Where was Bill Richardson on Friday? That’s a good question.
Roughly two weeks ago, sources said the governor had a Friday meeting scheduled with Barack Obama in Chicago to discuss job options. But Richardson spokesman Pahl Shipley told me at the time that no such meeting existed.
Then the Washington Post reported Friday evening that Richardson met with Obama that day in Chicago. At the time, Richardson emerged as one of two most-discussed candidates for secretary of state, along with Hillary Clinton. In response to inquiries about the newspaper’s report, a couple of sources close to Richardson told me that Richardson did meet with Obama on Friday.
But on Monday came a report from the New Mexico Independent in which Richardson spokesman Gilbert Gallegos was quoted as saying that Richardson “was here in the office (in Santa Fe) on Friday.” He would not comment to the news organization on whether Richardson and Obama spoke by phone or at all on Friday. He said only that Richardson was in New Mexico on Friday and Saturday.
I suppose Richardson could have stopped in the office in Santa Fe before flying to Chicago and then returning later on Friday. But if the answer is that simple, why not just say that? I have not yet received a response to an e-mail request for comment I sent to Gallegos and Shipley on Monday night.
Meanwhile, it appears more and more likely that Clinton is headed toward being Obama’s secretary of state. The Guardian (UK) is reporting that Clinton plans to accept the job after Obama reportedly offered it last week. And the Huffington Post has links to several other articles indicating that Obama is moving in Clinton’s direction.