| | |  Editorials | Issues | January 2009 
Did Obama Team Push Richardson To Withdraw?
 USNews
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| | New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson is seen at the University of the Americas in Cholula in Mexico's state of Puebla in this December 4, 2008 file photo. (Reuters/Imelda Medina) | |
New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson yesterday withdrew his nomination to be Commerce Secretary in the Obama Administration. NBC Nightly News reported Richardson did so "in the face of a corruption investigation that threatened to delay or even derail his confirmation." To the question "was he nudged or pushed out," NBC replied that "it was more than a nudge. He was pushed." The AP similarly reports that "aides to both men insisted that Richardson made the decision to withdraw and was not pushed out by Obama," but "one Democrat involved in discussions over the matter said transition officials became increasingly nervous during the last couple of weeks that the investigation was a bigger problem than Richardson had originally indicated."
ABC World News said last night that according to "sources... officials on the Obama transition team feel... Richardson was not as forthcoming as he could have been about" the investigation into whether he "steered a state protect towards a firm run by a major financial contributor." The Politico, in a story headlined "Team Pressed Richardson, Got Nothing," says "Obama's transition team pressed... Richardson about" the Federal probe," but according to "a Democratic source... Obama's questioners came away empty-handed. 'Those guys were pressed for information and they gave nothing,' the source said."
Another story in The Politico notes "a Senate aide" said "there had been 'nervousness' within the Senate and more specifically the Senate Commerce Committee about the grand jury probe in recent weeks." The Politico also says "the announcement prompted immediate finger-pointing about the vetting process." Meanwhile, the Financial Times reports the incident "exposed the first significant flaw in the US president-elect's widely praised cabinet selection process." The New York Times also says the setback "raises questions about the thoroughness of Mr. Richardson's vetting," while on ABC World News, George Stephanopoulos called the situation "shocking," given the purportedly detailed vetting process put in place by the Obama team. He added, "actually... a Google search would have shown this investigation has been going on for some time. ... It is very surprising." The Santa Fe New Mexican, Albuquerque Journal, McClatchy, USA Today, Bloomberg News, Los Angeles Times, Financial Times, AFP, The Hill, Washington Times and Roll Call, among other media outlets, run similar reports on Richardson.
FBI Agents Warned Obama Team Probe Was Serious On its front page, the Washington Post reports, "A legal source familiar with the investigation said yesterday that FBI agents, working on the Senate's behalf and conducting a background check of Richardson for the Commerce job, conveyed to Obama's transition team the seriousness and significance of the Albuquerque grand jury probe." Those "agents are said to have communicated that the governor's top aides - and even Richardson's own actions - were under scrutiny." The Wall Street Journal says "the probe appears to be heating up." Richardson "hired a personal lawyer last month, said people in New Mexico who are familiar with the situation. In mid-December, the grand jury began taking testimony from a slew of witnesses, including some officials in Mr. Richardson's administration." |
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