This week, I noticed a post on a local social media app. The post is about a local referendum movement targeting several bills that were passed during the 2023 New Mexico legislative session. Along with the post was an uploaded image with the title graphic “We the People of New Mexico Say NO to tyranny,” and “The Referendum Movement.” The background image consists of the East Mountain Cowboy Church logo with the signature bull and three crosses.

The post urges residents of the town of Edgewood New Mexico to sign a referendum repealing several bills passed during the latest session, including HB 7 (the Reproductive and Gender-Affirming Health Care Act), SB 13 (TheReproductive Health Provider Protections Act), SB 180 (Election Changes), SB 397 (School-Based Health Centers), and HB 4 (The Voting Rights Protections Act). The post also included a comment about stopping “radical laws” that are taking away parenting rights and more and urging supporters to take a stand against “radical” lawmakers.

It’s ironic that the above bills expand human and voting rights protections for citizens in New Mexico, yet the referendum claims that they are taking away individual freedoms.

The referendum appears to be pushed by a non-profit called Better Together New Mexico. On the Better Together website, a Mr. Sonntag posted a memo about the referendum, which accuses the New Mexico Secretary of State of blocking efforts guaranteed by Article IV, Section 1 of the New Mexico Constitution which states that New Mexico voters can exercise their veto referendum rights to “disapprove, suspend and annul any law enacted by the legislature,”… with some exceptions.”

Other groups involved in the referendum are Change Course New Mexico (which is associated with Concerned Citizens of New Mexico), The Library Guild, NMET Network, Right to Life, and One Name One Banner.

It’s not a surprise that the above organizations are linked to several extremist individuals and right-wing groups.

For example, Change Course New Mexico hosted a Steve Bannon and Mike Lindell event in Ruidoso in 2022, and the Chairman of the NMET Network is John J. Veltri who posts conspiracy theories and pro-trump nonsense on his Twitter feed. As an organization, the NMET Network has three primary guiding documents, the Holy Bible, the New Mexico Constitution, and the United States Constitution.

Mr. Sonntag’s memo on the Better Together New Mexico website claims that the five bills limit parental rights in regard to decisions about gender, and abortion and that the election bill, in particular, poses a drastic and “dangerous” change to NM election law. FYI: HB 4 (The Voting Rights Protections Act), restores voting rights to incarcerated individuals who have served their sentences, establishes automatic voter registration, creates a permanent absentee ballot list and expands drop box use, and enacts the Native American Voting Rights Act. HB4 doesn’t sound drastic or dangerous to those in favor of a Democracy.

One interesting fact about Larry Sonntag and his wife, Carla, is that they are also involved in the New Mexico Business Coalition, which is featured in a list of organizations that have accepted money via the Koch Brothers network. The New Mexico Business Coalition is known for its loyalty to oil and gas and its opposition to the development of renewable energy (Carla currently serves as president of the Coalition).

We all know that the Koch family has funded organizations that contribute to Republican candidates, promote climate change denial, lobby against a woman’s right to choose, and oppose unions and voting rights. Both brothers, Charles and David (David passed in 2019), are notorious for their beliefs in individual freedom, unbridled capitalism, and a life free of taxation, regulations, and any efforts to curb free enterprise.

The Better Together website is another right-wing website claiming that its mission is to fight against government overreach, preserve our borders, protect constitutional rights, preserve election integrity, respect life from conception, and elect officials who carry out their “common values.” 

Let’s not kid ourselves. The buzzwords that pepper the organization’s mission are straight out of the right-wing handbook. It’s clear that their goal is to impose their values and laws on the rest of us at the risk of democracy and the erosion of human rights.