The Bill Richardson Spiral

I greeted the announcement of his running for the Democratic candidate for president with much enthusiasm, although I am no longer a Democrat (and I kind of think they are all bastards).

Richardson has impressed me with his involvement in Sudan. The governor for New Mexico, he's made repeated trips overseas to try to end the genocide in Darfur. Yea to that, right?

Some research shows that this is not an anomaly. He negotiated with Saddam Hussein to release US hostages in 1995. He's been in Afghanistan and Iraq and all over the globe it seems. Even Nigeria (with Enron).

This is all wonderful. Sure, he doesn't support my view on immigration (who does?), but he also doesn't think we should be building a damn fence between the US and Mexico.

Yeah, and ok, he didn't really support the anti-war movement in 2003 and while his official platform calls for the withdrawal of all US troop in Iraq, he doesn't mention fate of the private contractors, permanent bases being built, huge-ass embassy, or how to economically rebuild the nation.

Plus his statistics are off. He says 40% of Iraqis are unemployed (nearly twice as much of the population than during the Depression in the US) and my sources say 60%.

Er, and I guess it's not really his official platform, just a speech he's preparing to give in December 2007!!!

Speech to the New Hampshire Democratic State Party State Central Committee
St. Anselm CollegeSaturday, December 16th, 2007(as prepared for
delivery)

Thank you Kathy. You are a great State Chair. I'd like to thank the State Committee for hosting me. I hope you all take great pride in your work in this last election. The Democratic tidal wave that rushed across America last month started right here in New Hampshire.

Anyhoo, I can do it. I can throw Iraq under the bus if we can get someone a little more involved in other world hot spots. Hey, Iraq's a mess, a solution won't be pretty. I get it.

He's for a woman's right to choose, for more diversity, for health care and separation of church and state!

Yet, he likes school vouchers and killing inmates and tax breaks for the wealthy, doesn't think that children born in this country should be given automatic citizenship, wants to throw more money in the military toilet...still though, he's down with alternative energy.*

And here's a tough one, Greg Palast had some negative stuff to say about him in his book, Armed Madhouse (pgs 253-254, 255-256, 257). Apparently, Richardson didn't care to do a ballot recount in his state in 2002. And his dad worked for Citi (as did I for a few years).

Pfftt. Minor things. Except that little Enron deal. What he knew or did not know while serving as President Clinton's Secretary of Energy is almost as important as his acts of deregulation and denial that the California energy crisis was manufactured.

And then there's the whole Wen Ho Lee scandal.

What finally did it for me was his employment with Kissinger Associates. You can not work for Henry Kissinger if you want me to support you. That's just stupid.

* According to On the Issues Take their test and see which candidates match your beliefs.

~Lila Schow
Because Responsible Citizens Clean Up After Their Government

http://goodusgov.org/