End of the line for Richardson

Campaign staff mum on reports governor will quit presidential race today

Kate Nash | The New Mexican

1/9/2008 - 1/9/08

For weeks, Gov. Bill Richardson's presidential campaign tried everything in the political playbook to attract media attention.

Richardson even urged a national television reporter during a live interview to start covering his campaign.

But as reports circulated Wednesday evening that he was dropping out of the race, most people associated with the campaign preferred to talk off the record.

The Associated Press broke the story that anonymous sources close to Richardson said he will announce his withdrawal today.

"No he hasn't," the campaign's deputy campaign manager, Amanda Cooper, said shortly after the news came out. When asked whether he planned to drop out, she said, "I haven't had a discussion about it."

Pahl Shipley, a campaign spokesman, wouldn't comment.

However, one news organization after another received unattributable confirmations. A Democratic strategist close to Richardson's campaign told CNN: "The numbers are the reason — not enough votes and not enough money."

Although Richardson appeared buoyant Tuesday night in New Hampshire as he told supporters "we head out West and the fight goes on," his rallying cry seemed to defy evidence his campaign was running out of steam.

He wasn't airing ads in New Hampshire right before the primary and had canceled some of his public events in the Granite State. He wasn't getting national media attention like the front-runners and was barely a blip in election-night mania.

At public events in Iowa last week, the governor had appeared exhausted, dogged by dark circles under his eyes. During one event, he apologized for sitting down as he spoke to a small crowd, saying his knee was bothering him.

Still, the governor kept pledging that he'd forge ahead with the campaign, despite disappointing results in Iowa last week and in New Hampshire on Tuesday night. Richardson placed a distant fourth in both states, getting about 2 percent of delegates and just less than 5 percent of voters in those states respectively.

He vowed to stay in the race through the Feb. 5 super primary, which includes New Mexico, a state he likely would win. Richardson repeatedly called the West "Richardson Territory" and said he expected to do well in states including Nevada.

But that large primary would also pose real challenges for Richardson and the other candidates. With more than 20 states voting on the same day, the ground war in large part could come down to who can get the most ads on television — a change from the more personal one-on-one type campaigning in the early primary states. Richardson also is likely to be overshadowed by Sens. Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama in a key state like California, which also votes Feb. 5.

While Richardson's people weren't saying much, seemingly everyone else in the political world was chattering about the governor.

University of New Mexico political science professor Lonna Atkeson said Richardson would have several reasons for leaving the race. "Obviously, he hasn't done impressively in the first couple of primaries," she said Wednesday. "My guess is when the viability isn't there, that the money starts drying up pretty quickly."

"The question is, do you keep running your campaign and being a Dennis Kucinich, who runs really cheap campaigns, staying in people's houses," she said.

Richardson's campaign had tried to live cheaply, flying commercial and staying in places such as the Quality Inn. His campaign manager, Dave Contarino, volunteered his time.

As the news developed, blogs and news Web sites were buzzing with speculation about what he'll do next and why he seems to have pulled out now.

The New Republic blog suggested it would be smart for Richardson to leave the race before the Jan. 19 Nevada primary so he doesn't siphon Hispanic voters from Clinton — on the assumption she might offer him the No. 2 spot on the ticket.

"Wouldn't it be smart for him to propose to Hillary that he'll drop out before Nevada in exchange for her promise that she'll pick him as her running mate?" Jason Zengerle wrote on the blog. "I don't think it's a deal Hillary would be willing to strike, but at this point, what does Richardson have to lose?"

As the political sites lit up, Richardson's campaign site, by comparison, went down Wednesday evening as supporters and no doubt journalists searched for information on the status of the campaign.

The governor was at the state Capitol on Wednesday, as were his campaign manager, deputy manager and a key strategist. While he was at the Capitol — a rare thing in past months — Richardson attended to some state business, appointing a senator — Grant County Clerk Howie Morales — to replace Senate President Pro Tem Ben Altamirano, who died last month.

He remained in New Mexico on Wednesday evening, but it was unclear what his schedule included for today.

Spokesman Gilbert Gallegos said the governor had nothing planned that Gallegos knew about.

Richardson has been seeking to become the first Hispanic to serve as president. The governor was born in Pasadena, Calif., but grew up in Mexico City before attending boarding school in Massachusetts.

A former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, Richardson is also a former U.S. Department of Energy secretary.

First elected in 2002, Richardson's current term expires in 2010.

The state's two-term limit on governors, however, certainly won't end Richardson's political ambitions.

Some still see him as a potential secretary of state. While he's been mentioned as a possible vice-presidential candidate, the governor has said he's not interested in seeking that spot or the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by Sen. Pete Domenici.

Richardson's next scheduled public appearance is Tuesday at the Capitol, when he's set to give the annual state of the state speech on the opening day of the Legislature.

Contact Kate Nash at 986-3036 or knash@sfnewmexican.com.