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Bill Richardson

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For the Canadian radio host for CBC Radio One, see Bill Richardson (radio).
Bill Richardson
File:B Richardson.png
30th Governor of New Mexico
In office
January 2003 – present
LieutenantDiane Denish
Preceded byGary E. Johnson
Personal details
BornNovember 15, 1947
Pasadena, California
Political partyDemocratic
SpouseBarbara Richardson

William Blaine "Bill" Richardson (born November 15, 1947) is an American politician and a member of the Democratic Party. He has served as a Congressman, United States Ambassador to the United Nations, and U.S. Secretary of Energy; he is presently the Governor of New Mexico. He was also chairman of the 2004 Democratic National Convention that nominated John Kerry for the presidency.

Early life and career

Richardson was born in Pasadena, California. His mother, Maria Luisa Lopez-Collada, was Mexican. His father was born in Nicaragua, grew up in Boston, and worked for Citibank as an executive in Mexico. He was raised in Mexico City, but moved to Massachusetts at age 13 to attend a Boston-area high school. Richardson played baseball in high school at Middlesex School in Concord, Massachusetts and was a pitcher. Richardson went on to play for Tufts University.

At Tufts, he majored in French and political science, and was a brother of Delta Tau Delta. He then added a master's degree from Tufts Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy. He met his wife, Barbara Flavin, in Boston.

After college, he worked on congressional relations for the State Department. He was later a staff member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. In 1978, he moved to Santa Fe and ran for Congress, losing to longtime 1st District congressman and former Department of Interior Secretary Manuel Lujan. Four years later, Richardson was elected to New Mexico's newly created third district, taking in most of the northern part of the state.

Richardson spent a little more than 14 years in Congress, never facing a truly serious opponent in the heavily Democratic 3rd District. As a congressman, he kept his interest in foreign relations. He visited Nicaragua, Guatemala, Cuba, Peru, India, North Korea, Bangladesh, Nigeria, and the Sudan to represent U.S. interests. In 1995, he travelled to Baghdad with Peter Bourne and engaged in lengthy one-on-one negotiations with Saddam Hussein to secure the release of two American aerospace workers who had been captured by the Iraqis after wandering over the Kuwaiti border. He became a member of the Democratic leadership, where he worked closely with Bill Clinton on several issues.

In 1997, Clinton appointed him as U. S. Ambassador to the United Nations. He served there until 1998, when he was appointed as U.S. Secretary of Energy. He served there for the remainder of the Clinton administration. In July 2005, Richardson was implicated in the Wen Ho Lee scandal;[1] it was alleged by a Federal judge that Richardson leaked Lee's name to reporters months before the scientist was charged with any crime. Richardson is still considering running for the nomination of the Democrats in the 2008 Presidential Election.[2]

Governor of New Mexico

Richardson was elected governor of New Mexico in November 2002, defeating the Republican candidate, John Sanchez by 17 percentage points (56%-39%). He succeeded a two-term Republican governor, Gary Johnson. He took office in January 2003 as the only Hispanic Governor in the United States. Early in his first term, it is said he has pressed energetically in a hundred directions at the same time. In his first year, Richardson proposed "tax cuts to promote growth and investment" and passed a broad personal income tax cut and won a statewide special election to transfer money from the state's Permanent Fund to meet current expenses and projects. In early 2005, Richardson made New Mexico the first state in the nation to provide $400,000 in life insurance coverage for New Mexico National Guardsmen who serve on active duty.

Working with the legislature, the governor formed Governor Richardson's Investment Partnership (GRIP) in 2003. The partnership has been used to fund large scale public infrastructure improvements throughout New Mexico, including, through the use of highway funds, a brand new commuter rail line (the Railrunner) that will eventually run between Albuquerque and Santa Fe.

Even as governor, Richardson continues to be interested in foreign policy. During the summer of 2003, he met with a delegation from North Korea at their request to discuss concerns over that country's use of nuclear energy.

He was named Chairman of the Democratic Governors Association and announced a desire to increase the role of Democratic governors in deciding the future of their party.

In December 2005, Richardson announced the intention of the State of New Mexico to partner with billionaire Richard Branson to bring the promising business of space tourism to the proposed Southwest Regional Space Port located near Las Cruces, New Mexico. In conjunction with the Ansari X Prize Cup, this partnership puts New Mexico firmly at the spearhead of the next generation of space advancement.

On January 2, 2006, Richardson rode on the New Mexico float in the Tournament of Roses Parade in Pasadena, California.

On September 7th, 2006 Richardson flew to the Sudan to meet with Sudanese President Omar Al-Bashir and negotiate the release of imprisoned journalist Paul Salopek. Salopek was charged with espionage on August 26th, 2006 while on a National Geographic assignment.

Governor Richardson of New Mexico became the first governor to veto eminent domain reform legislation resulting from the recent surge in public interest.[3]

Richardson has taken no position on a movement to prohibit cockfighting in his state. Bill SM10, "Cockfighting as State Disgrace of New Mexico," died in the legislature in 2006.[4] New Mexico and Louisiana are the only states that have not banned the controversial sport.[5]

Future political career

See also New Mexico gubernatorial election, 2006

Richardson is running for re-election as Governor of New Mexico. The state's gubernatorial election will take place on November 7, 2006. His opponent is former New Mexico Republican Party Chairman John Dendahl.

In recent years, Richardson has frequently been the subject of rumors that he was on the short list of possible vice-presidential picks by Democratic nominees, including John Kerry and Al Gore.

In 2005, the Associated Press (AP) reported that Richardson has informed party leaders that he intends to run in the 2008 U.S. presidential election.[6]

Business interests

As reportd by the AP in 2006, Richardson is part owner of Generation 2000 with members of Senator John Ensign's family.[citation needed]

References

  1. ^ SeeWorldnetdaily article, Salon.com article, andCNN
  2. ^ See Time Article
  3. ^ see Rio Grande Foundation article
  4. ^ See Bill SM10
  5. ^ See New Mexican article
  6. ^ See New Mexican Article
Wikiquote has quotations related to Bill Richardson.
Wikiquote has quotations related to Bill Richardson.

Richardson for President unofficial sites and commentary

Template:Incumbent succession box
Preceded by
newly created
 Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from New Mexico's 3rd congressional district
1983-February 13, 1997 		Succeeded by
Preceded by United States Ambassador to the United Nations
1997-1998 		Succeeded by
Preceded by United States Secretary of Energy
1998-2001 		Succeeded by
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