Posted January 8 2008 by Rachel Krich
Next up………. Richardson
Alright, my plan to write up info on the most popular candidates has fallen to the way side because I just have to talk about my man Richardson before he might drop out. CNN reported after tonight’s 4th place stance his team may be heading back to NM to “rethink” things. I think they are just going back because this is a really nice time of year in NM, it’s snowy, it’s pretty and everyone burns Pinion wood and the whole state smells good. Now yes, I am very slanted with regard to Richardson because he is a politician from New Mexico, my home state. He served in Congress from 1983-1997, was the US Ambassador to the UN from 1997-1998, was the Secretary of Energy from 1998-2001 and since then has been the governor of New Mexico. From a personal point of view, he has taken a state that was 49th in the nation for public education (but we beat Mississippi!!!) to a state that has more and more high paying jobs spilling in. When I left Santa Fe in 2001 it was a town of close to 70,000 people. There were the very rich and the very poor. Today Santa Fe is huge, the town is far over the 100,000 mark and has a huge middle class. This is because Richardson made living in Santa Fe, and all cities in New Mexico, a viable option. He helped bring in jobs that would allow people to live a peaceful middle class life, and he helped create a huge economic expansion. My sister still lives in Santa Fe, and I go visit about once a year; I can tell you it’s a much better place to live now than it was before Richardson.
So on to the facts…
Foreign Policy - He is by far the most qualified of all two thousand candidates. He is the only one who actually sat in a room with Saddam Hussein and negotiated the release of American captives. Regarding Iraq War, he wants to end the war asap, however he feels that it is important not just to drop and run, but to really be a partner with Iraq in rebuilding. He feels that having a constant military presence makes the Iraqis feel like they are being occupied and will be more likely to make change and work towards rebuilding if the military presence is gone. Richardson feels the war needs to be refocused on al Qaeda. They are the threat and cannot be ignored, and the occupation in Iraq is making the US focus on the wrong things. Richardson wants to redeploy and create a huge global diplomatic initiative.
Israel - From the research I have done I have not found that Richardson has spoken about a two state solution as an option for Israel. He feels that Israel is our number one priority in the Middle East and the US must keep Israel and Israelis safe. He feels that Israel is a key player in stabilizing the region and the US must do everything it can to keep Israel safe and work with her to make peace around the Middle East. He does feel that there must be diplomatic relations with Syria, however he feels very differently with Iran.
I highly recommend reading the Foreign Policy section on Richardsonforpresident.com His ideas go far beyond Iraq, to global warming, international health crises and helping to stem poverty. The message, while a bit dense and technical, is very interesting and so far has been the most innovative I have seen on any of the campaign websites I have read. He is also the only candidate that has an entire section on his web site about Darfur.
Health Care - Richardson, like Obama, thinks that the health care plan that the US Congress has should be expanded to allow any American to join if they do not have health coverage, and it would allow small business owners to buy into the program to help insure their employees. He wants to create a advanced refundable income tax to help pay for medical needs. Richardson would also get rid of interest rates that people have to pay when they pay for medical fees on credit cards. Richardson feels that the Veteran health program is not dignified for our men and women who have fought so bravely for us. He would create the “Heroes Health Card” which would allow vets to get medical attention in any city, and not have to drive miles and miles away to the nearest vet hospital. He also plans to give more money to research in the areas of cancer, AIDS and autism.
While this is only a small small snippet of the information that is on Richardson’s website, I strongly recommend taking a look (Richardsonforpresident.com). While it is obvious that some of the writers went to NM public schools before Richardson took over and made the schools better, it is very interesting. While at this point he has no chance, his ideas are phenomenal and it is really worth reading some interesting and innovative ideas. Hopefully in the next go around this brilliant, progressive thinker can have a better shot.
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4 Comments currently posted. 
Benji Rosenzweig says:
Marc Lerman says:
You’re from NM? I was born there! Go NM!
Rachel Krich says:
The sad news just came in. He is dropping out. I was hoping he would last till Feb 5th so I could vote for him. Now who am I going to vote for?
Seth Jacobson says:
I’m disappointed that he dropped out. I wanted to see if his Western strategy would succeed. He had been leading the polls in Nevada, New Mexico would surely be his, and he was trumpeting his upbringing in California, which, he had gotten a boost from NM and NV, his campaign hoped, would have gotten him a good showing in CA, which could have had a ripple effect elsewhere. But I guess by then it would have been too late. Hillary and Obama (sorry, John Edwards) will have been neck and neck for 1 and 2, particularly in CA, by the time they vote there, and the CA votes wouldn’t do much for Richardson, even if he got 3rd. It’s a shame to see the most qualified person running in either party get squeezed out because of money and hype.
P.S. - My cousins are from NM - woot!
My wife and I go to Albuquerque NM a few times a year, and there too there is amazing growth. Richardson is doing a great job of bringing in out of state money a making it in-state