Get up early Friday if you want to know about Billy the Kid

Gov. Bill Richardson at 5:10 a.m. Mountain Time Friday will announce his decision on the Billy the Kid pardon. He'll do so on ABC's Good Morning America, his office announced. That's one way to get national attention, I suppose...while the rest of us locals sleep in.

Happy 2011!

So many of you have said this year that it was hard to read this blog against a black background. So it's about time I changed, it right?

(Not that it matters to the good folks at the PRC, who say they still can't read my blog at work.)

Thanks to all my readers this year for the mountain of tips and inside info. You kept it interesting in a year that was already fascinating on the political beat. See you in 2011.

Richardson done with pardons, except possibly Billy the Kid

Gov. Bill Richardson is done with pardons and commutations, his office just said in a news release -- with the exception of the case of Billy the Kid, which he still is considering.

According to records, he has pardoned 19 people so far. More information in the New Mexican Thursday.

As for those who recently have recently asked for executive clemency, Richardson said "I believe that requests of this nature must be fully vetted and investigated by the appropriate agencies to ensure that I do the right thing for those who request clemency as well as the citizens of New Mexico. While appreciate the urgency from those who have made last-minute requests for pardons, I do not have adequate time to thoroughly review them before leaving office."

A look at key players in the Martinez administration

I've got the first of several stories in today's paper about the key players behind Gov.-elect Susana Martinez. Check it out and stay tuned for the others.

Fierro seeks clemency from governor

Carlos Fierro is seeking clemency from Gov. Bill Richardson. If you've been following the issue, we're still not sure who else is asking for clemency, however. Stay tuned.

Journalists waiting on pardon application info

We've heard a lot about Billy the Kid's potential pardon from Gov. Bill Richardson. But we haven't heard yet on who else he might pardon, despite recent requests. I wrote about the issue in today's paper.

The Governor's Office is still working on the requests, and has until Dec. 29 to produce the records of who has applied for a pardon or to have their sentence commuted. Stay tuned.

Martinez choses Hanna Skandera for education secretary

I couldn't go to the announcement today, but just got this from Jeb Bush, the former governor of Florida who worked with Gov.-elect Susana Martinez' choice for education secretary, Hanna Skandera ...

“Hanna is a passionate, effective advocate for improving student achievement. Her vast academic, government and professional experience in education makes her an incredible asset to New Mexico as they work to improve student outcomes,” Bush said.

Skandera led school reforms in Florida and at one point worked in Dallas. More info from the Martinez camp on why they chose her, when I get it.

According to the group of which she once was the CEO , Skandera "was Deputy Chief of Staff to Education Secretary Margaret Spellings. While working in Washington for Secretary Spellings, Skandera focused on a range of issues related to K through 12 and postsecondary education. She previously served as Deputy Commissioner of Education in Florida."

UPDATE

In her statement, Martinez stated, “Hanna is a proven reformer who has successfully implemented education innovations and achievement-based reforms for two of our nation’s governors. She shares my belief that we must focus on implementing reforms that improve student achievement here in New Mexico, rather than simply throwing more money at a failed system.”

Martinez' office also said "Skandera has also served as an undersecretary of education for California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger and most recently as the deputy chief of staff and senior policy advisor in the U.S. Department of Education. Her career as an educator began during college, where she worked with Catholic Charities to develop peer education programs and life skills curricula that were used throughout the U.S. She is a graduate of Sonoma State University with a Bachelor of Science in Business and earned her Master of Public Policy from Pepperdine University, where she graduated first in her class."