Jan. 4, 2009
Richardson Withdraws As Obama Nominee
Obama's Cabinet Pick Pulls Out Over Grand Jury Investigation Of State Contracts; N.M. Gov. Denies Wrongdoing
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Richardson Quits As Cabinet Pick
Gov. Bill Richardson has withdrawn his nomination as President-elect Obama's new Commerce Secretary over a legal inquiry in N.M. Some feel this is a sign there may be flaws in Obama's vetting process.
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Bill Richardson with President-elect Barack Obama last month. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)
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"It is with deep regret that I accept Governor Bill Richardson's decision to withdraw his name for nomination as the next Secretary of Commerce," Obama said in a statement.
A federal grand jury is looking into how Beverly Hills financial services company, CDR, earned a $1.5 million state contract after contributing to Governor Richardson's political action committees. And now there are questions about Obama's transition team's vetting process, reports CBS News correspondent Joel Brown.
"Everyone knew about this investigation," says Politico.com's Mike Allen. "The President-elect took a chance. The question is why. Did (Obama's) vetters ask enough questions? Did (Richardson) give the right answers?"
A person familiar with the proceedings has told The Associated Press that the grand jury is looking into possible "pay-to-play" dealings between CDR Financial Products and someone in a position to push the contract through with the state of New Mexico.
Richardson denied any wrongdoing, but said this morning that the pending investigation threatened to stall the confirmation process for several weeks or months.
He said that he had responded to a "call to duty" when accepting Obama's request to serve as Secretary of Commerce, acknowledging that the department will play an urgent role in resolving the nation's economic problems.
"It is also because of that sense of urgency about the work of the Commerce Department that I have asked the President-elect not to move forward with my nomination at this time," Richardson said this morning. "I do so with great sorrow.
"Let me say unequivocally that I and my Administration have acted properly in all matters and that this investigation will bear out that fact. But I have concluded that the ongoing investigation also would have forced an untenable delay in the confirmation process.
"Given the gravity of the economic situation the nation is facing, I could not in good conscience ask the President-elect and his Administration to delay for one day the important work that needs to be done."
CDR spokesman Allan Ripp, in an exclusive telephone interview with CBS News, said, “The firm adamantly doesn’t practice pay-for-play under any circumstance on any playing field. It is pay for performance, pay for expertise, pay for track record, and pay for merit.”
Ripp said that CDR was selected by the New Mexico Finance Authority after what he called "a very rigorous and open review of credentials, expertise, cost and track record with other municipalities and government agencies around the country. CDR delivered exceptional services to the state under the terms of the contract as the state's swaps advisor.”
"The firm was chosen through a thorough and rigorous selection process. On that basis alone the firm won a partial contract with the state. CDR was vying to do all the work, but the state chose another firm to share the work with CDR."
Ripp, who called Richardson "an extremely accomplished and an extremely capable public official," questioned the motives of whomever released information about the grand jury investigation.
“The timing is extremely unfortunate," he told CBS News. "One would have to ask who is leaking news of this investigation and why this information is being leaked when Governor Richardson is being vetted for a presidential appointment.”
Obama said Richardson is "an outstanding public servant and would have brought to the job of Commerce Secretary and our economic team great insights accumulated through an extraordinary career in federal and state office. It is a measure of his willingness to put the nation first that he has removed himself as a candidate for the Cabinet in order to avoid any delay in filling this important economic post at this critical time.
"Although we must move quickly to fill the void left by Governor Richardson's decision, I look forward to his future service to our country and in my administration."
Richardson, 61, is one of the nation's most prominent Hispanic politicians. A two-term governor of New Mexico, he boasts an extensive and wide-ranging resume. He was a seven-term congressman with a knack for freelance diplomacy, undertaking unofficial diplomatic missions in such places as North Korea, Sudan, Cuba and Iraq.
In 2002, Richardson first won election as governor of New Mexico.
He sought the Democratic presidential nomination this year, but eventually dropped out and endorsed Obama.
© MMIX, CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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See all 73 CommentsPosted by hungry681 at 09:57 PM : Jan 04, 2009
Check that. This morning, Harry Reid has stated he''ll participate in negotiations about seating Burris.
Even tho'' Blago as been a jerk thru the whole thing, he may well''ve appointed someone acceptable.
Posted by actornaught
I think that he very might have done that, but others might just see that as "fruit from the poison apple" so to speak. In their minds, it''s a mute point.
Posted by IrishWench at 10:20 PM : Jan 04, 2009
That''s what I thought. It was pretty FREAKY.
Posted by TexHillGirl
It''s probably going to take longer than that to clean up the mess that Bush left!
You''re still talking to me?
You aren''t mad at me?:)
Posted by txgrouch2008 at 10:48 PM : Jan 04, 2009
No,no, I would never say that.
You''re only "living in fear" if you have a gun strapped to your side.:) (I like living dangerously)
Posted by txgrouch2008 at 10:52 PM : Jan 04, 2009
Now there''s a guy that would have made an EXCELLENT President.
Posted by txgrouch2008 at 10:54 PM : Jan 04, 2009
Whatever.
And I bet it''s in every nook and cranny.
Now there''''''''s a guy that would have made an EXCELLENT President.
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Posted by erasmus606 at 10:56 PM : Jan 04, 2009
Al Bore is fixing to be a HUGE part of the new regime...with his global warming krap...his scientific fantasy that made $10 MILLION...
This fantasy is about to be USED as a tool to suck BILLIONS of dollars up into government control...if you don''''t believe it, find Jan Hansen''''s direct letter to O''''bungler outlining how the fossil fuel emissions are going to be THE new tax track for the re-distribution of wealth in this country.
Posted by TexHillGirl at 10:59 PM : Jan 04, 2009
I was joking.
Posted by txgrouch2008 at 11:01 PM : Jan 04, 2009
So you''re threatening me now?
I thought Richardson was an odd choice for Secretary of Commerce as his background was in foreign policy, with no indication of economic expertise. He had already performed poorly as Clinton''s Energy Secretary, showing he does not operate well outside of his comfort zone.
Did anyone ever think of that? I mean, it was the 1950''''s. You didn''''t just go around calling women Trixie.
Even in the city.
Posted by txgrouch2008 at 11:08 PM : Jan 04, 2009
I believe in one of your earlier posts you said something about the wife making you NUTS. I believe you now.:)
Posted by erasmus606 at 11:02 PM : Jan 04
Sorry, then.
Posted by TexHillGirl at 11:04 PM : Jan 04, 2009
Someone once asked me about my smiley faces. I said I used them so people would know when I''m kidding or whatever. They told me that they always knew when I was kidding. So sometimes I don''t use them. And look what happens. People don''t know when I''m kidding.
Posted by TexHillGirl
No, I think that change is a reality. It is what this country needs, it is the only way we can get out of the hole that Bush and his cronies have dug for us.
Do I have to remind you this is an article about Bill Richardson as much as you want to wander off subject? Commerce is an important part of the Cabinet and the person appointed should have some expertise in that area. Richardson''s appointment looked to me like a second prize for missing out on Secretary of State, a position for which he was much more qualified than Hillary Clinton.
Now it is the turn of a new administration. As a people of this great country, we need to get behind them, not in front of them!
Posted by txgrouch2008 at 11:11 PM : Jan 04, 2009
.................
The truth is it was Bush''s grandfather Prescott who had the family assets seized by the US government for colluding with the Nazis.
Joe Kennedy was another pro-Nazi. What''s your point?
If you are going to resort to name calling at least use some imagination and intellect.
Posted by TexHillGirl
No, it''s the trickle down economics that came from the Reagan administration.
That is why we are in the mess that we are in today. And the Republicans put us there, plain and simple.
I was just chiding tawpdaswg111 for his selective use of history. Joe Kennedy sent his two eldest sons off to war, with one killed and one badly injured to keep his own posterior out of prison. Charles Lindberg was another with Nazi sympathies.
I thought you went to bed. If you look at your history you will notice that Clinton in his first two years was running up debt. It wasn''t until the Republicans took over congress (for the first time since the early 1950s) that the budget was balanced.
Well if you have a lick of sense you can see that "freelance" is another way of saying loose cannon. That along with his pathetic performance in the primarys and debates should have shown Obama and his team that Richardson was a poor choice. Now at least Obama will be spared having to ask him to step down a few months down the road. To bad for New Mexico that they have to take him back. Ah well at least his isn''t quite as bad as Blago.
The worst president in my memory was Carter. He turned the end of Vietnam into a rout where the then Soviet Union reached its zenith of world-wide influence and had a submarine base in Cam Ranh Bay. They had virtual control over the Indian Ocean and Thailand and the Philippines were in real trouble. Inflation also was the highest since Truman (and higher than any time since)and who can forget the long lines outside of gas stations? Remember the 1980 Olympics fiasco? Need I go on?
220pm cbs
YAAAAAAWWWN. OK to bed.
As such "body counts" go, the Dems look much cleaner, as a rule. Richardson is not yet indicted.Rep. Jefferson was indicted, but Gov. Blagojevich is not yet indicted (his GOP precessor is in federal prison).
In any case, the last decade of corruption points to abject malfunction of our political system. From the first day in office, congressmen and senators tell us, they must start campaigning for the next election at fundraisers.
The only constructive remedy is federal financing of the entire election, removing fund raising as a constant thorn in our elective and legislative process.
McCain-Feingold (2002) was only a start, and demonstrates exactly how difficult it can be to exclude money from PACs under other names and disguises. If all such outside contributions were excluded, not only our elections but the entire legislative process would end up much healthier. Congressmen could do what they were elected to do.
Excellent history of campaign finance reform at-- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Campaign_finance_reform
ELECTION FINANCE REFORM BILL
The only constructive remedy to corruption among our legislators is public financing of the entire federal election, removing campaign fundraising as a constant thorn in our elective and legislative process.
McCain-Feingold (2002) was only a start, and demonstrates exactly how difficult it can be to exclude money from PACs under other names and disguises.
If most or all such outside contributions were excluded, not only our elections, but the entire legislative process would end up much healthier. Congressmen could do what they were elected to do.
Now in the US Senate, there is a bi-partisan move to clean up elections. Assistant Majority Leader *** Durbin (D-IL) has submitted the Fair Elections Now Act, co-sponsored by Sen. Arlen Specter (R-PA).
In the House, the campaign is joined by Caucus Chair Rep. John Larson (D-CT) and Rep. Walter Jones (R-NC).
Call, email or write your congressmen to let them know how tired we are of a constant stream of scandals and corruption. We need to put an effective end to what has plagued our political system for well over two centuries.
THE NATIONAL DEBT
The US national debt actually dropped under Carter, but rose sharply under Reagan and Bush (1981-1992) from 32 percent of GDP to over 67 percent of GDP.
Under Clinton, the national debt dropped from 68 percent (early in term) to less than 60 percent-- and Clinton handed Bush2 an actual budget surplus.
Bush then ignored warnings about changing economic conditions, and handed the overwhelming majority of that surplus to his wealthy friends (a tiny 5.5 percent of taxpayers).
In sharp contrast, the average American did not prosper under Bush, as is painfully obvious to even the GOP, American middle class incomes stalled, and household savings vanished under weight of rising costs (medical, energy and other budget presures). Today, the national savings.rate is nonexistent, and millions are threatened with foreclosure..
Add to that, the Gramm-GOP experiment in deregulation of banking without SEC oversight (while SEC oversight applies everywhere else), and wholesale corruption grew like mutant mushrooms from outer space (politely termed, the "Housing Bubble"), for which Bush demanded a $700 billion bailout-- with no conditions on how the money is spent. All that is known is AIG and other banks are not lending the money, but sitting on it.
Bush entered office with the national debt under 60 percent of GDP, and leaves office with the national debt back at nearly 70 percent of GDP. The Bush family has been a financial plague for America.
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