or orientation. Senate Bill 121 passed the House by a large majority, 44-23.

In a desperate attempt to ramrod through President Trump's extremist pick for the U.S. Supreme Court, the Senate is threatening the "Nuclear Option" which would prevent a filibuster. We call on TN Senator Bob Corker to OPPOSE this extreme manipulation of the rules, especially while President Trump is under possible criminal investigation. The time-honored filibuster is a tool used by both parties. Changing the rules merely to push through such a controversial pick for the Supreme Court is both short-sighted and manipulative. Our nation deserves better.

The General Assembly is considering a bill (HB 436) that would prevent local municipalities from imposing impact fees on developers. If developers aren't made to pay their fair share of infrastructure costs to support growth that they profit from, residents either will pay increased property taxes to support their profits or residents will suffer from more congested roads and overwhelmed infrastructure. I'm sure this is an issue that will impact other municipalities and it is yet another example of the "small government" Republicans over-reaching to try to regulate municipal government. Raleigh's infrastructure is not keeping up with growth – resulting in terrible traffic congestion. Developers say everyone should live near where they work so they can walk or bike everywhere, but that’s not practical for all. Gentrification is leading to rising housing prices, crowding out the already inadequate supply of affordable housing. Developers say density is preferable to sprawl, but most of the density seems to be luxury condos and apartments and replacements of modest homes with McMansions, forcing those looking for affordable housing to move further away and thus contributing to sprawl. Those who work in Raleigh (teachers, first responders, hospitality workers) can’t afford to live near their work places, so we are getting sprawl nonetheless. Developers say residents benefit from growth through increased property values, but residents may be forced out of their homes because they can’t afford the higher property taxes. And there’s nowhere affordable for them to go. Developers make the money and residents pay the bill – welfare for the rich.

Gorsuch has no record of fairness in decision making. He is representing the far right and not the mainstream of public opinion. There is little to no question of where he stands on most issues and will not offer an honest interpretation of our Constitution.

My son is a Student at UC Davis in Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering . He's a suburban white boy studying alongside many foreign students. Upon hearing of this bill, he said to me, " Mom , these guys are so damn smart!! We don't consider them a threat to our future job opportunities at all. These kids make us work harder to keep up! We work together on projects and everyone learns from each other. Not just about engineering but other cultures. There will be massive demonstrations if this bill goes any further!! That's fo sha!!"

Every Supreme Court nominee has been confirmed by at least 60 senators. This ensures bipartisan support of the Court. When a nominee fails, the president selects another nominee more acceptable to the Senate. There is no reason to change this rule.

The impact of Neil Gorsuch on the Supreme Court would be devastating in my opinion.

The confirmation of a Supreme Court justice under any circumstances is an immense decision. With the current President's legitimacy in question, partisanship must be put aside in favor of choosing a man with impeccable credentials. The nuclear option disallows this process.

After unconstitutionally refusing to allow a hearing for the legal Supreme Court nomination of Merrick Garland, it would be even more despicable of Senate Republicans to invoke the "nuclear option" in order to remove the 60 vote threshold for Supreme Court nominations and to rush through Neil Gorsuch's confirmation. Such a nomination should never be rushed or forced through Congress, but it is especially inappropriate when the President who made the nomination, and his administration, are under investigation by the FBI. Senator Heller, we implore you to listen to the concerns of your constituents and oppose invoking the "nuclear option."

Wildlife Services is a federal agency that conducts predator control on private, public, and tribal lands throughout Colorado. Predator control includes shooting, trapping, snaring, and aerial gunning to kill black bears, bobcats, mountain lions, and coyotes. Lethal poisons and chemicals are also used for predator control, imposing a risk to public health and safety. Wildlife Services is expanding this work in an attempt to increase mule deer populations for hunting, although the best available science suggests that predator control isn’t effective. Western Environmental Law Center is a nonprofit, environmental law firm dedicated to defending wildlife in the West. Their expert attorneys are preparing to file suit against Wildlife Services about this matter.

After an uproar over placement of ads on extremist Youtube videos leading some of Google’s largest advertisers to walk away, the company announced this week that it would bolster its policies to address hate speech. But it doesn’t go far enough. Google Adwords is the largest and most prominent ad network on Breitbart, the alt-right ‘news’ site of Steve Bannon and his white nationalist followers. And the company still lets neo-nazi sites get away with incitement of violence towards marginalized groups of people. Recently, a self-proclaimed white supremacist stabbed a Black man with a sword in Manhattan and admitted to police that it was an intentional hate crime. This same disturbed individual subscribed to numerous white nationalist and anti-feminist Youtube channels. Over the past few months, the incredible grassroots Sleeping Giants campaign has led thousands of companies, including most major corporations worldwide, to blacklist Breitbart in their Google advertising campaigns. Breitbart is by far the most advertiser-blocked website of all time. And yet, Google continues to place advertisers’ brands on Breitbart by default. Not only is Google failing to protect its advertisers, it is also directly funding the most prominent white nationalist website in the world. This has to stop. We are calling on Google to remove Breitbart and other white nationalist extremist sites from its default advertising placement list and to completely remove these hateful sites from its ad services.

ACT NOW! We've learned that changing the rules of how appointments are made can undermine what is best for the people of this nation. Betsy DeVos is a perfect example of why our nation's leaders shouldn't remove the necessity of working together. Mitch McConnell isn't committed to working together. Show his true colors of divisiveness and partisanship by calling him out on his willingness to lead Judge Gorsuch's confirmation and blame it on the Democratic Party. Call your Senator and ask them to bring the nation's attention to Mitch McConnell's evil acts.