YOOHOO BILL, WHERE ARE YOU?

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Sometimes, someone has to do something when the water is rising.

One of our local TV stations (KOAT TV) did a bit about our governator and how much time he has spent away from New Mexico (while state government collapsed in graft, bribery and incompetence).

Since January, when he announced his ambition, he's spent a little time here. They say perhaps 60 per cent, perhaps less, back in his home state. They also remarked that the time he's spent here is on weekends (the congress doesn't hold sessions on weekends) and a holiday or two.

Last month he spent 27 of 31 days out of state. Out of 126 days he spent 14 days here. In June and July he was here three out of every four days on the campaign trail.

Meanwhile, the state is burning. We are having major health care problems in our few free hospitals, various bills are apparently piling up on his desk waiting for approval or veto, corporations are waiting for executive decisions, the real people are beginning to wonder what he looks like, our Motor Vehicle Department is understaffed, our police forces (sheriffs and assistants) are short in man/womanpower, we'd like to know how a developer hosted a fund raiser for him and got a $400,00 state contract, how New Mexico is going to fund health care for children when the Feds stop contributing, among many other problems we have.

Now, Bill has an answer to these complaints: "He said he conducts state business by telephone and keeps in contact through e-mail." By telephone? He reads email? Oh, stupid me. That's called goverment by remote control. What's wrong with me not understanding how one can do this?

Another response he made to the remark that he doesn't spend much time here is: "He said he usually spends a day a week in the state." Well, that should be enough time. After all, there are only about two million New Mexicans. And our Bill has super powers. And remote control. And email.

I noticed that he never refers to the Lieutenant Governor. You know, the woman who will not appear next to him in any meeting.

The final comment from our governator (eat your heart out Arnie) blames the citizens here for his absences: "He added that New Mexicans knew when they re-elected him as governor that he might be running for president." See how we are here in New Mexico? Obviously we're a selfish, shallow thinking lot. How dare we expect the man we elected to our highest State office to actually govern the problems of our state?

From what I remember of his last run for Governor of, Richardson always just said that New Mexico was his first priority. But then, I'm just a citizen here.

He's got the band wagon approach to the Iraq fiasco too. He says he wants to withdraw all the support troops from there. He even figured out that he would leave the Iraqi troops in their own country. He wants to put some of these troops in Kuwait and some more in Afghanistan. And then he doesn't seem to understand what he's said. Afghanistan must not have Jihad members, but Kuwait might. Maybe. Or something. Why do I feel that he doesn't understand what his own party wants? Oh shucks. Click the header.

And then there's this:

And another thing: Richardson keeps playing this "governor" bogeyman under his "experience" credentials. Normally, I would agree with it, except in Richardson's case, his governorship has been anything but a resounding success.

Here's a quote from his disastrous appearance on Meet the Press back on May 27th:

MR. RUSSERT: But let’s go through the resume a little bit. First, there’s governor of New Mexico. As you well know, they rank states in a whole variety of categories from one being the best, 50th being the worst. This is New Mexico’s scorecard, and you are the governor. Percent of people living below the poverty line, you’re 48. Percent of children below, 48. Median family income, 47. People without health insurance, 49. Children without health insurance, 46. Teen high school dropouts, 47. Death rate due to firearms, 48. Violent crime rate, 46. You’re the very bottom of all those statistics of all 50 states, and you’re the governor for five years. GOV. RICHARDSON: Well, Tim, let me just say that we’ve made enormous progress in all of those areas.

This is the mantle of executive experience that Richardson is claiming? Biden's point about Richardson being given a free pass is nothing if not exemplified by this. Why hasn't more of the mainstream press challenged these executive credentials Richardson keeps burnishing?

Notice that the governator didn't support his "enormous progress" with any statistics? Hmmm.