Lujan Grisham declines to put $100 up for workers’ unemployment benefits

At the end of July we noted that Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham was loudly demanding a big federal bailout of her lockdown policies here in New Mexico. At the time she said, “New Mexicans need all the help they can get during this public health and economic emergency.” 

Apparently that help doesn’t include $100/month from the State of New Mexico.

Since making that statement President Trump signed an executive order that, among other things offers $400 in “extended” unemployment benefits with $300 coming from the federal government and $100 “expected” to come from the states. Whether this EO was a good idea or not is beyond the scope of this piece, but what is undeniable is that for all of her talk about what Washington should do for the unemployed, New Mexico isn’t going to do anything. That $100 that Trump’s EO asks the states to pay in order to bring the unemployment benefits to $400 a month will not be forthcoming according to the Associated Press.

Basically, as long as she could make political points and suck money in from Washington MLG was going to loudly demand higher unemployment benefits. Once Washington asked for a little matching funding to help those workers MLG is nowhere to be found.