Hope and Fail

Appointing Bill Richardson to be Commerce secretary

New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson withdrew as Barack Obama's nominee for Commerce secretary, citing an ongoing federal investigation into pay-for-play activities involving the governor.

New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson withdrew as Barack Obama’s nominee to head the commerce department today as a federal investigation into Richardson’s dealings in the Land of Enchantment heats up.

The investigation was already underway when Obama picked Richardson, and now both sides are pointing fingers as to who is to blame for the apparent lack of vetting.

From the Washington Post:

New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson has withdrawn his name from consideration as commerce secretary for President-elect Barack Obama, citing an ongoing investigation about business dealings in his state.

Richardson, 61, who competed unsuccessfully for the Democratic presidential nomination, was secretary of energy and U.N. ambassador during Bill Clinton’s presidency, and also the first high-profile Latino named to Obama’s Cabinet.

But a grand jury in New Mexico is currently looking into charges of “pay-to-play” in the awarding of a state contract to a company that contributed to Richardson.

The importance of the inquiry was apparently dismissed when Richardson was first nominated. But it may have taken on more weight in light of the “pay-to-play” allegations involving Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich.

And from US News & World Report:

Since last summer, Richardson has been subject to a federal probe as to whether CDR Financial Products was chosen for a state contract because of its contributions totaling $100,000 to two political action committees started by Richardson. The FBI, which has been focusing on eradicating “pay to play” incidents in the municipal bond market, became involved when it noticed that the firm wasn’t on the initial list of businesses most qualified for the nearly $1.5 million contract.

CPR hasn’t had any charges filed against it, and Richardson has said that he and his administration “acted properly in all matters.”

Still, he withdrew his name from consideration as Obama’s secretary of commerce yesterday, saying the investigation would have “forced an untenable delay” in his confirmation process.

Richardson’s withdrawal poses the first major obstacle to Obama during his transition. The president-elect had swiftly assembled his cabinet so he could hit the ground running on January 20–particularly on economic matters. Now, a little more than two weeks before his inauguration, he needs to pick a new commerce secretary.

The incident has also called his vetting process into question, as the investigation had been ongoing when Richardson was picked. Sources have said that Richardson had assured the team the investigation would come out fine but that the depth of the investigation became clear only later, making the transition team worried that confirmation hearings could take weeks or even months.

Whoops!

Save/Share: