The Chile Wire

In this deeply moving episode of The Chile Wire, we sit down with Sam and Raul Vigil, who share their family’s heartbreaking story of loss and resilience. Sam’s wife and Raul’s mother, Jacqueline Vigil, was tragically murdered outside her Albuquerque home—a loss that shook their family and community to its core. The Vigils open up about their painful journey for justice and how local policies, inc...

In this episode of The Chile Wire, we sit down with Megan Rosker, Director of Admissions and Outreach at the May Center for Learning, to explore the organization’s powerful mission to ensure every child in New Mexico has the opportunity to read, learn, and thrive. Megan shares how the May Center is leading the way in addressing literacy challenges across our state—by providing specialized support...

In this week’s episode of The Chile Wire, we sit down with Keon Ahghar to unpack the truth behind New Mexico’s medical malpractice crisis — and how it’s putting patients’ access to high-quality healthcare at risk. We also breakdown the policy failures that have opened the door for out-of-state trial lawyers to swoop in, file massive lawsuits, and walk away with millions — all while our doctors, ho...

This week on The Chile Wire, we sit down with Rudy Mora — former New Mexico State Police officer, current Director of Public Safety for the Pueblo of Acoma, and board member for SafeNM — to talk about one of our state’s biggest challenges: crime.  Rudy shares what he’s seen on the front lines of law enforcement and offers an unfiltered look at the issues plaguing our communities across New Mexico....

💧 Episode 13 of the Chile Wire is here, and it’s all about one of New Mexico’s most valuable resources — water. We sit down with Jennifer Bradfute and Matthias Sayer of the newly formed WATR Alliance to dive into how New Mexico can lead the nation in recycling produced water, turning a challenge into an opportunity. From innovation to conservation, learn how this initiative could help preserve ou...

This week we sit down with Don and Damara Andrade, who are sounding the alarm on explicit books circulating in our public schools. 📚 Listen in as we learn more about how parents across New Mexico are joining the movement, demanding that schools provide age-appropriate, high-quality educational content.   👉 This isn’t about book banning—it’s about common sense and ensuring students are protected...

This week on The Chile Wire, we tackle three of the spiciest stories from last week. First, New Mexico is facing a moral crisis: child fatalities tied to an under resourced CYFD continue to rise—how did we get here, and who will take responsibility? Next, the redistricting of Texas causes tensions to rise and raises accusations of power grabs. Finally, we pull back the curtain on an event being ho...

Join us as we discuss what it's like being a parent in 2025 with Andrea Cloak who is currently raising a one year old daughter in New Mexico. This episode turns out to be a doozy as we learn what types of books are circulating in our public libraries. Andrea shares with us a book that was pointed out to her by a friend who made a recent visit to one of our public libraries. This episode contains g...

In episode 8 of The Chile Wire, we sit down with Española City Councilor Sam LeDoux to talk about the serious allegations facing the mayor of Espanola, NM, and the broader implications for transparency and accountability in New Mexico. Join us as we dig into why fighting corruption at every level of government matters more than ever. 

This week on The Chile Wire, we’re turning up the heat with some of the most outrageous headlines in New Mexico politics. We dive into the explosive allegations facing the mayor of Española—corruption, misconduct, and a town demanding answers. Then, we unravel the fallout from Congresswoman Melanie Stansbury’s eyebrow-raising poll blunder that has both sides of the aisle asking, “Who exactly was s...

This week on episode 6 of The Chile Wire, we’re diving into one of the most important conversations we can have during an upcoming election year—who’s fighting for New Mexico businesses, jobs, and families—and who’s failing us. Joining me is someone who’s been a tireless advocate for pro-business, pro-growth policies here in our state—Carla Sonntag, President and CEO of the New Mexico Business Coa...

Join host, Abenicio Baldonado, in episode 5 of the Chile Wire with special guest, Paul Gessing, President of the Rio Grande Foundation. Listen as they breakdown the records and campaign finance reports of the current democratic gubernatorial candidates, and discuss the consequences of their potential governorship.

This week on episode 4 of the Chile Wire, Abenicio Baldonado breaks down New Mexico’s political landscape, highlighting one-party control since 1931 and its long-standing consequences. He explores why, despite decades of Democratic leadership, the state continues to rank near the bottom in key outcomes like crime, education, and economic opportunity. Plus, a critical look at the 2026 gubernatorial...

Chile Wire Host, Abenicio Baldonado sits down with New Mexico State Representative Rod Montoya to talk about issues in New Mexico that should be common sense. These two discuss how there is a lack of accountability for criminal offenses here in New Mexico and how women's sports and spaces should be protected. During the 2025 Legislative Session, there were several other bills proposed that seemed...

Chile Wire Host, Abenicio Baldonado sits down and has a great conversation with State Representative Elaine Sena Cortez about the state of our New Mexico economy. These two dive into topics like income and social security taxes and the Paid Family and Medical Leave Act. Elaine Sena Cortez outlines her personal income tax bill and also her Silver Act that was just passed in New Mexico legislature l...

Abe Baldonado, Chile Wire host, sits down with the Executive Director of New Mexico Family Action Movement, Jodi Hendricks. They discuss the major family issues currently present up in Santa Fe and why they are important. They talk through the bad bills that have been introduced since the start of the 2025 Legislative Session but also some of the really good pieces of legislation that have been ma...