Richardson joins presidential sweepstakes
The New Mexico governor has decided he's going to be in the running:
Richardson's most important advantage is probably that he's a governor, not a senator. No senator has won a race for the White House since JFK in the 1960s. That's not to say it can't be done, but it hasn't been happening in recent decades. The only other governor in the race thus far is Vilsack, who isn't likely to become the nominee. Richardson has a better shot at getting into the top tier and defeating Obama, Clinton, and Edwards, the front runners.
"I am taking this step because we have to repair the damage that’s been done to our country over the last six years," Mr. Richardson said in a statement. “Our reputation in the world is diminished, our economy has languished, and civility and common decency in government has perished."Richardson's competition includes Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama, and John Edwards (those three constitute the probable top tier) as well as Tom Vilsack, Joe Biden, and Chris Dodd, who are in the race but unlikely to capture the nomination. The field is only going to keep getting bigger.
He highlighted his experience, from United Nations ambassador to state governor, as making him uniquely positioned to tackle a range of international and domestic tasks, from getting American troops out of Iraq to improving the economy and energy independence.
Richardson's most important advantage is probably that he's a governor, not a senator. No senator has won a race for the White House since JFK in the 1960s. That's not to say it can't be done, but it hasn't been happening in recent decades. The only other governor in the race thus far is Vilsack, who isn't likely to become the nominee. Richardson has a better shot at getting into the top tier and defeating Obama, Clinton, and Edwards, the front runners.
