Las Cruces may lose up to $1.8M after bill signed

March 11, 2010

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Sharp scores twice as Blackhawks beat Kings in OT

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New members named to NM Investment Council

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Today In History March 11, 2010

March 11, 2010

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Community Extra: Applause

March 11, 2010

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Bill Richardson was recently re-elected to a second term as Governor of New Mexico with the support of 69 percent of voters, representing the largest margin of victory for any governor in state history. New Mexicans overwhelmingly endorsed Governor Richardson’s aggressive efforts to move the state forward.

During his first term as Governor, Richardson made good on his campaign promises to improve education, cut taxes, build a high-wage economy, develop a statewide water plan and make New Mexico safer by getting tough on DWI, domestic violence and sex crimes.

New Mexico continues to be a national leader in job growth and economic momentum – with more than 83,000 more New Mexicans working since Governor Richardson took office. Under Governor Richardson’s leadership, the state has a balanced budget and the highest budget reserves in the state’s history.

During the 2002 campaign for Governor, Bill Richardson broke a world record. He shook 13,392 hands in an 8-hour period – shattering the record that former president Theodore Roosevelt set on inauguration day in 1907. With his wife, Barbara, at his side, Governor Richardson was sworn into office January 1, 2003 at the historic Palace of the Governors in Santa Fe – the nation’s oldest seat of government.

Governor Richardson recently completed his second straight year as Chairman of the Democratic Governors’ Associations. He previously served as:

* Chairman of the Western Governors’ Association, and
* Chairman of the Border Governors’ Conference
* Chairman of the 2004 Democratic National Convention

In addition to his duties as Governor, Richardson has taught a course at New Mexico State University, where he provided students with unique perspectives on the inner workings of state government, the importance of public service and taught them about the realities of today’s political environment. Richardson previously taught at the University of New Mexico, Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government and the United World College in Montezuma, NM.

Prior to being elected governor, Bill Richardson enjoyed a very successful and fulfilling career in public service, academia and the private sector - few can match his wide-ranging experience and his level of dedication to protecting the rights and improving the quality of life of people in New Mexico, the United States and around the world. Richardson has met face-to-face with some of the world's most intimidating leaders. He negotiated the release of prisoners from Saddam Hussein, convinced corrupt foreign heads of state to step down, and oversaw and reformed one of the most challenging and unmanageable agencies in government, the Department of Energy. In recognition of his concern for human rights abuses and his diplomatic work throughout the world, Richardson was nominated several times for the Nobel Peace Prize.

Bill Richardson served for fifteen years in northern New Mexico representing the 3rd Congressional District, one of the most ethnically diverse in the country. He won every election with more than 60% of the vote, revealing a real mandate for his vision for New Mexico and his ability to effectively represent and serve his constituents. He held 2,700 town hall meetings, an average of about 180 per year. Bill Richardson quickly rose to leadership in Congress, creating the opportunity for him to serve as a serious advocate for New Mexicans. He sponsored and passed a bill to retain and improve health care for rural New Mexicans and also, a bill to increase the amount of nurses in the state. He traveled to Missouri and convinced milk producers to open a dairy factory in eastern New Mexico, creating jobs and bringing economic development to the state. He also worked to bring high-tech parks to the state bringing business and cutting-edge technology to New Mexico. He consistently supported a balanced budget amendment, underscoring his belief that government should live within its means. Bill Richardson ensured that our natural beauty was preserved by creating the Jemez National Recreation area and protecting the Rio Grande River and San Juan Basin. As a ‘prolific legislator’ and involved committee member, Bill Richardson always made sure that New Mexico had a voice on issues important to the state.

While a congressman, Richardson served as a special envoy on many sensitive international missions. He successfully won the release of hostages, American servicemen, and prisoners in North Korea, Iraq, and Cuba. He also secured the release of an Albuquerque resident who was kept hostage in Sudan.

In 1997, Richardson was nominated to be the U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations. At the U.N., Richardson addressed many difficult international negotiating challenges and crises all over the world. He served as an advocate for the realization of universal human rights and fair and democratic governance worldwide. He worked to increase security by fighting international terrorism and the creation and proliferation of biological weapons. He fought to increase awareness of the status of women in places like Afghanistan and Africa. He promoted economic development through both private and public means, and always stood for international fair labor standards. Richardson ensured that issues such as global warming, and public health crises were not overlooked.

In 1998, Richardson was unanimously confirmed by the United States Senate as Secretary of Energy -- a department with deep roots in New Mexico. Upon nominating Richardson to the energy post, the president remarked, "If there's one word that comes to mind when I think of Bill Richardson, it really is energy."

Richardson won praise for his can-do, hands-on management style. He tackled tough problems - from gas prices to security lapses at nuclear weapons laboratories - and offered a host of new initiatives and achieved many successes, including several projects based here in New Mexico. He championed environmental responsibility, clean and renewable technologies, and oil and gas technologies that reduced our dependence on foreign resources. Richardson was the first Energy Secretary to ask Congress to provide compensation for current and former Energy Department workers who had become ill as a result of their work at nuclear facilities. Additionally, Richardson cut waste and created further accountability at the Department of Energy. He required projects be completed within budget, on time, and fought to end wasteful congressional pork at the agency. Two-thirds of his appointments went to women and minorities. Richardson made it a priority to create a better working environment by pushing for more childcare, fitness centers and regular meetings for DOE workers.

In 2001, Richardson assumed the chairmanship of Freedom House, a private, non-partisan organization that promotes democracy worldwide. He also worked as a business consultant in Santa Fe and served on several boards including the Natural Resource Defense Council and United Way International.

Richardson was elected governor of New Mexico in November 2002, having defeated the Republican candidate, John Sanchez, 56-39 percent. He succeeded a two-term Republican governor, Gary E. Johnson. He took office in January 2003 as the only Hispanic Governor in the United States. Early in his first term, it is said he pressed energetically in a hundred directions at the same time. In his first year, Richardson proposed "tax cuts to promote growth and investment" and passed a broad personal income tax cut and won a statewide special election to transfer money from the state's Permanent Fund to meet current expenses and projects. In early 2005, Richardson made New Mexico the first state in the nation to provide $400,000 in life insurance coverage for New Mexico National Guardsmen who serve on active duty. Thirty-five states have since followed suit.

After college, he worked on congressional relations for the State Department. He was later a staff member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. In 1978, he moved to Santa Fe and ran for Congress in 1980, losing narrowly to longtime 1st District congressman and future United States Secretary of the Interior Manuel Lujan (R). Two years later, Richardson was elected to New Mexico's newly created third district, taking in most of the northern part of the state.

Richardson spent a little more than 14 years in Congress; after winning his first election, he never faced a truly close election in the heavily Democratic 3rd District. As a congressman, he kept his interest in foreign relations. He visited Nicaragua, Guatemala, Cuba, Peru, India, North Korea, Bangladesh, Nigeria, and Sudan to represent U.S. interests.

Richardson also took up the cause of Native Americans while serving in the House of Representatives. Richardson served one term as Chairman of the House Natural Resources Subcommittee on Native American Affairs in the 103rd Congress (1993-1994). While in the House, Richardson sponsored some of the most prominent Native American bills that were signed into law by President Bill Clinton. Those bills include the Indian Tribal Justice Act, the American Indian Religious Freedom Act Amendments, the American Indian Trust Fund Management Reform Act, the American Indian Agricultural Resource Management Act, the Indian Dams Safety Act, the Tribal Self-Governance Act, the Indian Tribal Jurisdiction Bill (commonly known as the “Duro Fix”) and the Jicarilla Apache Tribe Water Rights Settlement Act.

In 1995, he traveled to Baghdad with Peter Bourne and engaged in lengthy one-on-one negotiations with Saddam Hussein to secure the release of two American aerospace workers who had been captured by the Iraqis after wandering over the Kuwaiti border. He became a member of the Democratic leadership, where he worked closely with Bill Clinton on several issues.

This was one of several times that Richardson went overseas during the Clinton years to negotiate the release of American prisoners. He was also successful in this task in Sudan and North Korea.

In 1997, Clinton appointed him as U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations. He served there until 1998, when he was appointed as U.S. Secretary of Energy, where he served for the remainder of the Clinton administration. According to his autobiography, in 1997 Richardson was asked by the White House to interview Monica Lewinsky for a job on his staff at the UN. Richardson did so, and offered her a position, which she declined.