Bill Richardson at Exeter
Attended a very powerful session today by a very powerful man, Bill Richardson. He certainly brings some remarkable experpience to the table. I don't believe that another candidate, for example, sat at a negotiating table opposite Saddam Hussein and negotiated a hostage release. I am unaware of another candidate who has negotiated in North Korea for the release of the remains of American soldiers.
The questions from the audience were insightful and they provoked some great answers from Mr. Richardson. One member of the audience, for example, asked how Mr. Richardson could possibly get his plans through Congress. Mr. Richardson said that he would appoint bipartisan committees to many big issues, such as education, energy and pollution. Each of these committees would spend a year formulating legislation that would then be presented to Congress. He is obviously a man who has thought things through, and who stands ready to apply his past experience to new problems.
The troubling thing is, the one way we will probably get him onto a national ticket - at least this year - is in the vice-presidential slot. And he has more experience, really, than any of the Dem candidates who are currently ahead of him in the polls.
He is warm and personable, with a great sense of humor, which doesn't hurt. At one point he said to the audience, "I thought that I won the last debate." I wonder how many of the other people in the audience realized at that moment, along with me, that he was actually right.