What is wrong with Bill Richardson?

[Herman Munster]

He's a successful two-term governor of a Western State in New Mexico. A badly needed geographic diversity the democrats need to win. The South is gone. We have to look at a new frontier to win elections.

He's hispanic. The fastest growing demographic in the country.

He has experience as a congressman, energy secretary, and UN ambassador.

He has foreign policy experience up the wazoo. And to my knowledge is the presidential candidate who has talked about Darfur and actually did something. He fucking went over there and personally negotiated a peace treaty.

I think he may be a dark horse to watch.

[NMDemDist2]

1. lots of unsavory rumors flying around

all it will take is one woman or a piece of videotape to bring him down

word is he likes the ladies and the booze :shrug:

[peacetalksforall]

13. In this day of independents investigating and analyzing, it seems

to me that any bright person wouldn't get into running for this office if there was a dark past. so, it makes me think there might not be anything to the rumors. We know how manipulative Republicans can take a blip and make it into their own atomic bomb - with claims of immorality. (After all, we know that Republicans expect AND DEMAND that Democrats be perfect saints.)

[NMDemDist2]

14. I understand

but again one piece of videotape can bring him down

he's my Governor but he's no barnstormer in the speaking department either

:shrug:

[peacetalksforall]

25. I know nothing, really - haven't followed him. That is bummer news

about him cleaning the voting records.

[Olney Blue]

19. Bill Richardson said that he didn't have any scandals in his

personal life (on George S show)

[mmonk]

2. I think he will have a surge (of a different kind) of support

as the 08 campaign heats up in earnest.

[WiseButAngrySara]

3. I'm waiting for other's responses. My opinion is that he

was too self-serving wrpt B* and media opportunities.

[MoonRiver]

4. One problem, for me at least, is that his NRA rating is "A"

That might make him more electable in the General, but I don't like it.

[Jackeen]

29. Bad for some, good for others. His Brady rating is 'F'

That's good enough for me.

[Ignacio Upton]

5. See this thread:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=364&topic_id=3171306&mesg_id=3171306

[zeemike]

6. That's my Governor

And formerly he was my Representative in the house, so I have known him for a while, or at least as well as one can know a politician. He has done a good job here in New Mexico and is well liked and seems to be a decent man.
I could support him for President but I am not hung up on him just because he is familiar.

[all.of.me]

17. me, too

he has done a lot for the schools up here, which is a blessing, because they suck! he follows through on what he says. he's very personable. he seems very real to me.

what politician does not have skeletons in the closet? or even out of the closet? none of them are perfect.

[janx]

30. I moved here to the Land of Enchantment about a year and

a half ago. I am amazed by the small-town flavor of this place--I love it! I know people who have met the governor, and they all like him. His local appearances (the Balloon Fiesta, etc.) are always fun to watch. People really seem to enjoy him. He has done much for the state--and in so doing, he has also earned some criticism, but it's usually local grumbling about this decision or that, sort of along the lines of Vermonters grumbling about something Howard Dean decided at one time or another.

Sadly, I might never meet him because he is now running for president.

There's local gossip about him, but that's an element of the culture and the relatively small-town feel of NM. And the local gossip is nothing awful, just predictable (and sometimes very funny).

As people get to know more about him and his history, I suspect he'll have quite the populist following.

Anyway, :hi:, I love my new home here. The environment is gorgeous, the culture laid back and diverse.

[zeemike]

36. I came here in 92

And bill Richardson was my House Representative. And he was liked by the people of Northern New Mexico because he had an anglo name, looked indian, and was raised in the traditional Spanish way.
I don;t know whether that will translate into a national populism but I hope so, We could do a lot worse than him as a candidate.
I hear d it said when I first came here that Northern New Mexico was 20 years behind the rest of the nation, and it was true but not in a bad way. It is that small town atmosphere that i enjoy. And you are right gossip is a great part of their culture, it is actually how they get to know you. It is seldom that the gossip is malicious in any way.

[Herman Munster]

7. he also has a sense of humor

Look at the election ad he ran in this re-election campaign for governor.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X0juSJ-y9xg

[janx]

31. Can't watch video--is that the classic western one where he

swaggers into a bar and orders a glass of milk? He also jokes that he's too heavy for his horse.(Yes, unlike Chimpy, many real westerners actually do ride horses.) But his humor is at its best when he's being interviewed locally--it's in the way he reacts to certain things, like the jacket they gave him at the last Balloon Fiesta, etc. :rofl:

It's a kind of western humor, I guess, a little like the Tester ads: "It's the hair."

[Nutmegger]

8. I seen his speak a few times doing various interviews

I like what he has to say and think he will add an interesting dynamic in the primary season.

[roody]

9. He wiped clean the electronic voting machines very quickly.

[Quixote1818]

10. This is the kind of stuff that impresses me most about Richardson

Richardson and Iraq

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CRUH1FySX1s&NR

[janx]

32. He knew. n/t

[babylonsister]

11. I submit this though some people think it's no big deal -

I wonder.


http://www.yesmagazine.org/article.asp?id=1511

snip//

The voting-industrial complex

New Mexico’s Secretary of State, Rebecca Vigil-Giron, seemed curiously uncurious about Hispanic and Native precincts where nearly one in ten voters couldn’t be bothered to choose a president.

Vigil-Giron, along with Governor Bill Richardson, not only stopped any attempt at a recount directly following the election, but demanded that all the machines be wiped clean. This not only concealed evidence of potential fraud but destroyed it. In 2006, New Mexico’s Supreme Court ruled the Secretary of State’s machine-cleaning job illegal — too late to change the outcome of the election, of course.

snip//

Governor Richardson, who ducked the issue for three years, and his Secretary of State, once openly hostile to reform, had to relent in the face of the public uprising. In February of 2006, Richardson signed a model law requiring that all voting in the state take place on new paper ballot machines, with verifiable tabulating systems. Richardson now claims the mantle of leader of the voting reform campaign.

[Nite Owl]

15. That would be a very

big deal to me. Thanks for that piece of info.

[Horse with no Name]

27. Try this on

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=364x3159328

[Elwood P Dowd]

12. He was a whore for the NAFTA/free trade/outsourcing crowd

when in congress. Never saw a job-exporting deal he didn't support.

[illinoisprogressive]

16. He has been my #2 choice. I think he is great and will be a contender

[Elwood P Dowd]

20. Millions of American workers don't have jobs now

or they've been forced to take lower paying service jobs thanks to policies he supported and promoted. If you want more of that, then have at with this Richardson clown.

[aikoaiko]

18. I've read on DU that he got rid of evidence of election fraud so that Bush would win

and he'd be a viable candidate in 2008.

Genius. :sarcasm:

[Herman Munster]

21. people actually believe everything they read at DU?

Now, that's funny. :rofl:

I strongly value experience. This guy makes Edwards, Clinton, and Obama look like empty suits. I'm strongly considering supporting him.

[babylonsister]

22. Why don't you buy yourself a star and search the election forum

archives? There's a wealth of info there that might wipe that smile off your face. Just sayin'...

[Horse with no Name]

28. Why would he do that?

He'd rather just slam everyone else.

[Elwood P Dowd]

26. He has plenty of experience

taking care of his wealthy friends at the expense of us poor working stiffs.

[Orangepeel]

23. nothing that can't be explained to my satisfaction

He's been in public service a long time. That gives him a wealth of experience and strong qualifications, but also provides some ammunition against him, as with anyone else.

Here are some issues that have been raised and my opinion of them:

1. He's not liberal "enough". It's true that there are candidates who are more liberal. Richardson is a mainstream Democrat with mainstream positions. He's pro choice, good on education, supports increased access to healthcare, supports redeployment, supports civil unions, etc. He's not as liberal as I would like, but he's okay with me.

2. He didn't support a recount in New Mexico in 2004 strongly enough. There's no question that the machines in New Mexico produced fucked up results in 2004, as there were an incredible and completely improbable number of lost votes. What could be done about it after the fact is still debatable (what good does it do to audit bogus machine counts?). Some people, including Greg Palast, blame both Richardson and the NM Secretary of State. People that I know within the Democratic Party in New Mexico say that they counted paper ballots until Thanksgiving and that Richardson did what he could do. I do give him credit for helping to push through real and enviable voting reform measures in New Mexico the next year. Since that fucked up election, what New Mexico has done to fix the problems should be praised and emulated. No other governor or any other state has done as much.

3. He was Secretary of Energy when Wen Ho Lee was improperly detained. I don't know much about this, but I tend to blame the Justice Department more than Richardson (who fired Lee based on the FBI investigation, but isn't the one who locked him up). Richardson was accused of leaking info about the investigation to the press, but denies it and there doesn't seem to be evidence that he did. Anybody who was a high ranking official in the Clinton administration was going to be the target of smears, so I don't take accusations as fact.

4. There are vague accusations about improper behavior toward women. This would be troublesome if true, but I'll reserve judgment until there is something more substantial. A lot of it seems to stem from comments that the Lt. Governor was quoted as saying, but she says that she was taken out of context and she strongly supports Richardson.

5. On edit, I forgot the baseball thing (see post below). In the 60s, when Richardson was in high school, he was a very good baseball player and got a lot of interest by pro teams. Apparently, he was offered a contract to play, but he was going to college instead so he wasn't drafted. http://www.baseballmusings.com/archives/012384.php. I don't fault a high school student thinking he'd been drafted under those circumstances, especially since the draft had only been in place a few years.

So, for now, Richardson is still on my very short list. Of course, more damaging stuff that outweighs his strengths could come out. That's what primaries are for.

[janx]

33. He's too centrist for the far-left and too qualified for people

who want others to end up with the nomination.

That leaves many other people to look honestly at his credentials.

[Poiuyt]

24. Didn't he claim that he had been drafted into major league baseball when in fact

he hadn't?

I know it's a minor thing, but you know the Repubs will blast him on it.

[generaldemocrat]

34. He's a great candidate, but the one issue I'm afraid will haunt him....

is the case of Wen Ho Lee during his tenure as Energy Secretary.

[AspenRose]

35. "He's hispanic. The fastest growing demographic in the country."

*sigh*

Hispanics are NOT....I repeat....NOT....a monolithic voting bloc.

Bill Richardson is of Mexican ancestry. Doesn't mean Cubans, or Puerto Ricans, or Salvadorans are going to vote for him.

I just heard a HISPANIC woman on my local news (Albuquerque) say that she is planning to vote for Hillary Clinton instead of Richardson.

So can we please get past the 'hispanics will vote for a hispanic' / 'blacks will vote for a black' mentality, PLEASE????



:crazy: