“Senator Feldman’s account of behind-the-scenes arm-twisting, fake ‘grassroots’ campaigns, campaign cash and misinformation spread by Big Pharma rings all too true. Unfortunately these tactics are common and effective, squashing legislators’ efforts to make medicines more affordable.”—Sharon Anglin Treat, State Legislator, District 79, Hallowell, Maine
"It can be stomach churning to watch a state legislature in action, but it can also be a strong motivation to push for improvements. Dede Feldman has pushed hard and effectively as a fighting reformer and former state senator in New Mexico -- and now, with this insightful peek into the inner workings of that legislative chamber, she's encouraging all of us to join the fight." —Jim Hightower
“To look at a legislative body is to observe democracy in the raw—with all its diverse characters and influences and its many conflicts, compromises, and achievements. Dede Feldman, as both a highly commendable participant and a first-rate observer and chronicler, shows us the insides of the New Mexico State Senate in the completely honest, highly informative, and highly interesting Inside the New Mexico Senate.”—Fred Harris, former U.S. Senator and professor emeritus of political science, University of New Mexico
“Wonderfully written, important, and at times gripping. The significance of this book lies not only in the author’s insider perspective and clear, lively prose. We are at a juncture where state legislatures are more and more important in setting the tone and content of national politics. The rise of ALEC, abortion politics, redistricting and gerrymandering battles, labor politics—all these things come out of how controls state legislatures, and how those bodies work. I am really impressed with the fair-minded and generous tone of this book. Feldman is a model of how politics can be when people who care both about outcomes and process take the risk to run, and devote their time and talent to public service.”—Virginia Scharff, director, Center for the Southwest, University of New Mexico, author of The Women Jefferson Loved
“From her unique vantage point as a key player in many legislative battles, some of which I fought with her, Senator Feldman has written an insightful and compelling history of the New Mexico Senate. Her observations are astute and her story is well told. We all know Dede is a skilled and determined legislator. Now we know she is a talented writer as well.”—Senator Tom Udall
“While the media obsesses with Washington politics, state legislatures across the country shape our lives in countless ways. This book stands as one of the very few that offer firsthand insight into how we govern ourselves in the fifty states, with the focus on New Mexico, an enigmatic bellwether with more rogues and heroes per capita than one could imagine. As former state senator Dede Feldman (D-Albuquerque) shares with us particular, and peculiar, details of her sixteen years serving in New Mexico’s Roundhouse, we can see the universal truths of citizen legislatures. Feldman reveals what happens when we elect a mix of idealism, naiveté, vanity, and avarice, and she shows the larger structural constraints that bring a familiar arc to the careers of her unique characters.”—John Gastil, Director, Democracy Institute, Pennsylvania State University
