03-25-2011

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Roswell Daily Record

Gov plans to veto jobless fix bill THE VOICE OF THE PECOS VALLEY

Vol. 120, No. 73 50¢ Daily / $1 Sunday

INSIDE NEWS

WASHINGTON (AP) — Surprised scientists have discovered the remains of a saber-toothed vegetarian. The leaf-crunching animal — about the size of a large dog — lived 260 million years ago in what is now Brazil, researchers report in Friday’s edition of the journal Science. Its upper canine teeth were nearly ... - PAGE A7

TOP 5 WEB

For The Past 24 Hours

• CSI Roswell: Girl Scouts crack case • Animal Control offers hints • Rocky Point Ranch hosts riding camp • Baseball, softball players honored • Preps: GHS sweeps

INSIDE SPORTS

WIPP may get different waste

CARLSBAD (AP) — A nuclear waste repository in southeaster n New Mexico could be burying an additional type of low-level radioactive waste in the future. The U.S. Department of Energy is eyeing the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant east of Carlsbad and other sites around the country for waste known as greater-than-Class C low-level radioactive waste and greater-than-Class C-like waste. Such material consists of low-level radioactive waste generated by various activities, including electricity production by nuclear power plants, producing and using radioisotopes to diagnose and treat disease, oil and gas exploration, and other industrial uses, the DOE said. It does not include spent nuclear fuel or high-level waste. The Energy Department has issued a draft environmental

It is almost impossible to tell where a spark will come from in sports. A jump start could come from a bad call, a hustle play or the last person on the bench. For the NMMI Colt baseball team on Thursday, that little extra something came from a freshman hurler. Caitlin Duree, making her first appearance on the mound for the Colts, picked up the win in NMMI’s 8-7 win over Gateway Christian in the first round of the Roswell.... - PAGE B1

TODAY’S OBITUARIES

• Oneta Hargrove • Debra Jeanne Jackson • Alice Marquez • Ralph M. Purvis - PAGE A6

HIGH ...86˚ LOW ....45˚

TODAY’S FORECAST

CLASSIFIEDS..........B5 COMICS.................B3 FINANCIAL .............B4 GENERAL ..............A2 HOROSCOPES ........A8 LOTTERIES ............A2 NATION .................A6 OPINION ................A4 SPORTS ................B1 WEATHER ..............A8

session if the state’s economy doesn’t improve, according to Martinez spokesman Scott Darnell. The Legislature passed a bill that will raise taxes on businesses by $128 million next year — a 56 percent increase — and reduce benefits to prevent the unemployment trust fund from running out of money. If nothing is done, the fund is projected to become insolvent in March 2012, and the state might need to borrow from the federal

government to pay jobless benefits. “This bill just isn’t the prudent response right now,” said Darnell. Before making a decision on what should be done to the unemployment program, the administration wants to see if the economy rebounds and unemployment falls in the next several months. A special session of the Legislature is planned this fall to deal with redistricting, and the unemployment issue could be added to

the agenda if necessary, Darnell said. “The contribution increase portion of the proposed legislation would not take effect until next January, so addressing this issue during the redistricting special session in the fall has no impact on revenue to the fund and allows policymakers to have a much clearer See VETO, Page A7

Mark Wilson Photo

Another family to get its own home

Angela Leal and her sons, twins Isaiah and Elijah, 4, and Joshua, 9, attend the ground breaking for their new Habitat for Humanity home at 1208 E. Beech St., Thursday afternoon.

EMILY RUSSO MILLER RECORD STAFF WRITER

East Beech Avenue will soon have another house

on the block built by Habitat for Humanity of Roswell. A groundbreaking ceremony held Thursday afternoon celebrated

the start of construction for the seventh house on the street built by the nonprofit Christian housing ministry.

Mike Puckett, president of the Roswell chapter’s board of directors, See HOME, Page A7

Wilson campaigns in Roswell US border towns safe See WIPP, Page A7

COLTS RALLY FOR 8–7 WIN

FRIDAY

www.rdrnews.com

SANTA FE (AP) — Gov. Susana Martinez is sticking with her plan to veto a bill raising employer taxes and isn’t reconsidering despite business groups urging her to sign the legislation to shore up the unemployment compensation program, a spokesman for the governor said Thursday. However, the question of how to fix the ailing unemployment program could be back before the Legislature later this year in a special

SABERTOOTHED VEGETARIAN

March 25, 2011

See WILSON, Page A7

EL PASO, Texas (AP) — U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano said Thursday that security on the southern U.S. border “is better now than it ever has been” and that violence from neighboring Mexico hasn’t spilled over in a serious way. Napolitano spoke at the Bridge of The Americas border crossing, after a meeting with the mayors of the border towns of El Paso, and Nogales, and Yuma, Ariz. Under Secretary of Commerce for International Trade Francisco Sanchez and U.S. Customs and Border Protection Commissioner Alan Bersin also were present. Napolitano said the Department of Homeland Security will deploy 250 more border agents and expects to have 300 more under their next budget if

it’s approved. She stated that Homeland Security is investing “millions of dollars in the side of commerce and trade” to improve infrastructure and technology along the border. However, she added that there is a need to correct wrong impressions about the border region. Napolitano said border towns are safe for travel, trade and commerce. She noted that the total value of imports crossing the Southwest border was up 22 percent in fiscal year 2010. “There is a perception that the border is worse now than it ever has been. That is wrong. The border is better now than it ever has been,” she said. The perception that the violence in Mexico has

WASHINGTON (AP) — The United States welcomed a partial handover for the Libyan air campaign to NATO on Thursday, but the allies apparently balked at assuming full control and the U.S. military was left in charge of the brunt of combat. NATO agreed to take over command of the newly established no-fly zone over Libya, protective flights meant to deter Libyan strongman Moammar Gadhafi from putting warplanes in the air. That leaves the U.S. with responsibility for attacks on Gadhafi’s ground forces and other targets, which are the toughest and most contro-

versial portion of the operation. The U.S had hoped the alliance would reach a consensus Thursday for NATO to take full control of the military operation authorized by the United Nations, including the protection of Libyan civilians and supporting humanitarian aid efforts on the ground. It was not immediately clear when the allies could reach agreement on the matter. “We are taking the next step. We have agreed along with our NATO allies to transition command and control for the no-fly zone over Libya to NATO,” Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said.

“All 28 allies have also now authorized military authorities to develop an operations plan for NATO to take on the broader civilian protection mission,” Clinton said. Lines of authority were unclear Thursday night, but it appeared the NATO decision sets up dual command centers and opens the door to confusion and finger-pointing. U.S. commanders would presumably be chiefly responsible for ensuring that the NATO protective flights do not conflict with planned combat operations under U.S. command.

MATTHEW ARCO RECORD STAFF WRITER

U.S. Senate hopeful Heather Wilson made a campaign stop in Roswell Thursday. The Republican was seeking to drum up support in her bid to return to Washington. The former congresswoman and U.S. Air Force captain explained that her decision to run for office came because she is concerned with the future of the country, “in a number of dif ferent areas,” she said. Mark Wilson Photo “First and foremost, we need to get our financial Former U.S. Rep. Heather Wilson speaks with reporters at house in order,” said Wil- the Roswell Daily Record, Thursday. son, adding that federal federal gover nment is debt at a rate that is spending has increased to spending, is actually bor- unheard of in American an unsustainable level. history and ... we’re on a “What’s worse is that rowed money,” she said. 41 cents on the dollar the “So, we’re accumulating

US likely to keep combat role; allies balk at taking control

INDEX

Ap Photo

In this image taken during an organized trip by the Libyan authorities, men gather at a mass funeral for people killed in Coalition bombings, officials said, in Tripoli, Libya, Thursday.

See BORDER, Page A7

See LIBYA, Page A7


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