Bill Richardson: Qualified Democrat

Whether Bill Richardson wins the Democratic nomination or not, he belong in the next administration. This guy has what it takes to make things happen. Here's the latest catch from Raw Story:

Former US envoy Bill Richardson said on Sunday he was optimistic North Korea will begin taking steps to shut down its nuclear program despite failing to meet a promised deadline at the weekend.

Richardson, who served as US ambassador to the United Nations during former president Bill Clinton's administration, said he believed North Korea would allow in UN inspectors and move to shut down a nuclear reactor as part of an international agreement.

"My prediction ... is that early this week, they will invite the inspectors. They will start the process of shutting down the reactor," said Richardson, governor of the US state of New Mexico, in an interview with ABC television.

Richardson, a Democratic presidential hopeful who has conducted negotiations in the past with North Korea, said he had received positive assurances during a visit to North Korea last week as part of a US delegation.

"They committed to me on April 12, my last day in North Korea with a bipartisan delegation, that they would shut down the reactor shortly, that they would also invite international inspectors to monitor that, shut down their reprocessing facility," Richardson said.

Let's hope Bill Richardson continues to have successful negotiations with the North Koreans.

Wide Open Democratic Race

Competition is good. An honest debate among reasonably capable people is a generally a good sign in a democracy (I said debate, not right wing Republican sophistry where a signing statement is sometimes considered more important than the U.S. Constitution or the opinion of a right wing comedian with a cigar is taken as fact). We have an open race on the Democratic side and it's not just about Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama and John Edwards. Even some of the other candidates benefit as well.

Here's a story that explains the benefit to both Bill Richardson and Christopher Dodd:

Sen. Barack Obama scored big in fundraising this week but the two happiest candidates may be New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson and Sen. Christopher J. Dodd of Connecticut, two second-tier Democratic presidential hopefuls who now see an opening since Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton has not run away with the nomination.

As the two candidates with arguably the longest official resumes, Mr. Richardson, in his second term as New Mexico's governor, and Mr. Dodd, in his fifth term as senator from Connecticut, say they can compete for the long haul. This week both spent time in New Hampshire, trying to persuade voters in the first-in-the-nation primary to choose deep experience over deep pockets.

"All I want is for you to keep your powder dry," Mr. Richardson told several hundred voters at a town hall meeting at New England College in Henniker, N.H., on Wednesday. "Wait until you see all the candidates, wait until we have debates. ... Don't get swayed by rock-star status or polls or how much money you raised."

(snip)

That's exactly what Mr. Dodd is banking on.

"People in this state don't want to be told by the national media the outcome of their primaries and caucuses 10 months out. In fact, they've had a history of trying to prove you wrong," Mr. Dodd told reporters this week. "So I'll take the news here on the ground, and I'll take the receptions I'm getting in these states as better evidence of how I'm doing than whether or not I've got a bank account equal to some of the other candidates."

No one should ever forget that our greatest president was a guy who wasn't even in the top three spots in the early running. In 1860, Abraham Lincoln was running fourth but he had a knack of talking people into thinking of him as their second choice if their favorite candidate didn't make it.

We should all keep in mind that part of George W. Bush's failed presidency can be traced to his father's campaign contributors who guaranteed Bush $200 million before the first primary vote was cast. And Bush almost lost to McCain and he decisively lost the national popular vote to Gore. Despite what the Bush family may think, money can't buy everything. It certainly can't buy competence or a successful presidency this late in the day.

This election, let the candidates show their quality, not the fat cats and their purchase of public relations illusions where candidates talk a good game but don't really understand what they're doing and aren't pragmatic enough to learn. Show me a candidate who can learn in six weeks, not six years. In 2008, we need to elect a competent president.

Albuquerque Tribune Resource on Bill Richardson

Due to a sourcing error on my part (or was it the paper I quoted?), I was led to an excellent resource on Bill Richardson and the Democrats at this link on the Albuquerque Tribune. It has articles on Richardson and links to other blogs on the New Mexico governor and a good list of sites for other Democrats.

New Interview with Bill Richardson

Believe it or not, it takes time to find good articles on the candidates. Whether I'm googling the news or blogs, there's considerable noise about candidates that's either worthless negative stuff coming from the right or articles that honestly don't say much. I'm happy when I can find an interview and let the candidate do the talking.

Here's an excerpt from a long interview with Bill Richardson by Knox News:

Question: Tell us what you consider the three most important issues facing the nation.

Answer: First, energy security and national security. The issue of energy independence, how can we wean ourselves from the 65 (percent) imported oil statistic to become a country that is not so dependent on fossil fuels and shifts to renewable technologies.

Number two, how can we regain our standing in the world as a country. As part of that, how do we get out of Iraq in an efficient and honorable way.

Third, the state of our education system. Our schools need to become more competitive. We need to find ways to pay our teachers better, to restore America's ability to be able to send every kid to college or community college or vocational school.

I agree with the first two and it's clear education is very important but I would say health care is number three; I live in an area where a good hospital is closing because the money is simply drying up. Nationally, there's no question health care is broken. Otherwise, it's a good interview, though it covers more personal or political areas rather than Richardson's views on the big issues. Even if Richardson doesn't win the nomination, we've got to get this guy somewhere into the next administration.

Bill Richardson Filing Papers for Presidential Race

Bill Richardson's numbers may not be great this early in the race but he's game. Here's the AP story from CBS:

New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson intends to take the initial step toward the Democratic nomination, hoping his extensive resume will fuel an insurgent campaign to become the first Hispanic president.

Richardson plans to announce on Sunday that he will soon file the papers to create a presidential exploratory committee, several officials with knowledge of his plans said Friday. The governor is scheduled to appear on ABC's "This Week."

(snip)

Richardson, 59, is a former congressman, U.N. ambassador and Energy Department secretary. He brings a wealth of experience in international affairs that has extended even into his governorship of a small but politically important swing state.

He has hosted talks on North Korea's nuclear program in New Mexico and most recently traveled to Sudan to meet with the country's president to press him for an end to the bloodshed in Darfur.

Until the current generation of Republicans give up their rigid ideology and authoritarianism, they have nothing to run on, but no doubt they will play their games between now and election day in 2008 and will spend a great deal of money smearing Democratic candidates because that's about the only game they have left. Republicans won't turn to somebody sensible like Chuck Hagel so they'll put up another illusion. The only danger will be if the American people fall asleep again when, a year from now, Republicans begin reading the polls and suddenly begin pretending to be something they're not.

On the other hand, I'm impressed with several of the Democrats, including Bill Richardson; if a Democrat wins the presidency and it isn't Richardson, I hope whoever wins finds a place for him. But think of it: John Edwards, Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama, Joe Biden, Tom Vilsack, Christopher Dodd, Wesley Clark and Bill Richardson would all do a better job in the White House than the current occupant.

Bill Richardson: Skilled Diplomat

Bill Richardson may still be in the mix for the 2008 presidential race. Even if his numbers are not good, I hope he runs. A presidential race isn't just about who has the most chance of winning, it's also about ideas and dialogue. Richardson has all kinds of knowledge and experience Americans need to hear about, including the journalists who follow the candidates. If a Democrat wins in 2008, Richardson would be a good man to hire somewhere in the foreign policy area, perhaps as Secretary of State, though Joe Biden should be considered too (Republicans consultants and pundits like to nag Democrats about measuring the drapes, as they put it, but part of the fiasco of the last six years is the unwillingness of Republican leaders to think far beyond the end of their noses; why, for example, have they ignored their own Richard Lugar, who has considerable foreign policy knowledge?).

Here's the latest on Bill Richardson from an AP story in the International Herald Tribune:

Heading on a diplomatic mission to Sudan, Gov. Bill Richardson said Saturday he hopes to persuade the country's president to accept more U.N. peacekeepers in war-ravaged Darfur, a goal that has eluded world leaders.

The New Mexico Democrat, a potential 2008 presidential candidate, said in an Associated Press interview that he does not expect to settle President Omar al-Bashir's dispute with the U.N. over troop levels during the trip beginning this weekend.

He planned to meet with rebel leaders in Darfur on Tuesday and al-Bashir in Khartoum, the capital, on Monday. Sudan's state news agency confirmed Saturday that Richardson would meet the president; several Western officials were unable to get a meeting with the Sudanese leader during their recent visits.

Richardson, who was U.N. ambassador under President Bill Clinton, said he has three goals for his visit to the African nation: increasing the U.N. force in Darfur, improving the humanitarian situation and helping encourage a cease-fire.

It's good to see Richardson still using his foreign policy skills. Let's wish him some luck on his mission.