Albuquerque’s City Clerk and Mayor Tim Keller are urging the city’s ethics commission to investigate the distribution of “I Love Tim Keller” sweatshirts to the homeless before the recent mayoral election, as the identity of the person responsible remains unknown. Paul Gessing, of the taxpayer watchdog group Rio Grande Foundation, claims to know the individual behind the sweatshirts but is keeping their identity confidential. “I am aware of the individual who passed the shirts out, yes,” Gessing said. “I can’t tell you because they don’t want to be notified or made public as somebody who’s doing this kind of I guess you’d call a guerrilla marketing or guerrilla campaign tactics.”Mayor Keller’s campaign attorney, Daymon Ely, filed a complaint with City Clerk Ethan Watson, stating that if the issue remains unresolved, it could undermine the election code. Ely said, “He knows who did it, he knows they did it to help the campaign that’s opposing Tim Keller, and they did to try and influence voters at the polls.”Watson believes the complaint has merit and has forwarded it to the ethics commission for investigation. Legal expert John Day explained that the commission could issue subpoenas to compel testimony, but individuals are not necessarily obligated to comply due to First and Fifth Amendment protections. “The First Amendment protects your right and the Fifth Amendment protects your right not to have to talk to any government agency,” Day said. “What’s the Ethics Commission gonna do? Are they gonna sit him down and waterboard him until he tells them what they wanna hear? I mean, that just doesn’t happen.”Gessing’s attorney, Blair Dunn, has already informed the city clerk that Gessing will not participate in the process. Gessing stated, “We’re going to be challenging. The clerk and the mayor’s campaign and others who have said that I need to spill the beans on who provided the sweatshirts.”Day noted that if Gessing does not comply with subpoenas, the matter could escalate to district court and potentially set a precedent regarding election laws and free speech. The ethics commission has the authority to impose $500 fines on organizations like Gessing’s Rio Grande Foundation.
Albuquerque’s City Clerk and Mayor Tim Keller are urging the city’s ethics commission to investigate the distribution of “I Love Tim Keller” sweatshirts to the homeless before the recent mayoral election, as the identity of the person responsible remains unknown.
Paul Gessing, of the taxpayer watchdog group Rio Grande Foundation, claims to know the individual behind the sweatshirts but is keeping their identity confidential.
“I am aware of the individual who passed the shirts out, yes,” Gessing said. “I can’t tell you because they don’t want to be notified or made public as somebody who’s doing this kind of I guess you’d call a guerrilla marketing or guerrilla campaign tactics.”
Mayor Keller’s campaign attorney, Daymon Ely, filed a complaint with City Clerk Ethan Watson, stating that if the issue remains unresolved, it could undermine the election code.
Ely said, “He knows who did it, he knows they did it to help the campaign that’s opposing Tim Keller, and they did to try and influence voters at the polls.”
Watson believes the complaint has merit and has forwarded it to the ethics commission for investigation. Legal expert John Day explained that the commission could issue subpoenas to compel testimony, but individuals are not necessarily obligated to comply due to First and Fifth Amendment protections.
“The First Amendment protects your right and the Fifth Amendment protects your right not to have to talk to any government agency,” Day said. “What’s the Ethics Commission gonna do? Are they gonna sit him down and waterboard him until he tells them what they wanna hear? I mean, that just doesn’t happen.”
Gessing’s attorney, Blair Dunn, has already informed the city clerk that Gessing will not participate in the process. Gessing stated, “We’re going to be challenging. The clerk and the mayor’s campaign and others who have said that I need to spill the beans on who provided the sweatshirts.”
Day noted that if Gessing does not comply with subpoenas, the matter could escalate to district court and potentially set a precedent regarding election laws and free speech.
The ethics commission has the authority to impose $500 fines on organizations like Gessing’s Rio Grande Foundation.
