National Review Article and more

I'm not a big National Review reader, but this morning, I stumbled across this article about Bill Richardson: Another Gov. Bill to the White House, Could Richardson do It?

It is quite positive for a conservative publication. It highlights some of the wonderful things about Bill Richardson, and minimizes some of the criticisms. It begins:
If there were a presidential candidate available who had deep experience in both state and federal government, the executive and legislative branch, and foreign and domestic affairs, would he be rated among the top of the field? How about if the same candidate had the retail political skills to match his policy experience and came from a bellwether state in a battleground part of the country? And what if this person had the sort of national contacts that are a must to raise the significant sums necessary for a run for the White House.

And did we mention he’s part of the nation’s fastest-growing ethnic group, is bilingual, and has a record of getting crossover votes?

Yeah, he is wonderful! To add to all of his great qualities, he is also not candidate bashing. See this short bit in the Boston Globe. That article says:

In an interview with the Globe, Richardson said it would be good if Senator Barack Obama joined the presidential race. Even though it might hurt his own chances to be the nominee, Richardson said an Obama campaign would bring in new voters.

“I am not among those praying he doesn’t get in,” Richardson said. “He brings a measure of excitement that is really good for us as a party, and I think the party needs a free-spirited primary.”

Personally, I agree. I think that it is better to have a large field with enthusiastic supporters who argue why our candidate is the best as opposed to a nasty, bloody campaign where everyone ends up bruised before we get to the general election. Of course, I think that Richardson is the best candidate -- and ought to run, win the primary, and take back the White House!

And now Sudan

Because of the horrible crisis in Darfur, and because Richardson's wonderful negotiating skills, the Save Darfur Coalition has asked Bill Richardson to travel to Sudan to urge them to accept a peacekeeping force. Read about it here and here.

The world needs Bill Richardson to be our next president! If he can help with these crises now, just imagine how much good he could do as president.

New Hampshire

Governor Richardson was in New Hampshire yesterday. Unfortunately, I had other obligations and couldn't get there. But read about his visit here.

Though he wasn't there as a candidate (he was congratulating NH Dems for their marvelous gains in the state house and governorship), he talked about how he is a grassroots kind of candidate. He hold the world's record for the most handshakes in a single day. Here in Maine, we love that kind of candidate too.

Richardson meets with North Korea officials

Wow. This is one of the reasons I like this guy. He is doing what he can to help out by talking with N Korea diplomats. They came to New Mexico today to prepare for the upcoming six nation talks in China. The New York Times offers this quote:

"The only governor with a foreign policy'' is how Larry Sabato, director of the University of Virginia's Center for Politics, describes Richardson.

Read the article.

Richardson will announce in January

According to the Washington Post, I have to wait until January to find out if Richardson will run to be our next president. Of course, I really want the answer to be a yes.

We can probably make the decision easier if there was already some money in the campaign coffers. Go to ActBlue and contribute to the Bill Richardson for President Draft fund! I know there are lots of organizations, people, and presents asking for money this time of the year. But any amount would have to help turn a maybe into a yes....

Richardson speaks out on immigration reform

Richardson gave a great speech on illegal immigration today. You can read the text here. As usual for Richardson, it is a comprehensive, thoughtful approach.

First things first -- no fence. What a phenomenal waste of money! Here in Maine, we have an extensive border too. And we wouldn't dream of a fence. A fence (read wall) running the hundreds of miles of border will not deter anyone who feels they must be here. It will cost a ton of money. And the symbolism of a wall "flies in the face of America as a symbol of freedom."

No wall doesn't mean a policy of open borders. We need to improve our border security. Governor Richardson thinks we ought to double the number of border patrol agents. More agents would be more effective -- and cost a fraction of the monster fence.

We also need to acknowledge that illegal immigrants are helping our society run -- and pay taxes while they are doing so. We rely on immigrant labor to get things done. Even here in Maine, many of the blueberry rakers are migrant, immigrant workers. Richardson thinks that the economy wouldn't rely on immigrant labor as much if the minimum wage were raised. But it would still require more immigrant laborers than are currently permitted. So, he proposes extending the number of worker visas. Again, every summer, businesses in Maine complain that the quota of worker visas has already been met before our season really begins.

Richardson also proposes that there be a clear, streamlined path to citizenship. This is not an amnesty program, but a citizenship program. He also points out the real situations of families where the parents may be here illegally, but the children are US citizens. For these families, we need to have a path to citizenship.

Finally, and I think most importantly, Richardson reminds us that people wouldn't be coming here if the situation weren't so dire elsewhere. If 1/2 of Mexicans weren't living in poverty, if 1/5 weren't living in extreme poverty; then living in the shadows here wouldn't be nearly as attractive. We need a leader who will talk with our neighbors, with other leaders, and find real, thoughtful solutions to the problems that exist. We do not need simplistic finger pointing. We need Richardson.