Hillary is no longer a female candidate

Gov. Bill Richardson endorsed Barack Obama yesterday. I know, 'cuz I watched it live on CNN.

I had a feeling--which I should have shared on this blog to prove that I had this feeling--that Richardson wasn't going to endorse Hillary. Just look at Bill's face here. Does he look like he's having fun during the most exciting sports event ever?

I referred to Senator Hillary Clinton as "Hillary" in the preceding paragraph deliberatively. Her campaign has thrilled lots of people--men and women--by being the most successful female candidate for President. Until now, I was willing to accept the concept that she was really a female candidate, and as a liberal Dem, I thought that was pretty cool.

But the reaction of the Clinton campaign to Richardson's endorsement shows that she is not the first female candidate. She is from a long line of candidates who have run on the coattails of relatives who had been President or prominent in other ways.

Per the New York Times, James Carville has compared Bill Richardson to Judas (imagine the uproar if Richardson were also Jewish!). The idea that Richardson owes Hillary Clinton is ludicrous. Pray tell, James, what has Hillary Clinton ever done for Bill Richardson? Did she appointment him Secretary of Energy? Did she appoint him Ambassador to the United Nations?

Richardson owes nothing to Senator Hillary Clinton just because her husband appointed him to high government positions. If she is a candidate running on her own merits, she and her campaign should not take for granted the support of anyone who served under Bill.

The airwaves and blogs are awash with debate over the effect of the Richardson endorsement. Votes, superdelegates, Latino voters, etc. Maybe he just saw which way the wind was blowing. Maybe Obama's speech on race truly inspired him. Here's an attempt to add value to the debate with some wild speculation.

Richardson thought Hillary would ask him to be her Vice Presidential nominee. If he said yes, he's be marginalized for 4-8 years. If he said no, he's be out of the Administration.

In contrast, there's no way that Obama would go all brown on the ticket. (My best guess for VP: Jim Webb of Virginia.) Richardson, however, is a natural choice as Secretary of State in an Obama Administration. If you want a foreign policy that includes talking to dictators, Richardson is your man.

While we're on the subject of the Clintons, Bill is a major reason why I think Obama should not even ask Hillary Clinton to be the VP nominee. He has damaged Obama with biting comments about his record, race, and patriotism. Clinton has used race as a wedge issue in 1992. Not that I think that Hillary would accept the VP slot, but Bill is also just too unpredictable and scandal-prone. Why invite a financial or sex scandal into your White House?