Richardson for VP

[Perky]

I think Richardson is the ideal running mate Great credentials. Hispanic..Sitting Governor, Former Ambassador...Former Cabinet Secretary, former Congressman. Eloquent Speaker...Cerebral....but way overweight.


Thoughts.

[davidinalameda]

1. no

the Republicans would love to use his running of the Energy Dept. against him.

I think he would be a great VP but not just yet. Anyway, he's already said that he doesn't want the job.

[Perky]

5. Had not heard that.

He said not to VP?

I know he told NM voters that he would not seek the presidency during hid first term.

Yes Energy is a problem with that Lee fellow and Los Alamos, but I think that would wind up being a blip which would get lost in the haze pretty quickly when the counter charge is the Patriot act.

Besides it does not hurt that the people who elected him Governor seems to have forgiven him for things that happend in their own back yard.

[GBD4]

2. great resume

but he was just elected Governor in November. let him build a solid record there and use him in 08.

[CMT]

4. '08?

I have my eye on the prize for '04. If a dem president is elected he will seek re-election in '04 and if Richardson is not on the ticket he would need to wait until '12.

[GBD4]

6. and he's a good guy!

of course I want the Dems to win 04, but if Richardson is the ONLY VP who can help us win 04 then the Party has a problem. as I said, I agree he has a great resume, and he would be successful in carrying swing SW states like AZ and CO, but it seems like it would be better for him to have some more executive experience before jumping to the WH, that's all.

[CMT]

9. no but he is at the top of my list anyway (as if I have any say)

I think we have to do something to excite one crucial element of our base and I think with Richardson's experience he is the one who can do it. There are Latinos too--Loretta Sanchez and Martinez the congressman from NJ.

[CMT]

10. no but he is at the top of my list anyway (as if I have any say)

I think we have to do something to excite one crucial element of our base and I think with Richardson's experience he is the one who can do it. There are Latinos too--Loretta Sanchez and Martinez the congressman from NJ.

[Warpy]

13. Great resume, crap politics

Richardson may look good on paper, but he's a DINO. He ran on a promise to eliminate the gross receipts tax on food and medical care. All he actually did was cut taxes on the richest people in this state. We're still taxed to the eyeballs on everything we eat and everything that's keeping us alive. Oh, and not a single job has been created in this state due to his tax giveaway to the rich. What a shock.

Richardson may make a Dean candidacy palatable to the DLC, who would then hope for tragedy to strike the top office. However, he's no Democrat.

[goobergunch]

22. I agree that he's a DINO...

but the VP only has as much power as the President gives him/her.

[CMT]

3. YES

he would be great. If his tenure as Energy Sec is an issue so is the Bush administration Energy task force which Cheney is trying to keep under wraps. Also, Bush has even used him as a trouble shooter in N. Korea. I think he would be great on the ticket for the reasons you state. It would take away any chance of Bush getting the 40% of the Latino vote he wants. It would gurantee NM and California without even having to spend a dime in those states and make Colorado, Nevada, and Arizona very competitive. It would also force Bush to spend some time and $$ in Texas to shore that state up. He is thoroughly qualified and would be a great asset on the ticket.

[Perky]

7. The Key is FLorida

Bush CAN NOT win without it. He loses a good part of his electoral base if Richardson is on the ticket.

I think He balances nearly every serious contender. The one he helps the least is Graham.

[DagmarK]

8. PUKE!!!!! Richardson is the most Bush-lite dem in this country!

He is from the east.....and carpetbagged himself in New Mexico.

Sure, he has done some good diplomatic stuff.

But LORD, you should have seen him suck up to Bush* a couple of months ago as the DEM side to the debate on whether HSD had adequately funded the HSD security efforts at the state and local levels. He was very clear that everything was going according to plan.....sure our 1st reponders are just fine.

Meanwhile......the states go bankrupt and everytime the alert goes up.....costs go up and no fed money. Our 1st responders don't even have the appropriate gas masks in the event of a bio/chem attack.

Richardson is a HUGE sell-out. The only reason he is a DEM is because that's what works in New Mexico. And that's the ONLY reason.

Arrghh!!!

[GBD4]

11. Come on!

So I guess you don't like Barbara Boxer because she's from the East but is now in CA where it's good to be a Dem? Come on! Plenty of politicians are not natives of their current states.

Second, Pete Domenici seems to be doing just fine, so you don't have to be a Dem to win in NM obviously.

Finally, the allegations that DUers are constantly making that this Dem and that Dem are Bushlite or DLCers is out of hand! Just because someone is not 100% liberal they are part of the DLC conspiracy?!? Repubs have factions, we have factions. Get over it!

This Party will never succeed until we accept the many "varieties" of Dems who are in the Party.

[jiacinto]

20. Richardson has lived in NM for much longer

He was a Congressman there from 1982 through 1997. So please don't call him Bush lite just because he doesn't come from the far left fringe of the party.

[DeTHuGoFTHuGS]

12. Richardson is great, but Graham is a better VP candidate right now

We need FL, and we need it bad....Graham as VP will guarantee that FL go to Dems next year. We can wait for Richardson to build his resume as a governor and either nominate him in '08 or '12. Plus, Graham has a chance to break the Republican Party's grip in the South.

[Perky]

14. I think you are wrong.

Yes He will lock up FL...but VP coattails are not nearly strong enough to win back the southern stranglehold.

He doesn't hurt but no one vores for a ticket because of the VP unless it it the home state.

The onlyt way we pic off a Southern state is with perfect weather in Atlanta and Bush being seen as evil incarnate south of I-20. Not likely.

[GBD4]

15. Sort of, but not exactly

LBJ was the key to JFK's southern successes, so while I agree VP isn't everything, it can sometimes help swing some states

[DeTHuGoFTHuGS]

16. Clarification

I didn't say Graham is going to win the South for Dems. He could win some southern states is what I was trying to say. Capice?

[mainer]

17. Absolutely not!

Richardson was an utter and complete coward during the outrageous tarring and feathering of Wen Ho Lee. Basically, Richardson was so terrified of looking soft on Communism that he was willing to throw Lee to the wolves. Even though he had to know the prosecution was a farce and the FBI had fabricated evidence.

Absolutely no to Richardson.

[Prag_Idealist]

18. Landrieu, Graham or Edwards n/t

[Rowdyboy]

19. We're our own worst enemies...

when we engage in this "DINO" crap. The absolute worst Democrat is so far above Shrub as to defy imagination. Just because someone doesn't meet a definition of liberal perfection, does not kick them out of this party. We're made up of leftists (those that don't bolt), liberals, and moderates. The moderates deserve the title as much or more than the others because most of them are struggling to hold onto valuable seats during years when the country has been lurching rightward.

Bill Richardson is a distinguished Democrat with an exceptional record of service and proven vote getting ability. I don't agree with all he has done but he's a damn sight better than Dick Cheney.
He's had to deal with the practicalities of electoral politics in a moderate southwestern state. Sorry some would fault him for not being "progressive" enough but that wouldn't sell in New Mexico.

[jiacinto]

21. I know what you mean

But see, Rowdyboy, all too many DUers expect Democrats to all act like they are from Berkely even if they come from the most conservative states and districts.