STEVE TERRELL, New Mexican - State Republican Party Chairman John Dendahl is taking heat from Democratic and Green party leaders for offering the Greens big bucks to field Congressional candidates to try to drain votes from Democrats. Dendahl confirmed he had spoken several times with state Green Party leaders about the possibility of a six-figure contribution to the Greens if they ran candidates in the First Congressional District - which primarily is in Albuquerque - and the Second, which primarily encompasses southern New Mexico. The offer came from a Republican in Washington, D.C., whom Dendahl refuses to identify. Dendahl said the unnamed contributor is not an elected official or party officer. However, the Greens, after mulling over the offer, refused the money. In a written statement, state Green co-chairwoman Lisa Houston of Silver City said, "The Green Party of New Mexico will never accept money from other political parties, their surrogates or corporations. The Green Party will not be used as a support group for the Democratic Party nor as a battering ram for the Republican Party. We disavow and condemn any attempts to manipulate or use New Mexico voters as pawns in the game of politics as usual." State Democratic Chairman Jamie Koch said his Republican counterpart's offer to fund the Greens "stepped over the line" and called upon Dendahl to resign.
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