A Star Falls in New Mexico

January 6, 2009 by Jill Garvey
Filed under: Politics 
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It’s a shame Gov. Bill Richardson withdrew his name from nomination for Commerce Secretary. While it may not have been the coveted Secretary of State spot, it would have put him in Washington with Obama, where he belonged. It’s a shame politicians like him get ensnared in one little pay-for-play scandal while Governors like Blagojevich are still appointing Senators.

I’m from Chicago and we hated Blagojevich before we even know what to hate him for. That’s what we do here, we vote for corrupt politicians and then grumble about them until they go to jail. Richardson on the other hand was a governor you could be proud of. Now his political star is falling faster than Blago’s grip on reality.

If he’d been Illinois’ Governor he wouldn’t be in this predicament; we’d be years away from investigating him. He might even have made it to president before we got around to noticing a pesky campaign contribution. But other states are a little more sensitive. Especially when it comes to politicians who support gays, want to document immigrants and are going to have the President’s ear.

I’m not a big fan of using the lesser of two evils (or three or four or twenty) method to pick my favorite politicians, and Richardson certainly isn’t a ‘favorite’. But, if you could see past his slimy sheen, he was fairly sensible, and one of too few Latinos eligible for a cabinet position. Most importantly though, his progressive sensibilities helped cast a dark shadow across the nativist (and racist)-embracing Republican Party, and sent them further into the fringes of the American consciousness.

I hope Obama keeps this in mind as he considers possible replacements. As for Richardson, if the going gets real tough out west I hear there’s an opening in Illinois.

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