Bill Richardson (politician)

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.

Richardson was born in Pasadena, California. His mother, Maria Luisa Lopez-Collada, was Mexican. His father was a native of Boston, who worked for Citibank as an executive in Mexico. He was raised in Mexico City, but as a teenager attended a Boston-area high school. Richardson played baseball in high school and was a fine pitcher. He was drafted by the Kansas City Athletics but did not pursue baseball professionally. He went on to Tufts University, where 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 U.S. Congress. He lost on his first attempt, but won on his second.

Richardson spent 15 years representing the Third District of New Mexico in the U.S. Congress. 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 and personally shook hands with Saddam Hussein. He became a member of the Democratic leadership where he worked closely with President Clinton on several issues.

In 1997, Bill Clinton appointed him to be the United States Ambassador to the United Nations. He served there until 1998, when he was appointed as U.S. Secretary of Energy. He served here until 2001. He oversaw the mishandling of the Wen Ho Lee case.

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. Bill Richardson is the only Hispanic Governor in the United States. Early in his first term, it is said he has pressed energetically in a 100 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 $250,000 in life insurance 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 organization's purpose is planning and funding much-needed highway improvements throughout the state with $1.6 billion of funds, including the long overdue overhaul of the I-40/Coors interchange in Albuquerque.

Some local observers have criticized that, when the cameras weren't on him, he reverts to a somewhat imperial style, seeking to impose his vision rather than respectfully consult and patiently build consensus. He has also been criticized for expanding and perhaps enjoying too much the perks of the position. So far his national reputation, polished by smooth major media appearances, remains rather unaffected by some of this bad local press.

Even as governor, Richardson continues to be interested in foreign policy. During the summer of 2003, he met with a delegation from North Korea 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, including the naming of the next Democratic National Committee leader (or leaders).

References

• Traveling Troubleshooter Is Ready to Settle Down, at the U.N.:THE SECOND TERM: The New Lineup William Blaine Richardson, James Brooke, New York Times, Dec 14, 1996. pg. 11, 1 pgs

External links

• Governor Bill Richardson's official website
• Richardson's Campaign Contributions
• Annals of Diplomacy Backfire, Carl Nagin, The New Yorker