Saturday, May 12, 2007

Governor Richardson on Leno last night

Bill Richardson was on Jay Leno last night. He is by far the most qualified of all the democratice candidates in the race up to date; having been a congressman, Ambassador to the UN, Secretary of Energy, and the current Governor of New Mexico. I found most of his appearance on Leno disappointing. He seemed to be there to mention specific things about his biography as opposed to having a genuine interaction with Leno in front of the American people. Big surprise I guess. He took the opportunity to clarify that he had only been scouted and not signed to major league baseball team; an exaggeration he was called out for in his latest campaign for Governor. He told an anecdote about a meeting he had with Saddam Hussein on behalf of President Clinton. It was interesting, but again totally scripted. A disppointing showing up to that point. It was especially disappointing given his reported poor performance in the MSNBC debate.

Right now, I'm tentatively supporting Richardson for president as he's demonstrated competence as a diplomat and governor. His accomplishments in the State (spaceport, railrunner, energy rebate, developing the local film industry) have made me feel that on balance he's a capable leader and someone who can walk and chew gum at the same time (unlike CURRENT GROSSLY INCOMPETENT ADMINISTRATIONS who shall rename nameless). I hate the things Richardon's done with state boards and UNM, but at the same time I wonder if that authoritarian streak is necessary to be an effective president. At the end of his interview with Jay Leno, Jay finally asked him about policy.

I'm pleased to report that Richardson took the opportunity to claim an issue. He said that among other things he'd like to move our oil supply from 65% foreign oil to 10% in the next 10 years. Alright, now we're talking! He mentioned working to actually make use of wind and solar technology (as opposed to lip service), and using more efficient means of transportation. He even mentioned turning the lights off and using less AC at home! Not thrilling, but sensible and something that needed to be said. Above all, he specifically mentioned that he believes that if given some leadership, Americans will actually make some sacrifices and use less. Hallelujia! I've been waiting for a national figure to take that stand for 6 freaking years.

I think if Richardson has the cojones to really make this his issue, he could win. Or perhaps should. To my mind, energy is the most important national issue right now. If he's serious about fixing it, thereby improving national security, cleaning up the environment, creating jobs and a more modern workforce, and stimulating the economy, then he deserves serious consideration. Americans simply want someone who knows what their doing and has a serious vision about change. I commend the governor for being the first in the race to address energy. It definitely saved an otherwise scripted and pointless appearance.

I give it a charitable B-. Let's keep that substance coming.

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

F. Bill in the A.
He has no respect for the voting public. He refused to debate dendahl in his last gubernatorial race, so i refuse to ever vote for him. he really should have debated dendahl. judging from his performance at last month's presidential debate, he could have used the practice.

this dude is pathetic.

Matt said...

Dear Anonymous,

First, thanks for your post! As for Bill I agree he should've debated Dendahl, and that it does show a lack of respect to refuse to debate despite being the clear ultimate winner. I don't agree that the Governor is totally pathetic though. He strikes me as more geniune than the top tier democratic candidates although this is a VERY relative scale. Also, he has proven himself in my view as an effective manager, and someone who can get things done. Not an unimportant quality in a president. At the end of the day, I don't love the guy either, but I do think he's the best we've seen so far.

Anonymous said...

Thanks for writing this.