Albuquerque Journal from Albuquerque, New Mexico • Page 1

I ALBUQUERGPE JOURNAL nuJSiSlSiSjii uUlj u.t:.iXJJiM. ikA 118th Year, No. 71 78 Pages in 8 Sections Thursday Morning, March 12, 1998 Copyright0 1998, Journal Publishing Co. FINAL. Fast-Food Ad Makes Chihuahuas the New, Hot Dog r- 1 JUST A REGULAR GUY: While his counterpart, Dinky, Is a famous television celebrity as the Taco Bell talking Chihuahua, this purebred, Randy, makes his own statement by a television at his Albuquerque South Valley home.

Randy's owner, Mary Floras, owns the Ace of Hearts Kennel. JAIME OISPENZA JOURNAL universally popular. A Tampa, chapter of the League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC), has asked Hispanics to boycott Taco Bell, saying the use of the Spanish-speaking dog to hype food is demeaning. A few other chapters have followed suit. New Mexico LULAC director Connie Martinez said she hasn't heard any negative reaction to the commercials.

"I didn't find it offensive," said Martinez, who oversees 12 LULAC councils. "I've been out of the state, but I would have had messages from members across the state if they would have found this commercial degrading. I think it's kind of cute, myself." Manuel Martinez, a LULAC district director for a council in southwest New Mexico, said he finds the commercials tasteless. "But I won't speak for the other members in our council because they haven't expressed anything to me," said Martinez, who lives near Silver City. "I don't like the commercials myself.

My reason is that (Taco Bell) is using a dog to speak our language. I don't think that's nice. I've heard from many other people here in the southern part of the state who feel the same way." Martinez doubted his opinion would lead to a boycott of Taco Bell by New Mexico chapters of LULAC. "I don't think that company did this to offend people, so we have to have a sense See CHIHUAHUAS on PAGE AIO By Barbara Chavez Journal Staff Writer Dinky the taco-loving talking Chihuahua appears to be doing for that breed what Disney did for Dalmatians. When Dinky began appearing in the ads in December saying, "Yo quiero Taco Bell," the pets' popularity started to soar.

In Albuquerque and across the country, pet stores are scrambling to find breeders for the pointy-eared, scrawny, yapping dogs. And when they get puppies, suppliers are selling them at a premium anywhere from $350 to $800. However, the commercial behind the breed's sudden celebrity has not been GIANT KILLERS Johesoe Approves Slimmer Budget' Line-Item Vetoes Trim $48 Million Panel OKs Domenici Paseo Bill Bingaman Votes Against Proposal By Patrick Armuo Journal Washington Bureau New Mexico's two senators were in opposite camps Wednesday when a Senate committee approved a proposal to pave the way for extending a road through Petroglyph National Monument. Sen. Pete Domenici's measure seeking to enable the extension of Paseo del Norte passed on a voice vote by the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee.

Sen. Jeff Bingaman, voted against the bill. Domenici, and Bingaman differed in their views about the role of the National Park Service in designing the extension. Domenici's legislation removes an 8.5-acre corridor from the Petroglyph National Monument to allow for an extension of the road. Opponents have said construction of the road would damage the petro-glyphs ancient Indian etchings on the West Mesa's volcanic rocks.

Domenici said the national monument, which he was instrumental in establishing, has saved much of the rock art from development and vandalism. Bingaman said he believes such a road will be necessary on the West Side. But he argued at the hearing that the National Park Service be given an active role in design of any proposed extension of Paseo del Norte. "I think anyone who will be fair in their review of the history, will say that the Park Service as a federal I See SENATE on PAGE A2 By Chris Roberts Journal Capitol Bureau SANTA FE Gov. Gary Johnson signed a state budget bill with more than $3 billion in spending Wednesday, but used line-item vetoes to chop out $48 million that he said was necessary to balance spending with revenue.

The $3.13 billion budget will spend about 4 percent more than this year's budget. Shot down Some bills the governor vetoed A2 On the road Johnson, Bradley start stumping D3 The money goes for public schools, higher education and general government operations in the fiscal year beginning on July 1. Johnson said his line-item vetoes also will mean that legislators will need to return to Santa Fe to do more work on the budget. "We need a short and very businesslike special session to fix numerous and easily identifiable areas of the budget," Johnson said Wednesday at a Capitol news conference. While he vetoed $48 million from DEAN HANSONJOURNAL Taos' Daniel Gonzales, left, and Karlo Cantu celebrate their 58-50 victory over longtime powerhouse Albuquerque Academy on Wednesday In the boys high school state basketball tournament.

Academy had made It to every championship game since 1989, winning six titles. Full tournament coverage in Sports. Ad Pitch May Recruit Snitches Nasty past, bad company OK APD wants you, if you've got the communication skills for the job the budget bill, Johnson also wants $23 million restored in the special session. The seemingly contradictory demands appear due, at least in part, to the governor's wish to undo restrictions legislators attached to money he line-item vetoed. Johnson also questioned the Legislature's assumptions about state revenue coming from Indian and non-Indian gaming.

The amount vetoed by Johnson is down from what he cut last year, when the governor used his pen to take out $70 million of the Legislature's budget bill. He said Wednesday that a special session could be conducted in two days, probably in April. Wednesday was the deadline for Johnson to act on legislation passed during the 30-day regular legislative session that ended Feb. 19. Johnson also signed other money bills and vetoed nearly two dozen other GOOD MORNING Gov.

Johnson sees his veto pen as the best defense against red ink. how the fishing is," Hart said. If it works, "we could get some real good informants." Hart said the idea for a want ad "just kept popping in my head. I couldn't get rid of it." He said he's never heard of any other police force trying the tactic, but said it's likely been done before. The beginning of Hart's proposed ad reads, "Wanted: Do you have information See APD on PAGE AIO business would like to recruit more confidential informants who provide crime tips, Detective Roch Hart said Wednesday.

So Hart said he plans to do something APD apparently has never done before take out want ads for informants in alternative weekly papers and want-ad publications. The concept is "untried, untested. Might as well throw the worm out and see By Jeff Jones Journal Staff Writer WANTED: People who hang out with, crooks to do part-time work for the Albuquerque Police Department. Make some extra cash. Drug use OK.

Criminal record? Not a problem. Must be willing to work odd hours. APD's Repeat Offender Project a group of undercover detectives that works to put veteran criminals out of Wevtherci6 Partly cloudy. High 60, low 36. See JOHNSON on PAGE A2 BRIDGE B7 HOROSCOPE BT Buyout Rumors Prove True Memorial's Focus Shifts From Onate to Settlers BUSINESS D4-T LOTTERY A2 CLASSIFIED C8-15 METRO 01 COMICS B8 MOVIES B3 CRQSSWORD B7 NEW MEXICO 03 DEAR ABBY B7 SPORTS Cl-T Deaths cie stocks ps EDITORIALS A14-1S TV B6 GO! Bl WEATHER CIS SPORTS SCORES 821-1800 TIME, TEMP, WEATHER 821-1111 SF WEATHER 988-5151 Norwest To Acquire Bank of New Mexico By Aaron Baca Journal Staff Writer The rumored Norwest Bank buyout of Bank of New Mexico is no longer a rumor.

Norwest will buy Bank of New Mexico as part of the purchase of six bank holding companies in five states, Norwest officials said Wednesday. The price was not released, but the six holding companies have total assets of $1.4 billion. Bank of New Mexico has $390 million in assets and 28 locations throughout the state. Bank of New Mexico President Clint Arnoldus said details of the buyout were still being worked out and would likely take several months. Arnoldus said the move should mean enhanced services for customers.

"Norwest has been successful in being a community bank with the muscle of a major bank," he said. When the buyout is completed, the name Bank of New Mexico will eventually disappear, Arnoldus said. Doris Rhodes, a Norwest spokeswoman in Albuquerque, said the buyout would add rural branches such as the branch in Wagon Mound to Norwest's New Mexico systepi. She said Norwest will begin evaluating what needs to be done to incorporate Bank of New Mexico into the Norwest system. The process could eventually mean job cuts and branch closures where Norwest and Bank of New Mexico offices are near each other as the bank eliminates redundancies.

"But that's going to be a slow-going process," she said. "I can say we will try to minimize the impact on employees and customers. I think any of that (job cuts) would be handled through natural turnover." See NORWEST on PAGE A10 By Anthony DellaFlora Journal Staff Writer A proposed statue commemorating the colonization of New Mexico will no longer focus on Juan de Onate. The Albuquerque Arts Board voted Wednesday to change the focus of the memorial from Onate to the settlers who arrived in New Mexico with Onate 400 years ago and established the first permanent European settlement west of the Onate apparently would still be represented in a redesigned memorial, to go up in Tiguex Park. But the prospectus for the memorial now states that the artists will represent the experience of Native Americans before, during and after the arrival of the Onate expedition.

It further notes that the piece should emphasize the interaction among Onate, the settlers and the Native American popu- See MEMORIAL'S on A13 Albuquerque Journal on the Web: abqfoumal. 6 65'l00010'.