Monday, March 19, 2007

Weekly Debate: Bill Richardson and the path to the White House- yellow brick road or dead end?


Last January, the Hispanic governor of New Mexico- Bill Richardson- launched an exploratory committee to back a possible bid for the U.S. presidency in 2008. Several political analysts and bloggers have recently backed Richardson’s run for the White House and believe that he is not only the ideal candidate for the Democratic Party but should also be the next president. For instance, here’s what Matthew Yglesias had to say last month:

“Richardson is clearly more qualified for the White House than anyone else in the race, since everyone knows that doesn't matter. Just consider the bare fact that he's the popular, second-term governor of a swing state -- you know, the sort of person who back in the day used to win presidential elections. And it's not as if Richardson isn't getting attention because the field is crowded with popular second-term governors of swing states”.

Let’s take a quick look at some points for and against him:

Pros

Cons

  • - Bill Who? The American public knows very little about him, especially with the media focus on Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama.
  • - Lack of exposure and subsequent difficulties in raising funds could lead Richardson to drop out of the race much like Tom Vilsack.
  • - The latest Harris Poll has Richardson behind four other Democrats including John Edwards. Meanwhile, other polls show Richardson getting easily beaten by Republican favorites Rudy Giuliani and John McCain.
  • -Three Words: Wen Ho Lee

Does Bill Richardson really have a solid chance to be elected president next year? Will he have enough funds and energy to support a viable presidential bid or will it be all for naught? Should he quit or perhaps aim for a Vice Presidential nomination?

What do you think?


Links- Bill Richardson for President, MSNBC, American Prospect Online, Washington Post, VivirLatino, Daily Kos, Andrew Sullivan, Instapundit, Reason Magazine – Hit & Run, CSIS.org, TPMCafe.com, Harris Interactive, Rasmussen Reports, Wikipedia, Free New Mexican, Voice of America, BusinessWeek

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6 comments:

  1. redwood11:56 AM

    I like this guy's politics. And when he drops out, it should be very interesting to see who he endorses. I'm guessing Hilary, of course, which could put a nail in Obama's coffin. Over the next couple of months, I look for Hilary to play to Richardson's audience big time.

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  2. Jen5:16 PM

    It's a shame that all we see in the media is Hillary and Obama. No offense to them, but in the end, they are simply being reduced and fetishized: possible first female president versus possible first "black" president. Neither seems completely qualified, experience wise or charisma wise.
    With any luck, if it turns out to be one of these two, they will pick up Richardson as VP or a future advisor.

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  3. redwood6:17 PM

    they are getting fetishized:
    http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/commentary/la-oe-ehrenstein19mar19,0,3391015.story?coll=la-home-commentary

    and this perverted inquiry happens every election: commentators writing irrelevant essays about character.

    who cares if only a non-sexualized black man is the only sort Americans would consider for President. What's that got to do with Obama's message or his actions in the public domain?

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  4. Anonymous7:53 PM

    Bill Richardson is the most experienced and electable candidate we have. Only a fool would jump on the Hillary and Barack bandwagon. Two unelectable senators who will lead the Democrats down to defeat if nominated. Don't believe the hype. This nomination is Richardson's for the taking. Remember, senators can't win without executive experience. Hillary and Barack have none. The GOP fears Richardson. And he isn't dropping out.

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  5. Erwin C.10:43 AM

    Bill Richardson is a mere supporting actor in the Obama & Hillary Show. However, I feel that his best bet is running as a VP especially with Obama since they compliment each other rather well. (i.e. Obama would make up for Richardson's lack of chatisma while Richardson would make up for Obama's lack of experience)

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  6. Unknown6:58 PM

    Come on people, primaries are almost a year away. How many times do we need to be pulled along by the media hype to have campaigns implode during the primaries (hello Howard Dean). They always act like it is done deal and then are so surprised when things go differently. The "surprise" candidate shows up and its like wow, what a surprise. Most people had no idea who this obscure governor from Arkansas was prior to the primaries. Now his wife is running. Also, the unknown governor from Georgia who "came out of nowhere" and won the election. Most recently, W, a little known governor from Texas blew out the media darlings in the primaries.

    It is too early to act like it is a done deal. Primary voters are less likely to be manipulated by the media (especially in pragmatic Iowa and New Hampshire).

    Everytime I read about Richardson I am more and more convinced that this is the only Democrat who has what it takes to win the general election and run our country well. He is the only one that can garner support from independents, libertarians and moderate Republicans--crucial to win the presidency--while still staying true to a lot of the liberal values.

    He is the anachronistic, tax-cutting, pro-gun, pro-business Democrat. He has a record of fiscal responsibility (eliminated the NM deficit, balanced the budget, lowered taxes) while also having a proven record of social liberalism (enacted the Kyoto protocol in NM, is pro choice, pro-gay-rights, raised teachers' pay, raised minimum wage only a few weeks ago, and has been nominated 2 or 3 times for the Nobel Peace Prize). Recently, the guy went to Darfur and negotiated a ceasefire while the Bush Administration has been virtually sitting on their hands about the whole affair. He's negotiated with some of the toughest, rudest dictators the world has seen and bargained for the release of hostages in Iraq, North Korea and Cuba... not even in an official capacity.

    As a moderate Democrat, he appeals to me and I think he will appeal to the rest of America who showed this last election that moderate Democrats are more representative of the values of this country than extremists on either side.

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