Bill Richardson Keeps It Simple

I just had the chance to sit down with Governor Bill Richardson as he did a press conference before he took off on a day where he will hit multiple states with a single message.

"I will end this war and get our troops out."

It's a message that, having been in NH at the debate last night, seems like it might be getting across. In fact, the Governor himself thinks that last night was his strongest performance to date because he was more successful in bringing the Iraq issue on the stage and bringing the differences between himself and Senators Clinton and Obama front and center.

At one point he commented that conceivably both of those candidates could have troops in Iraq 9 years from now, which makes no sense to him, and frankly, no sense to me.

In fact, everyone else's positions on Iraq aren't making much sense at all to me and seem to be a continuation of the failures of DC. John Kerry famously said in 1972 "Where are our leaders?" I was wondering the same thing last night.

I think all three are having trouble with basic communication on this very basic core issue. Our troops are targets, they are dying and their presence is making the situation worse not better. Add to that a litany of problems with our military being stretched thin. Sometimes the answer is clear and simple, even when the situation is not.

We have seen, last fall, the danger of thinking that our elected officials will do what we hope they will when we elect them. We better hold their feet to the fire.

I agree with my friends Chris Bowers and Matt Stoller - we need answers on Iraq. Clear, concise, CLEAR positions.

Bill Richardson has a web site, www.getourtroopsout.com

Bill Richardson says that his fundraising is strong, and respectable and improving, especially on the web. He believes he is actually within striking distance of Senator Clinton in Iowa.

Bill Richardson clearly believes in his mission, and his strategy.

The next four months will go by fast. By January, will the other candidates be where Richardson is today? Or will he still be standing alone with a very simple message.

Get our troops out.

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Comments

[LizM]

"Get our troops out" is not a plan to end the war. It is a simple slogan that is disingenous at best, and a betrayal of an astonishing level of igorance - considering the Governor's self-described diplomatic prowess - as to what is required to end the war in Iraq responsibly, without leaving chaos behind and the eventual need for the return of US forces.

[OckhamsElectricRazor]

But unfortunately, Bill, it ain't that simple.

[FlowerGirl]

It was simple(minded) enough getting us in. And, as some might recall, we have had the experience of leaving a place where we were not wanted before. If there is a will there is a way.
AND, if this is not too ludicrous an idea for Neosoaked America, it is the right thing to do.
Bombing Iran is not. (No matter what that evil AIPAC says.)

[VeniceDave]

What it is the Candidates Clinton, Obama, or Edwards will "find when they take office" that would change their policy, and would stop them from removing ALL residual forces from Iraq? Somebody tell me please!
Because, here is what we do know:
1. We are spending billions of dollars in Iraq, to support a failed military and political policy.
2. Those funds could be used to support the victims of Hurricane Katrina, create universal healthcare, reduce poverty, or stop the drain on the Social Security Trust fund.
3. Our National Guard has been rendered impotent because of their deployment to Iraq, and cannot effectively respond in the case of a natural disaster.
4. Americans are being killed at an alarming rate, as more than 60% of Iraqis think it is ok to kill American soldiers.
5. The political solution has failed, the military solution has failed.
6. There can be no peace in Iraq until the American presence is out of the country.
Pray tell me what else is there to "discover".

[FlowerGirl]

What they will disccover is that Israel wants our troops in Iraq, but what they will say they discovered is probably a horse of a different color.
Support Richardson and Kucinich!

[genmalia]

It sounds great in theory, but there is not a single military official that thinks we can just up and leave in less than 1 year. He wouldn't even ship them home immediately, he talked about sending them through Turkey (if he could get their permission) and Saudi Arabia, and presumably abandoning bases and supplies. He did not mention other Americans in Iraq other than the troops, or what he would do if chaos escalated to genocide or other political fallout in Iraqi government.

Look, right or wrong, we are in Iraq. Like so many, I knew it was wrong from the beginning and speculated that we would go to war with Iraq when Bush was declared president in 2000. But America went to "war" and we invaded a country. I am a proud American and while I practice dissent with this administration, I think that what is safe and responsible for the troops and the Iraqis is to be *Careful* and not act too rashly.

As for Richardson's diplomatic "experience" he touts, why is it that all of the countries he was a diplomat to are the ones we have really crappy relationships with now?

It seems like you didn't see the last face-off with Richardson and Tim Russert. Since then, and since I've researched Richardson's "record" I almost can't stand to even listen to him; and he's the governor of my border state! He is slimy and he has plenty of skeletons in his closet. I refuse to base my support on an ill-conceived single issue.

[VeniceDave]

Of the four major candidates, Governor Richardson is the only one who is not a lawyer. He is not a Senator, who spends his day debating issue after issue.
If I wanted a candidate who spent the entire time spewing forth platitudes without substance, or never answered a question in a substantive manner, there were a number of candidates available.
Bill Richardson addresses the issues of government and how people are affected by government. It is not theoretical, it is the actual administration of government in the lives of citizens. Governor Richardson is skilled at making those decisions, and doing so with compassion, a sense of justice, and with a view towards the future. He has made New Mexico the clean energy state. He has addressed traffic and transportation with innovative solutions. He is responsible for phenomenal job growth and revenue surpluses in New Mexico, while making sure every child has a health care safety net. Governor Richardson has the support of his fellow governors, serving his second term as Chair of the Democratic Governors Association.
He has stood toe to toe with some of the fiercest of our world's leaders, and come away with the prize. He is the one candidate who can negotiate our way out of the quagmire of Iraq.
Today, I am weighing the balances. In my left hand, I have an experienced diplomat with foreign policy experience that goes far beyond sitting on a Senate committee or going on "fact finding" missions; in that same hand, I have an experienced executive, who has been credited with a turnaround on almost every level in his state, experience that no other candidate in the race can stake a claim. That same hand also holds the promise of ethnic diversity. In my right hand, I have the ability to debate; a quality that I can find among any one of a 100 senators, as well as most courtrooms. That hand also holds a few misstatements, all of which were acknowledged and reconciled.

[Ryter]

--why is it that all of the countries he was a diplomat to are the ones we have really crappy relationships with now?

We have really crappy relationships with just about everyone right now. Bill Richardson hasn't been in power, nor is he responsible.

Check the content of the successful negotiations he has done and it will tell you that none of them were about the US bullying its way around the world. They don't give nominations for Nobel Peace Prizes to slim balls.

[genmalia]

There have been plenty of questionable nominations and even awards for Nobel Peace Prize. Yasser Arafat comes to mind immediately.

I am still not convinced, and though I do recognize he has a history, that history doesn't represent the change we need.

And honestly in person, he creeps me out.

[liberaltruthsayer]

Bill Richardson stood head and shoulders above the others in the debate last night. He was decisive on the issues and held strong on his positions. I was very proud of my Governor!

I believe that the more people get to know Bill the more they love him, and in January the mainstream media that so desperately wants to annoint our nominee will be greatly surprised.

[LizM]

Maybe you could explain to me exactly how the Governor's Moslem peacekeeping force is going to work in Iraq...it'­s the ole Sunni v. Shi'a divide!

The last thing we need in the White House is more of the same simple-mindedness we've all had to endure for too long.

[StephenCassidy]

Of the candidates that have a chance at winning (I'm excluding Gravel and Kucinich), only Richardson gets it on Iraq.

The other Dems are trying to have it both ways - bash Bush, call for an end to the war but then keep troops in Iraq for years to come, not actually bring the occupation to an end so as to appeal to the D.C. insiders that got us in the war to start with.

Look at what Edwards, Obama and Clinton said last night in New Hampshire - they won’t guarantee our troops will be out of Iraq even by 2013.

Richardson understands that by the U.S. remaining in Iraq, we unwittingly perpetuate the war. Our troops have become the targets in a civil war. The Iraqi government, in turn, is dependent on the U.S. for security that the Iraqis themselves should provide. Richardson notes: “The Iraqis won’t take the necessary steps toward political reconciliation until the U.S. makes it clear that it will leave the country for good.”

None of the other major Dem candidates have any foreign policy experience or the confidence in their own judgment to stand up to the military and political establishment and unambiguously call for a complete and prompt withdrawal from Iraq. They lack the courage to take the political hit if the situation in Iraq should deteriorate in the short term after the U.S. withdraws.

In the end if HRC is the nominee, what difference will there be between her and the Republican nominee on Iraq? Both will say we need to change course and bring the war to end - but “prudently and cautiously­.” The Democrats will lose the advantage they have on the most critical issue of the election. And America will lose because we will continue to be stuck in Iraq for years to come regardless of who wins.

[FlowerGirl]

I agree with you on Richardson,l would enthusiastically support him. He would help clean up America's wrongs and her image.
I absolutely will not vote for HRC. Ahpees O'Shitt would get my vote before she would.