Media covering the news of Bill Richardson’s death last night have emphasized his federal experience as Congressman, US Secretary of Energy, Ambassador to the UN, hostage negotiator, etc., leaving his career in New Mexico largely out of the initial post-mortem coverage. But here in New Mexico many of us knew Richardson personally, as our governor, congressman, antagonist, and, often, friend.
Richardson picked New Mexico as an adoptive state, almost certainly because he was ambitious, he spoke perfect Spanish (his father, an American businessman working in Mexico City, married a Mexican citizen, and Bill spent his early years in Mexico City) and he thought he could win the Northern Congressional District, occupied with high proportion of Hispanos. He won that seat in 1982 and held it until President Clinton named him Ambassador to the UN in 1996, where he lived in the penthouse of the Waldorf Astoria Hotel (one of the perks of the job) until he was named Secretary of Energy a year later.
Already famous, he returned to New Mexico to run for Governor in 2002, serving two terms and preparing for a run for US President. After that stint he bought a house near the Governor’s Mansion in Santa Fe where he lived part-time until his death. He could be seen frequently in restaurants and bars in Santa Fe.
Richardson’s greatest gift was his charm. He could connect with an audience instantly and hold their attention for as long as he spoke. He was exceptionally attentive to the person he was talking to, no matter what the person’s station in life. I sat next to him on a flight many years ago from Albuquerque to Washington, DC, and by the time we landed it seemed like we were old friends. Later I asked him to speak in Spanish to my students—Latin American officers at the US Army School of the Americas in Ft. Benning (I was on loan from NMSU), and he charmed them as well. I picked him up at the Atlanta airport, where he had just disembarked from a plane from Nicaragua with former President Jimmy Carter. He spent the night at my residence in Ft. Benning and he and my wife fixed huevos rancheros the next morning for a group of officers. Years later he appointed my wife Olivia to be magistrate judge in Doña Ana County.
His record as Governor of New Mexico is more controversial. He loved big-ticket items and headlines, keeping up with the larger-than-life image he wanted to project. But not all New Mexicans were thrilled with his two signature achievements—the Spaceport and the Rail Runner, both costly items plagued by delays and management scandals, and New Mexico’s education system continued its gradual decline during his tenure. Many legislators complained about his blunt arm-twisting style. But no person ever came to the governorship with as much stature at Bill Richardson. Thousands of New Mexicans have personal Richardson stories to tell. Adios, Big Bill. You truly were larger than life and we will savor the stories.
Dr. Garcia is a retired professor of politics at NMSU. He also served as Secretary of Higher Education from 2011-2015.