Close encounters of the gubernatorial kind

New Mexicans shouldn't struggle to decide on a candidate for governor.

During the first televised debate Wednesday night on KASA and KRQE, Democrat Michelle Lujan Grisham described a New Mexico where government acts as a force for good, creating opportunities and driving economic development. Republican Steve Pearce painted a picture of a state where government will get out of the way and nudge residents toward self-sufficiency.

The differing visions could hardly be more stark.

Sitting at a large table on either side of KRQE anchor Dean Staley, neither candidate made any significant gaffes, nor did either deal any withering one-liners. Instead those who tuned in to the early primetime conversation (6 pm) saw a pair of candidates who believe there's much New Mexico can do to better its station.

The question is how.

Both candidates have given up relatively safe seats in Congress for the chance to put their vision to work. Pearce, a Hobbs oil field businessman, and Lujan Grisham, a healthcare administrator, have plenty in their backgrounds that defines how they'd see a term as governor.

Pearce has a bootstraps ideal that pervaded much of his commentary Wednesday evening. He opposed an increase in the minimum wage, arguing it's cemented poverty in the country.

"And that's a great problem for us, and it's caused by these intense government regulations telling companies what they can pay," Pearce told Staley. "You can't pay more just because you want to. Your bottom line has to sustain that. As a business, you have to develop the margins that allow you to pay more."

Lujan Grisham, who has worked at various state agencies and championed government programs, jumped at the idea of an increase, first to $10 an hour, then to $12 an hour in four years with further increases indexed to inflation—similar to Santa Fe's so-called living wage, which sits at $11.40 an hour.

"Wage inequality is such as significant issue," the congresswoman said. "What it does is it declares unequivocally that you're going to keep families in poverty, you're going to keep women in poverty."

The two differed again on increasing payouts from New Mexico's permanent funds, specifically to pay for early education programs. The multi-billion-dollar funds were put in place at statehood to provide a sustainable stream of money for education. They pump hundreds of millions of dollars from investment earnings into public schools each year.

Lujan Grisham said an increased distribution from the funds now would pay off later, as children who benefited from more robust early education become adults.

"For every dollar you spend on early childhood education, you get seven dollars returned. It is a very prudent investement," she said. "Every state that has a successful, quality public education system is investing in early childhood education. You can't be serious about a quality education, about improving the economy and diminishing poverty if we're not investing in early childhood education."

Pearce recalled being in the state Legislature "when we went to K. And that was going to be the solution to education." Now that the state has widespread kindergarten programs, he said, pre-K has appeared as the next solution.

"I think we need to fix what we're working on now before we go and expand tremendously," Pearce said, adding it made no sense to increase payouts from either a financial standpoint or as a policy position. "They're mismanaging the budget at the current point, so we're going to give them even more? I think that we should be fiscally responsible"

The debate, which wasn't timed or regulated with buzzers, bells or warning lights, became somewhat sharp with Staley's follow-up question. He asked the candidates if they'd support promoting kids to the next grade if they were unable to read at grade level. The effort to stop "social promotion" was a hallmark effort—though one that failed—of Gov. Susana Martinez.

Pearce sidestepped the question, focusing on kindergarten-through-third-grade literacy efforts as a way to prevent such a problem.

"I don't want to wait to the third grade to see if we didn't reach grade level," he said. Instead, Pearce envisioned an hour a day of reading to kids through a group of both volunteers as well as those who are on public assistance such as Medicaid.

"I would have a work requirement for you. We would do it with a full heart. We would give you training, we would help you get back on your feet, but we'll have a work requirement," he said. "But if you have kids in school, your work requirement is going to be to go to school and volunteer with your kid and other kids to read."

"Mr. Pearce, I would like an answer," Staley replied, indicating that Pearce's proposed solution didn't address the reality that some students today aren't reading at grade level. "It's not a strange sort of bizarre, made-up question. These kids exist."

Pearce never answered, and again said if the state developed a more robust literacy plan, it wouldn't have such a problem.

Lujan Grisham ducked a direct answer, too, saying instead that the state needed to strengthen its early childhood education system. She also jabbed at Pearce.

"The notion that volunteers and Medicaid recipients who already have full-time jobs, who are trying to support their families, can read to kids without training and expertise, that that in and of itself solves our education problem, I think is very short-sighted," Lujan Grisham said.

Pearce repeatedly criticized Lujan Grisham for what he saw as an enthusiasm for regulation of oil and gas extraction that would "shut down" that industry in New Mexico. The congresswoman said she would work to limit drilling near places like Chaco Canyon and Santa Fe, but favored an "all of the above" approach that promoted renewable energy sources. Pearce claimed a hostile environment toward drilling (presumably under the Martinez administration) has driven wells to Texas, costing New Mexico millions.

Staley also asked the pair of gubernatorial hopefuls what they thought about President Trump. Lujan Grisham, who heads the Congressional Hispanic Caucus and recently refused an invitation to the White House, called the president's immigration policies racist. Pearce, a member of the conservative House Freedom Caucus, said he viewed Trump the same way he viewed presidents Obama and Bush: If he felt he needed to oppose them, he would.

There are two more confirmed debates on Albuquerque's two other network affiliates. KOB-TV, the NBC affiliate, hosts a 6 pm debate on Tuesday, Oct. 16, and KOAT-TV, channel 7, has a debate set for Wednesday, Oct. 24 at 7 pm. In addition, New Mexico PBS plans to air one-on-one interviews with the candidates Sunday, Oct. 7.

The last day to register to vote in the general election is Oct. 9. In-person absentee voting starts that day as well. Early voting runs from Oct. 20 through Nov. 3. Election Day is Nov. 6.