21 January 2007

Richardson in the Ring

When it comes to '08 candidates, I like Hillary. I really like Obama. But after this morning's interview with Stephanopoulos, I got to thinkin' I might have to look more closely at Bill Richardson, the Dem governor of NM (a/k/a Vips' Big Boy). Why should I bother looking at this long-shot dark horse? Because he came across on TV as competent, sensible, funny, and down-to-earth--all personality traits that appealed to swing voters who went for Bush because he "spoke the people's language."

And because Bill's got the resume from hell, which means that, regardless of his salt-of-the-earth attitude, he probably owes lots of people and, equally probable, lots of people owe him.

It'd be nice, for once, if the United States didn't pick a President based on photogenics, charisma, spin, and sound bytes. I don't have high hopes for it; I'm just sayin' -- it would be nice.

First stop on the Bill Richardson tour was to the Free New Mexican. I found an interesting article there from Feb. 2005, in the run-up to the Gov's election. What makes the article interesting isn't the content. It's the comments section. You want to know whether to vote for a guy, ask the people he's been governing.

Update: To track what New Mexicans think of Bill Richardson now, keep an eye on the Free New Mexican's comments to this morning's announcement.

Update #2: If Richardson was president... (Hardball interview on MSNBC)

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