I’ve been following Bill Richardson for years and he was among my favorite contenders for the Democratic nomination for President. Ultimately I signed onto the Obama camp but I initially thought Richardson has the gravitas and experience to be a great Vice President, or at least Secretary of State. During the campaign, though, I felt that Richardson was pandering to the pro-withdrawal political left (I argued two years ago that no Democratic President would ever leave Iraq fully). I ultimately favored Hillary over Richardson for veep, for purely electoral reasons, but there was also increasing concern that Richardson had character issues (particularly allegations of sexual harassment) which really cooled his support. Ultimately, despite his ringing endorsement of Obama, he was passed over for Secretary of State and offerred Secretary of Commerce instead – but then withdrew himself from consideration due to an increasing array of ethical and legal troubles back in New Mexico. To be honest, by that time, Richardson had dropped off my radar given the excitement of the Inauguration and the new Administration, but I have wondered exactly what the issues were that Richardson was facing that caused him to withdraw so suddenly from Cabinet consideration.

As it turns out, the Daily Beast has a detailed story on Richardson’s woes, and it makes me fervently glad that Richardson was skipped over for State, let alone the Veep slot. Some of the accusations against him verge on the silly, with all the hallmarks of a classic political pile-on. However, two aspects of the story strike me as rather revealing in terms of validating the concerns about character andmy earlies suspicions about his pandering for liberal votes.

First, TDB reports that Richardson told his closest advisors he felt “double-crossed” by Obama’s selection of Hillary for Secretary of State. This is remarkably petty; Cabinet members serve at the pleasure of the President and for teh good of the nation. These are not plum political appointments for appointments’ sake; there rae serious problems facing the nation and it’s the President’s prerogative to choose whomever he wants for the most ritical roles (and there are few as critical as Secretary of State). President Obama not only has a right to change his mind at the last minute, but in fact a sacred duty to do so, if he feels that someone else is better suited to the job. Whining about a double-cross suggests that Richardson saw State as some kind of reward rather than a chance to serve.

Second, the conspiracy theorizing by Richardson’s camp about who is behind his political woes: Karl Rove or Hillary Clinton. The habit of blaming other secret and nefarious forces rather than facing up to and taking responsibility for one’s own actions is not one well-suited for leadership. As TDB notes, neither theory really makes much sense anyway:

Among the flaws in this conspiracy theory is the fact that the
current US Attorney, Greg Fouratt, is a career prosecutor initially
hired by Chief US District Judge Martha Vasquez (a Bill Clinton
appointee) who was put in place by a panel of New Mexico federal judges
in January 2008. Placing blame on Hillary Clinton is even more
far-fetched, implying that the new secretary of State has the
inclination and obsession–not to mention wherewithal–to influence the
criminal probe of a political rival.

In any case, attempts to blame either the GOP or Clinton are patent
efforts to deflect attention from the predicament in which the governor
finds himself. Likewise, the belief floated by Richardson supporters
that Attorney General Eric Holder will replace US Attorney Fouratt and
intervene to stop the federal grand jury investigation seems
delusional.

I think it’s safe to assume that regardless of the veracity of Richardson’s accusers’ claims, his response is a revelation in itself that he was not the man he marketed himself as being. I am fervently thankful that Richardson isn’t anywhere near the new Administration (much as I am glad that Elliot Spitzer and John Edwards also flamed out in their own scandalous blazes before they could get close enough into the new Administration to do harm).

Related: all Richardson-related posts at Nation-Building blog during the 2008 election.