Bill Richardson on a National Energy Policy

Traveling....

The blog will be a little quiet for the next week or so. Governor Richardson's working hard, but I'll be away from my computer for a bit. Talk to you soon.

Bipartisanship

If you look at polls from all over the country, one of the things that annoys most Americans more than any other issue is the absurd partisan divide over *everything* in Washington. If one party says it's a nice sunny day, the other is sure to point out the incoming rain clouds. It's ridiculous. So, if that sort of issue troubles you as well, check out these poll results. When congressional Republicans were asked which Dem presidential candidate they could most see compromising with to solve the nation's problems, Bill Richardson was the winner. We don't need a bigger partisan divide than ever in DC. Bill Richardson can help to solve that problem.

Electability

Zogby Poll: Half Say They Would Never Vote for Hillary Clinton for President

Other top tier candidates in both parties win more acceptance; Richardson & Huckabee favored most

While she is winning wide support in nationwide samples among Democrats in the race for their party's presidential nomination, half of likely voters nationwide said they would never vote for New York Sen. Hillary Clinton, a new Zogby Interactive poll shows.

The online survey of 9,718 likely voters nationwide showed that 50% said Clinton would never get their presidential vote. This is up from 46% who said they could never vote for Clinton in a Zogby International telephone survey conducted in early March. Older voters are most resistant to Clinton -- 59% of those age 65 and older said they would never vote for the New York senator, but she is much more acceptable to younger voters: 42% of those age 18-29 said they would never vote for Clinton for President.

Whom would you NEVER vote for for President of the U.S.?	%
Clinton (D)	50%
Kucinich (D)	49%
Gravel (D)	47%
Paul (D)	47%
Brownback (R)	47%
Tancredo (R)	46%
McCain (R)	45%
Hunter (R)	44%
Giuliani (R)	43%
Romney (R)	42%
Edwards (D)	42%
Thompson (R)	41%
Dodd (D)	41%
Biden (D)	40%
Obama (D)	37%
Huckabee (R)	35%
Richardson (D)	34%
Not sure	4%

At the other end of the scale, Republican Mike Huckabee and Democrats Bill Richardson and Barack Obama faired best, as they were least objectionable to likely voters. Richardson was forever objectionable as President to 34%, while 35% said they could never vote for Huckabee and 37% said they would never cast a presidential ballot for Obama, the survey showed.

The Zogby Interactive poll, conducted Oct. 11-15, 2007, included 9,718 likely voters nationwide and carries a margin of error of /- 1.0 percentage point.

Bill Richardson on the Economy

One of the reasons Bill Richardson is my favorite Democratic candidate is his resistance to the notion that the only way to balance budgets is by raising everyone's taxes. In fact, Governor Richardson has lowered taxes in New Mexico *and* run huge surpluses by smart spending and budget cuts where appropriate. Here's a great interview with the Gov on CNBC stressing his balanced-budget cred (in fact, I think it's my favorite of his 2008 media interviews so far...great stuff):

"It's Time To Make a Choice In Iraq" Plus Some Video

Straight from Bill Richardson, here's a link to his latest column at Huffington Post, addressing the need to get US troops out of Iraq now.

And here's Joe Scarborough's highly complimentary interview with the Gov on MSNBC, addressing the war:

Bill Richardson and Water Rights

Recently, the Gov highlighted his plan to hold a "national water summit" if elected president and to establish a water-conservation position as a cabinet post in his administration. He also made a comment that was easily misinterpreted: that "Wisconsin is awash in water." That kind of talk raises the hackles of folks around the Great Lakes, who have seen their water levels dropping and, rightfully, don't want to see other regions of the country dipping into their water supply.

So let's clear this one up: Bill Richardson doesn't want to transfer water from one region of the country to another. This isn't socialized water that he's talking about. All he meant by Wisconsin being "awash" in water is that *all* states, even the more "awash" ones, need to be focused on water conservation. Folks in the Southwest have been dealing with this for years, and there certainly are many good people in the Great Lakes area who have too, but BR's point is this: *everyone* in the US needs to focus on water-supply issues and conservation. It's that important. Bill Richardson doesn't want to steal anyone's water. He just wants everyone to think of water as a precious resource that needs to be protected.

Here's the official statement from the campaign yesterday (link to website):

Bill Richardson reaffirms authority of states to oversee water distribution

SANTA FE, NM-- Presidential candidate New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson's national press secretary Tom Reynolds today released the following statement on Richardson's water policy for America's future:

"As president, Gov. Richardson will launch a national dialogue on water issues affecting all parts of the country, including quality, conservation, efficiency and reuse. While certain areas of the country enjoy greater water supplies than others, Richardson in no way proposes federal transfers of water from one region of the nation to the other. Richardson believes firmly in keeping water in its basin of origin and of the rights of states to oversee water distribution.

"As governor of a western state, Richardson understands more than others the importance of protecting our water supplies. In New Mexico he has developed a statewide water initiative, he has created a statewide strategic water reserve, and he has created a water innovation fund and a water trust fund to invest in water conservation and production.

"As President Gov. Richardson will embrace a national water policy that will specifically help protect the authority of states and the rights of local communities throughout the country."

College Students For Richardson

Since I put out the call for NJ volunteers just a couple days ago, we've already had some college students (and others) sign up. It's a nationwide trend, as BR's anti-war message picks up supporters. Here's a piece about Richardson supporters at Yale who are stepping up to volunteer for the Gov.

Smart Military Spending Is Not Always More Military Spending

Here's an article from the Des Moines Register detailing Bill Richardson's plan to strengthen our military by beefing up recruitment numbers and anti-terrorism weapons and tactics while simultaneously getting rid of obsolete weapons--thereby saving billions without compromising American security. And it goes without saying that those increased recruitment goals will be a hell of a lot easier to reach once we're not at war any longer.

Getting Out of Iraq=Helping to Contain Iran

Here's an interesting piece from, of all places, The Conservative Voice, lauding Bill Richardson's plan to get all troops out of Iraq ASAP, and explaining how that plan--including the critical point of establishing an all-Muslim peacekeeping force for the region--will help contain any ambition that Iran may have to try to control Iraq.

Bet of the Year

That would be Bill Richardson--to win the presidency--according to this article from Slate.

"Bill Richardson--The Only Serious Anti-War Candidate"

That's the title of this article from The Individualist. The author implores the netroots community to get behind Bill Richardson, who wants the troops home in one year, and away from Edwards, Clinton and Obama--none of whom will promise that all the troops will be home from Iraq by January 2013.