Richardson: 'For the good of the party it's OK for longtime Hill supporters to back Barack.'

[John Q. Citizen]

I mean if Bill Richardson can do it, so can everyone else.

[Tatiana]

1. BIDEN will be next, methinks. n/t

[John Q. Citizen]

15. He may well be. I think bringing out the other also rans is a good strategy.

It places a moral pressure on Hillary to quit dividing the party and is probably a good way to influence other super delegates.

[bigtree]

2. He's bringing that 2-7% he pulled when he was running

his 2 to 7 cents

[krawhitham]

8. Yeah that is why camp Hill was begging for him to back her

[bigtree]

12. I'll bet they regretted that after he started hinting she should quit a few weeks back

He contradicts his own statement about his own campaign before it failed.

[John Q. Citizen]

9. 2% to 7% of previously declared or undeclared supers to Obama would be awesome. That

would be twenty something supers at the high end.

More important than the number of votes he received is the fact that he's a very good, longtime, and close friend of the Clintons, he's a publicly close friend, and he just said it's alright, for the good of the party, to declare for Obama.

That's huge/eleven!!!!

Actually. it's pretty big in a psychological sense. Somebody has to be first. and second, and third, and then eventually everybody is there. And somebody just stood up and said "it's fine to be here."

So we shall see...

[Frank Booth]

16. Yep. If Obama gets a 2 - 7% jump from this that's great news.

[JVS]

18. Oh look, there goes a bus. Why don't you throw him under it?

[Beacool]

3. It may be OK for a backstabber like Richardson,

but it's not OK for plenty others.

[mattclearing]

4. Color me surprised.

Knives out for Richardson from jilted Hill-supporters? Shocking.

And then the Clinton people said, "He can't help out in Texas anymore, so this endorsement means nothing." Proving Richardson made the right decision, but maybe a bit after it might have made maximum impact.

[Cha]

10. But, they forget about the

undecided delegates who may not take kindly to the Guv being dissed by the vapid clintonaires.

[blonndee]

29. Yup. That's why I said in another post, let them say that crap.

I hate to hear Richardson being so unfairly slimed, but ultimately it doesn't hurt him! It can only hurt them.

[Cha]

32. And consider the source...hilary's

dissed everyone who doesn't vote for her and every state she didn't win. Bill Richardson's in Good Company.

[anonymous171]

5. "backstabber"? You mean he doesn't believe in cronyism?

[tammywammy]

11. backstabber?

Richardson has the right to endorse whomever he wants to. Sorry you disagree with his choice.

[zonkers]

13. Backstabber? What? Is this the Sopranos? You'd think that the friendship

between Clintons and Richardson would be big enough for them to respect him for making a hard choice and not hold any grudges, in fact they should not expect any less from him.

[Mooney]

21. "Backstabber"?

Please.

Pray, what in Bill Richardson's long career is there to indicate that he regularly betrays people, besides the fact that he has had the unmitigated audacity to endorse a candidate other than Hillary Clinton? Please list the long long list of nefarious betrayals that he has committed.

[jgraz]

22. Bitter, party of one.

[blonndee]

27. Gosh, that sounds like something Bush might say to someone who disagreed with him. n/t

[JVS]

30. Are you cozy in your bunker? Do you need a blankey?

[Beacool]

33. Nope, but I know where my vote will go in November

and it ain't for Obama.

[jgraz]

35. Nice. Why don't you just order that McCain 08 t-shirt right now

Oh, and get the fuck off our Democratic board.

[Beacool]

36. Sorry, lifelong Democrat but I'm not obligated to vote for Obama.

I'll leave this board if and when I choose to do so.

[jgraz]

43. Hate to break it to you

but you stopped being a lifelong Democrat as soon as you decided to vote against our nominee.

[gmudem]

34. Another way the Clintons are Rovian

Loyalty is one of the most important things to the Bushies, certainly more important than competence or truth-telling. The Clintons seem to believe the same thing.

[Beacool]

37. Loyalty IS very important, it denotes character. n/t

[Drachasor]

39. Richardson made a principled stand. You might not agree with him, but he thought long and hard

Why do you say Richardson's loyalty is more important than his careful reasoned analysis on what the right thing to do was, in his opinion? When people say it is "Rovian" they mean that you seem to be placing loyalty as the primary/only attribute of consideration -- that's demanding blind loyalty.

So here's the big question: Under what conditions could Richardson have chosen to support someone else besides Hillary (not necessarily Obama, this is a hypothetical question so we'll presume some other Democrat) and still be viewed as a principled person by you?

[Chulanowa]

44. Loyalty is not unquestioning subservience

If I think someone has a better idea on an important issue, I'll side with them over my good buddy who has a not-as-good option for the same issue. If my buddy gets pissed over this, well, perhaps the relationship wasn't as close as I had thought.

[InAbLuEsTaTe]

45. Rovian all right.

[DemGa]

6. Piss off Bill Richardson --- NT

[KingOfLostSouls]

7. How could Richardson "backstab" hillary?

weren't the clinton supporters the ones saying superdelegates should "vote their conscience?"

DOH!

[jalynn]

14. Yes they should

but he went against his own constituents in his own state. He didn't listen to his own voters voices. Hillary won NM. All for his own agenda. Guess he got offered the VP spot.

[LordJFT]

25. wait so are you saying in states hillary won they should go with the will of the people and in

states obama won they should vote their conscience? The hypocrisy here is hilarious!

[redstate_democrat]

28. Isn't it lovely?

I wonder how delusion and fanaticism is working for Team Hillbot?

[kerry-is-my-prez]

31. He's not much of a friend - that's for sure....

If I were buddies with him I sure wouldn't turn my back on him....

[Drachasor]

41. So you are saying who you support for President should be based on friendship?

I have a lot of friends I would not support as President (particular the conservative ones). Is it not possible to consider someone else the better candidate based on merits and so then support them? That seems perfectly reasonable AND respectable to me, even if it could be a hard personal decision.

[JVS]

19. Maybe Geraldine Ferraro will hold a press conference on Bill Richardson's career and the Clintons.

I'm sure she'd cast a lot of light on what the whiners are mad about.

[LordJFT]

23. she'll probably dismiss Richardson by saying he only became governor because he's latino

[JVS]

24. And that the Clintons appointed him to posts for the same reason and he owes them.

[JVS]

17. Come on in, the water's fine.

[FlyingSquirrel]

20. Here I'll give ya that elusive 5th rec

[redstate_democrat]

26. Wow.

Can't wait to hear what Geritol Ferraro says. She may freak out and stab him in a blind racist rage.

[jconner27]

38. That's ok

I prefer not to join a cult thank you.

[Skip Intro]

40. Oh, ok Bill, thanks. That's what I was waiting for.

:eyes:

[Catherine Vincent]

42. No thanks, Richardson.

I'll support Barack when I'm damn good and ready.

[John Q. Citizen]

46. Maybe I spoke too soon. Maybe the cost is getting called a traitor and obsolete on TV?

How would the average super delegate feel about that?