Roswell Daily Record THE VOICE OF THE PECOS VALLEY
Kintigh addresses city, political issues Vol. 123, No. 132 75¢ Daily / $1.25 Sunday
Editor’s note: This is the first in a series of interviews with Mayor Dennis Kintigh, who volunteered to meet with the Roswell Daily Record each month and address any and all questions. Those with a question for the mayor may send queries to Daily Record editor Timothy Howsare at editor@rdrnews.com, or staff writer Jeff Tucker at reporter01@rdrnews.com. Mayor Kintigh was asked his thoughts about the political relevance of the recent visit to Roswell by Gov. Susana Martinez and New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie. “Christie could be a for-
Splash-In
June 1, 2014
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midable candidate in the Republican bid for presidency, but he’s got a certain amount of baggage. He’s not going to be well received by the Second Amendment crowd. Building relationships with that part of the political movement is crucial. I think Gov. Martinez is an asset for him in that sense, because I think she’s well established. She’s kind of a law person; she’s got a concealed carry permit, she was a tough DA, and that’s who she is. I don’t want to present that’s some kind of act for Susana Martinez. That’s who this woman is. That’s her back-
ground. Christie is a tough prosecutor from back East. But there’s a different culture there. Now what makes it hard for Christie is, where are the Republican electoral votes? If you look at the map and you divvy it up, there’s not a whole lot of number of states that are in play for presidential elections. There aren’t many swing states really. “I think it’s good for him to come to this part (of the state). This is the Republican part of New Mexico, one of the Republican parts, heavy Republican. Just look at it, this section is all
SUNDAY
Jeff Tucker Photo
Mayor Dennis Kintigh answers a question from the Daily Record’s Vision Editor Rey Berrones during a mayoral forum Thursday at the newspaper’s office. Members of the public may submit questions to be posed to the mayor at monthly meetings with newspaper personnel.
red.” Kintigh was asked if he would campaign for Gov. Martinez. “I could if she wanted to.
I’m not sure if I add anything. In the Roswell area, yeah, but does she need to campaign in Roswell? No. She’s like Allen Weh and
Diana Duran — they are going to need to focus on the Rio Grande Valley. It’s
A crowd gathered in southern New Mexico on Saturday to bring attention to disputes between rural residents and the federal government over access to water and public lands in New Mexico and across the West. Otero County leaders said people’s rights are being trampled by the U.S. Forest Service and other federal agencies. They have asked for a congressional hearing, and their supporters invited Gov. Susana Martinez and other elected leaders to the rally. Saturday’s gathering in Alamogordo is the latest
salvo in a battle over access to the Agua Chiquita, a small spring-fed stream on the Lincoln National Forest outside of Alamogordo. Forest Service officials in the region said the decision to fence off nearly two dozen acres of wetland habitat around the spring was made a decade ago to protect what is considered to be a unique area within the forest.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The report this week confirming that 1,700 veterans were “at risk of being lost or forgotten” at a Phoenix hospital was hardly the first independent review that documented long wait times for some patients seeking health care from the Department of Veterans Af fairs and inaccurate records that understated the depth of the problem. Eleven years ago, a task force established by President George W. Bush determined that at least 236,000 veterans were waiting six months or more for a first appointment or an initial
follow-up. The task force warned that more veterans were expected to enter the system and that the delays threatened the quality of care the VA provided.
Otero County rallies for water, property rights
See KINTIGH, Page A9
Now, with drought taking its toll, the spring has receded and what water is left is beyond reach of the cattle.
Warnings on long VA patient waits went on for years
Jeff Tucker Photos
Top: Six-year-old Ethan Manemann, of Roswell, leaps to his sister, Hannah Manemann, Saturday, during the Roswell Splash-In grand opening of the newly refurbished pool at Cahoon Park. The pool will be open to the public from 1 to 6 p.m. every day through Labor Day weekend. Above: Anthony Urquidez, of Roswell, and a group of youths play basketball Saturday in the newly refurbished Cahoon Swimming Pool. For information about summer pool activities and classes, call the Roswell Parks & Recreation Office at 624-6720. Right: Roswell City Councilor Tabitha Denny takes a turn in the dunk machine Saturday at Cahoon Park. The toilet dunk machine was built by members of Roswell’s Tabernacle Baptist Church and used Saturday to cool down some city officials.
New RMAC Director Michael Hall excited about Roswell BY MARY MORGAN RECORD INTERN
A friendly and upbeat person, Michael Hall, new director of the Roswell Museum and Art Center, is always willing to give anyone he meets a tour of the museum. “I’m always happy to show people around and help them find exhibits,” he said. Hall moved to Roswell in early February. Prior to becoming the new director
at the Roswell museum, he has been the director of three other museums across the country in Indiana, Florida and Illinois. He has a wife, T resa, and a son, James. Hall has a strong interest in aviation and rocket science, which is a good fit for his new job in Roswell. He has written biographies on famed U.S. Air Force aeronautical engineer Alfred C. Loedding and physicist and inventor Robert H. Goddard.
HIGH 103 LOW 67 TODAY’S FORECAST
Loedding was a member of Project Sign from 1948 to 1949, the formal UFO investigative arm of the Air Force. Goddard is credited with creating and building the world’s first liquid-fueled rocket. His most successful work was done in Roswell from 1930 to 1941. Hall also has written a biography on Civil War-era gover nor and senator Henry S. Lane from Indiana.
• WILLIAM ROY PULLEY • GARY SANDOVAL • ROBERT PAUL HOFFMAN
Starting his career in 1987, Hall said he worked hard to climb the ladder of success from curator to executive director. In 2006, Hall introduced astronomy, environmental science, art history and performing arts programming to the Palm Beach County Schoolhouse Children’s Museum and Learning Center in Florida. In 2009, he was requested by the board of another museum to return
• MANUEL ALVAREZ PEREZ • FREDA WATTS WALL • GARY LEE ST. LOUIS
TODAY’S OBITUARIES PAGE B8
See RALLY, Page A2
Two years ago, a former hospital administrator told senators during an oversight hearing that VA hospitals were “gaming the system” and manipulating records to make it appear that wait time standards, the criteria for awarding manager and executive bonuses, were being met. Since 2005, the departSee WARNINGS, Page A3
and watch over the restoration and exhibit of a national landmark designed rail car that had served several presidents.
Hall said he is excited about living in Roswell. “Everyone is so nice. I love the community.”
Hall said he already has some long-term plans for the RMAC, with a threeyear exhibition on all art exhibits in the works as
See HALL, Page A3
CLASSIFIEDS ..........D1
COMICS .................C5
ENTERTAINMENT .....B9
INDEX GENERAL ...............A2
HOROSCOPES .........B7 LOTTERIES .............A2
Hall
OPINION .................A4
SPORTS .................B1
WEATHER ............A10