Michelle Lujan Grisham
Role at the time: Governor of New Mexico
Response to this claim
The DHS waiver of New Mexico's water laws is unconstitutional because the state constitution makes New Mexico's water public property and the Tenth Amendment protects the state's authority to regulate it.
“New Mexico will not stand by while the federal government carelessly drains our most precious resource to push its inhumane agenda. New Mexicans refuse to pay for the federal government's flagrant disregard for the Constitution with our water.”
Press release from Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham's office dated October 2, 2026, responding to the DHS waiver published that day. It includes statements from the governor and State Engineer Elizabeth K. Anderson and says DHS is still using at least three wells drilled without state permits.
Why we used this label
The reference point is DHS's October 2 waiver of New Mexico water law and the federal use of wells drilled without state permits for border wall construction. Lujan Grisham says the federal government "carelessly drains our most precious resource" with "flagrant disregard for the Constitution", so we labeled it Condemned. The closest competing label is Mixed or conditional; it loses because her support for border security does not extend to the waiver, which she opposes outright.