The cloud that's been hanging over New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson recently, and cost him his shot at being Commerce secretary, appeared to be lifted yesterday. That's when the Associated Press broke the news that Richardson won't face charges stemming from a federal probe of pay-to-play allegations. Now, the cloud is back.
On Thursday, a Richardson spokesman, Gilbert Gallegos, took a little victory lap, saying in a statement that the governor is "gratified that this yearlong investigation has ended with the vindication of his administration."
That's not the way the U.S. attorney sees it, though. Greg Fouratt sent a letter to defense attorneys, the AP reports, in which he said the fact that no charges were filed "is not to be interpreted as an exoneration of any party's conduct." He also said the investigation "revealed that pressure from the governor's office resulted in the corruption of the procurement process."
It's not great form for a prosecutor to be talking guilt out of court when there weren't even any indictments, but that's not likely to matter politically. Rather than being able to go on from here free and clear, Richardson will have to deal with that letter hanging around his neck for some time.
In another statement, this one released Friday, Gallegos said Fouratt's letter "is wrong on the facts and appears to be nothing more than sour grapes."
New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson appears to have successfully weathered the federal investigation that cost him a spot as secretary of Commerce. The Associated Press reports that Richardson and former top aides will not be charged in the investigation, which was looking into an alleged pay-for-play scheme.
Decisions about charging high-ranking political figures are generally made in consultation with main Justice back in Washington, D.C., which typically has final say. That appears to be what happened here, as the AP reports the decision "was made by top Justice Department officials." The AP's source doesn't appear to be happy about it, saying, "It's over. There's nothing. It was killed in Washington."
Update: Clinton's mission was successful, and Kim Jong Il has pardoned the two journalists. See this post for more.
In a surprise visit, former President Bill Clinton arrived Tuesday in Pyongyang, North Korea, to meet with the isolated nation's leader, Kim Jong Il. While North Korea's nuclear program and recent spate of missile tests have caused growing consternation around the world, the main purpose of Clinton's trip was to negotiate for the release of two U.S. journalists currently imprisoned there.
ABC News is now reporting that Clinton also met with the jailed reporters, Laura Ling and Euna Lee. A government source described the meeting as highly emotional but told ABC that those on Clinton's team in North Korea are hopeful the journalists could be released as early as tomorrow.
Clinton has a loose connection to the jailed reporters. Both work for Current TV, a news and media venture headed by Clinton's former vice-president, Al Gore. Ling and Lee were arrested on the border between North Korea and China in March. In June, they were sentenced to 12 years of hard labor for what North Korea said was their illegal entry into the country, as well as engaging in undefined actions deemed hostile to the communist country.
The White House has thus far remained reserved when discussing Clinton's trip. North Korean media said Clinton shared a message from President Obama, but White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs released a statement in which he said, "While this solely private mission to secure the release of the two Americans is on the ground, we will have no comment ... We do not want to jeopardize the success of former President Clinton's mission."
However, Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., seemed somewhat confused by the decision to send Clinton. On the "Today" show this morning, he said of Clinton's visit that "I don't know what this is," though he expressed hope that the visit could lead to progress on limiting North Korea's nuclear arsenal.
There is a long history in the U.S. of notable political emissaries traveling across the globe to try to free hostages.
Perhaps the most memorable diplomatic mission was the Rev. Jesse Jackson's 1999 trip to Belgrade to ask for the release of three U.S. soldiers held as prisoners of war by then Yugoslav president (and war criminal) Slobodan Milosevic. The trip was controversial because Jackson made the journey without the blessing of the Clinton White House. That he actually convinced Milosevic to release the soldiers after the Clinton administration had been unable to do so made Jackson's fame as a hostage-release negotiator grow. The civil rights leader has worked as a diplomat in similar circumstances numerous times over his career: He was able to get hostages released from Syria in 1984, from Cuba in 1987 and from Kuwait and Iraq in 1990 -- all without official presidential or congressional approval.
New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson, who had been discussed as a possible liaison to negotiate the return of Lee and Ling, brokered the release of U.S. hostages from North Korea in the 1990s. Richardson has also helped secure the release of hostages from Iraq, Cuba and Sudan and most recently met with Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez to seek his support in getting a Colombian Marxist guerrilla group to release three U.S. contractors they've detained since 2003. Colombian commandos eventually freed the hostages, along with Ingrid Betancourt, in June 2008.
And in one of the most embarrassing hostage situations the U.S. ever faced, President Jimmy Carter proved unable to negotiate with Iran for the release of 52 Americans held after the overthrow of the shah during the Iranian revolution. A daring military operation to free the hostages also failed. Iran eventually released the hostages once President Ronald Reagan took office. Later in his presidency, Reagan suffered a major political scandal when it was revealed that his administration had sold arms to Iran in an attempt to gain the release of seven American hostages being held in Lebanon by Iranian terrorists.
President Obama struck out with his first two picks for Commerce secretary, as both New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson and Sen. Judd Gregg (R-N.H.) withdrew their nominations for the post. Now, he's reportedly hoping to do better with a fairly obscure choice -- former Washington Gov. Gary Locke.
Locke, who left in office in 2005, served two terms and opted not to run for a third; he was the first Chinese-American governor in U.S. history.
One day after the sudden announcement that New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson's nomination to be commerce secretary was being withdrawn, Richardson offered additional details during a press conference. It did not go off without a hitch.
Richardson maintained that the decision to withdraw was his, and said he came to make that choice because an investigation into state contracts given to CDR Financial Products Inc., whose president is a Richardson donor, had gone on longer than he expected it to -- he'd hoped it would be done in December, removing the cloud from over his head before confirmation hearings were to begin. The governor said, as he had in a statement on Sunday, that the country couldn't afford any delay in confirming a new head for the department. "Sometimes your own dreams and plans must take a back seat to what is best for the nation," he told reporters.
Still, Richardson made clear that he doesn't believe this is the end of his political career. Referencing a statement from Barack Obama in which the president-elect said he "look[s] forward to his future service to our country and in my administration," Richardson said, "I still believe I have a future in public service."
There was one odd note Monday afternoon. When one reporter asked Richardson -- who'd previously said he would not take any questions related to the CDR investigation -- whether he had a lawyer, the governor responded, brusquely, "I am not getting into any more questions," and the press conference was over.
Bill Richardson, the New Mexico Governor who Barack Obama tapped to be secretary of Commerce, has withdrawn his name from nomination for the position, NBC News reports.
While denying any wrongdoing, Richardson cited a pending investigation into an unspecified company that has done business with the state of New Mexico: "Let me say unequivocally that I and my administration have acted properly in all matters and that this investigation will bear out that fact," he said Sunday on NBC News. "But I have concluded that the ongoing investigation also would have forced an untenable delay in the confirmation process." Richardson plans to continue in his role as Governor of New Mexico.
President-elect Obama said he accepted Richardson's decision to withdraw with "deep regret." Obama did not give any hint as to who might nominate instead, but said: "we must move quickly to fill the void left by Governor Richardson's decision."
UPDATE: A federal grand jury is investigating how CDR Financial Products, a California company which made financial contributions to Richardson's political activities, won a lucrative New Mexico contract, according to the Associated Press.
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