Santa Fe New Mexican, Dec. 23, 2023

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High court rejects bid by Smith to expedite Trump case

Detroit hopes for a win Saturday to avoid tying record losing streak

Delivery service Fetch closes as owners pivot to tech

SPORTS, B-1

LOCAL & REGION, A-7

PISTON ENGINES KEEP MISFIRING

NATION & WORLD, A-3

Saturday, December 23, 2023 santafenewmexican.com $1.50

Locally owned and independent

Trump set to be on state ballot Despite removal from primary by Colo. high court, former president, along with four other nominees, remains eligible for GOP voters in N.M. Primary Nomination by Committee. The committee, which consists of top lawmakers from both parties and the chairpersons of New Mexico’s three recognized major political parties, certifies the list of Republican, Democratic and Libertarian candidates who will appear on the June 4 pres-

By Daniel J. Chacón

dchacon@sfnewmexican.com

While the name of former President Donald Trump is, as of now, poised to be excluded from the presidential primary ballot in neighboring Colorado, the same won’t be true in New Mexico. Trump is among five Republicans who were nominated to participate in New Mexico’s 2024 presidential primary during a meeting Friday of the so-called Presidential

idential primary ballot. The committee also named one Libertarian and three Democrats, including President Joe Biden, whose names will be on the ballot. In an interview afterward, Republican Party Chairman Steve Pearce criticized the Colorado Supreme Court’s 4-3 decision earlier this week that Trump is ineligible to hold the presidency under the so-called Please see story on Page A-4

Supreme Court Chief Justice C. Shannon Bacon speaks to House Speak Javier Martínez and the members of the small committee gathered to determine Republican, Democratic and Libertarian candidates who will appear on the June 4 presidential primary ballot Friday at the New Mexico Supreme Court Building. GABRIELA CAMPOS/THE NEW MEXICAN

Filling in the gaps for Santa Fe

Highlands University names new president

As city struggles with maintenance, state agencies stepping in to ‘make critical street repairs,’ remove trash on roads

Veteran Oregon higher ed administrator will take reins at Las Vegas, N.M., campus by beginning of summer By Margaret O’Hara

mohara@sfnewmexican.com

New Mexico Highlands University has selected Neil Woolf, a longtime higher education administrator who most recently served at Southern Oregon University, as its next president. “I think we’re going to have an exciting next few years,” Highlands Regent Frank Neil Woolf Sanchez told Woolf during a special meeting Friday at which the board of regents unanimously approved his hire. Woolf will take over the top job at the Las Vegas, N.M.-based school from Sam Minner, who is retiring after serving in the position since 2015. Please see story on Page A-5

INSIDE u New Mexico Tech announces new president. PAGE A-5

Bishops reject pope’s order, refuse to bless gay couples

LUIS SÁNCHEZ SATURNO/THE NEW MEXICAN

Joerg Wehrenpfennig with Bixby Electric installs traffic detector wire Tuesday at the intersection of Cerrillos Road and Cordova Road. The New Mexico Department of Transportation announced Friday it had partnered with the state Tourism Department to assist Santa Fe with “critical” maintenance work.

overdue financial audits, which have prevented the city from accessing some state funding for the work. “As the city continues to work toward completing annual financial audits required to access unspent funds earmarked for improvements to roads, medians, and parks, it agreed to allow the state to step in to assist,” according to a news release, which the department issued after inquiries from The New Mexican. “This effort is ongoing and aims to make Santa Fe a better place to live, work, and visit.” The state has already spent nearly $650,000 on work in Santa Fe.

By Daniel J. Chacón dchacon@sfnewmexican.com

T

he city of Santa Fe is doing such a lousy job filling potholes, patching streets and picking up litter, the state of New Mexico has been stepping in to help. The New Mexico Department of Transportation announced Friday it had partnered with the state Tourism Department “to make critical street repairs, maintain medians, and clean up litter in high traffic areas” in the capital city. It cited Santa Fe’s ongoing effort to complete

Defiance mounting in Africa, Poland, elsewhere, shows how polarizing Francis’ stance remains among Catholics

The Department of Transportation has contributed more than $500,000 in worker hours and materials to address cracking asphalt, potholes and other road deterioration problems. The Tourism Department has provided $147,000 in additional funding to address litter in targeted areas, including Cerrillos Road, St. Francis Drive and St. Michael’s Drive, along with nearby arroyos. “There is no place in the world like New Mexico, and we should take pride in how it looks and feels for residents and visitors,” Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham said in a statement. Please see story on Page A-4

By Gerald Imray

The Associated Press

CAPE TOWN, South Africa — In an extraordinary pushback against Pope Francis, some Catholic bishops in Africa, Poland and elsewhere say they will not implement the new Vatican policy allowing blessings for same-sex couples. Others downplayed the policy approved this week by Francis as merely reaffirming the Vatican’s long-standing teaching about marriage being only a union between a man and a woman. The reactions show how polarizing the issue remains and how Francis’ decade-long effort to make the church a more welcoming place for the LGBTQ+ community continues to spark resistance among traditionalist and conservative Catholic leaders. Some of the strongest responses

New attention on spotty history of poinsettia namesake By Morgan Lee

The Associated Press

Like Christmas trees, Santa and reindeer, the poinsettia has long been a ubiquitous symbol of the holiday season in the U.S. and across Europe. But now, nearly 200 years after the plant with the bright crimson leaves

Pasapick pasatiempomagazine.com

Please see story on Page A-4

Index

Classifieds B-6

Comics B-10

Crosswords B-6, B-9

Design and headlines: Nick Baca, nbaca@sfnewmexican.com

was introduced in the U.S., attention is once again turning to the poinsettia’s origins and the checkered history of its namesake, a slave owner and lawmaker who played a part in the forced removal of Native Americans from their land. Some people would now rather call the plant by the name of its Indigenous origin in southern Mexico.

The name comes from the amateur botanist and statesman Joel Roberts Poinsett, who happened upon the plant in 1828 during his tenure as the first U.S. minister to the newly independent Mexico. Poinsett, who was interested in science as well as potential cash crops, sent clippings of the plant to his home

in South Carolina and to a botanist in Philadelphia, who affixed the eponymous name to the plant in gratitude. A life-size bronze statue of Poinsett still stands in his honor in downtown Greenville, S.C. However, he was cast out of Mexico Please see story on Page A-4

‘A Christmas Carol’

Today

Obituaries

Upstart Readers presents a dramatic reading of Charles Dickens’ Christmas tale, performed in Victorian dress; 2 and 7 p.m.; Unitarian Universalist Santa Fe, 107 W. Barcelona St., 505-9829674; $15; upstartcrowsofsantafe.org.

Rain and snow likely. High 42, low 25.

Medora Helffrich Jennings, 88, Santa Fe, Oct. 24 Edward K. Moench, 81, Santa Fe, Dec. 14

More events Fridays in Pasatiempo

PAGE A-10

PAGE A-8

Local & Region A-7

Lotteries A-2

Opinion A-9

Religion B-5

Sports B-1

Time Out B-9

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174th year, No. 357 Publication No. 596-440


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