{"id":1125,"date":"2007-01-19T14:12:00","date_gmt":"2007-01-19T20:12:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.nmpolitics.net\/index\/2007\/01\/bingaman-and-udall-discuss-richardsons-ambitions-iraq-climate-change-and-other-issues\/"},"modified":"2007-01-19T14:12:00","modified_gmt":"2007-01-19T20:12:00","slug":"bingaman-and-udall-discuss-richardsons-ambitions-iraq-climate-change-and-other-issues","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nmpolitics.net\/index\/2007\/01\/bingaman-and-udall-discuss-richardsons-ambitions-iraq-climate-change-and-other-issues\/","title":{"rendered":"Bingaman and Udall discuss Richardson’s ambitions, Iraq, climate change and other issues"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>The two Democratic members of New Mexico<\/st1:state>\u2019s delegation in Washington<\/st1:city>, D.C.<\/st1:state><\/st1:place> will support Gov. Bill Richardson if he runs for president. <\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve urged him to run,\u201d U.S. Rep. Tom Udall<\/a> said. \u201cGov. Richardson and I go way back and we\u2019ve been good friends.\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

Sen. Jeff Bingaman<\/a>, who has several Democratic colleagues running for president, agreed.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve told Bill that I\u2019d be glad to support him if he jumps into the race,\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s an amazing undertaking and I compliment him for it.\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

Their comments were part of wide-ranging interviews I had with both at their congressional offices during a visit I made to the nation\u2019s capital on Thursday. In the interviews, both indicate that they expect Richardson<\/st1:place><\/st1:city> to run for president.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>Richardson<\/st1:place><\/st1:city> has said he will make a decision and announcement before the end of the month.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

Udall said he believes Richardson<\/st1:place><\/st1:city> will be in it to win, not to secure a position as vice president or secretary of state, as some suspect. Udall\u2019s daughter is Amanda Cooper, who ran Richardson<\/st1:place><\/st1:city>\u2019s 2006 re-election campaign, so he might be in a position to know.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

\u201cI think he\u2019s going to run for president with the idea that he wants to win, and this is something he\u2019s been planning,\u201d Udall said, adding that, at the same time, \u201cYou never know where you end up in politics.\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

Both said they have pledged to help Richardson<\/st1:city> gain support in Washington<\/st1:place><\/st1:state>. Udall said discussion of Richardson and other actual and potential 2008 candidates is \u201ccoming up a lot\u201d because the election season has already arrived, with the first debates in New Hampshire<\/st1:state> and South Carolina<\/st1:state><\/st1:place> about three months away.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

Political ambitions<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

Udall, who said he is enjoying his first session in the majority in Congress, has been mentioned as a possible candidate for U.S. Senate in 2008, especially if Sen. Pete Domenici retires.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

Domenici has said he will run again in 2008, but some suspect his health may prevent that.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cMy sense is that he\u2019s running, so I\u2019m not planning on running against him,\u201d Udall said. \u201cI\u2019d have to take a look at things if it opened up, but I don\u2019t see that happening.\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

Udall also noted that many Republican Senate seats are up for grabs in 2008, and there is going to be a lot of pressure on senators like Domenici to continue serving so the party doesn\u2019t risk losing what are currently seen as safe seats.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

Assuming he runs in 2008 and wins, Domenici would next be up for re-election in 2014, so I asked Udall if he might run for Senate that year. Udall responded by pointing out that the state\u2019s other Senate seat could be open in 2012, the next time Bingaman is up for re-election.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

\u201cSen. Bingaman may decide to retire, so you never know,\u201d Udall said.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

Udall speaks as one who has clearly analyzed the scenarios. It\u2019s obvious he is considering running for Senate at some point. For now, however, Udall said he is enjoying being in the majority. He was recently appointed to the powerful House Appropriations Committee.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

\u201cI love what I\u2019m doing now,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

Since Udall brought it up, I asked Bingaman whether he might retire in 2012. He chuckled.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m still trying to figure out 2007,\u201d he said, adding that he doesn\u2019t know when he will retire.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

Getting out of Iraq<\/st1:place><\/st1:country-region><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

Both lawmakers support their party\u2019s stance that sending more troops to Iraq<\/st1:place><\/st1:country-region> is the wrong move.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

\u201cAdding another 21,000 U.S.<\/st1:country-region> troops is not going to get us to the situation we want in Iraq<\/st1:place><\/st1:country-region>,\u201d Bingaman said. \u201cThe unfortunate fact is we\u2019re there. We need to find the best way we can to extricate ourselves from that situation without adding to the violence.\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

Neither, however, supports setting a firm withdrawal date. Udall said he wants American troops out of Iraq \u201cas early as practical,\u201d and said most tell him it will take 6-9 months to plan and implement an orderly withdrawal of troops that ensures their protection and time for the Iraqis to plan a transition.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

Udall said it\u2019s time for a political, not military, solution to the conflict, and time to end the Iraqis\u2019 \u201cfalse sense that we\u2019ll always be there.\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

He also expects the world to step in, once Americans step out, with a potential regional conference on stability in Iraq<\/st1:place><\/st1:country-region> and a worldwide conference on rebuilding.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

Neither sees President Bush changing his mind about sending more troops to Iraq, but Udall noted that the Bush Administration has put the Iraqi government on \u201ca very short leash\u201d and said he believes that, coupled with pressure from Congress, could force Bush to change course later \u201cif the Iraqis don\u2019t step up to the plate.\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

Climate change<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

Both also said they expect climate change and energy independence to be a major focus of Congress over the next two years. Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi announced Thursday<\/a> that she would create a special committee to draw attention to the topics. President Bush is expected to deal with global warming in his State of the Union address<\/a> on Tuesday.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

\u201cCongress wants to act,\u201d Bingaman said. \u201cWe hope the White House will act.\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

Bingaman\u2019s office is in the process of drafting legislation that would cap emissions and allow the trading of usage permits, which the senator called \u201cthe most significant action we could take to begin dealing with this issue.\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

Udall praised Pelosi\u2019s focus on the issue.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s an area that the American people expect us to make some progress on,\u201d Udall said.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

Other issues<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

Bingaman is part of a bipartisan group proposing a federal program that would provide assistance to states that are working to expand health care. The group\u2019s members doubt Congress will be able to reach consensus on health care any time soon, and have touted the program as an alternative way to improve the system.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

\u201cFrankly, we don\u2019t have any interest from the current administration in doing anything,\u201d Bingaman said.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

The legislation would encourage states or regions to come up with their own programs \u2013 several have already done so \u2013 by creating a commission that would review their proposals and ask Congress to fund those that show promise.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

Bingaman said he is also \u201csomewhat optimistic\u201d about reforming the immigration system, and noted that the No Child Left Behind Act will soon be up for renewal, and he will be proposing some changes dealing with high-school reform.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

Udall the next several months will be spent in House subcommittees holding \u201caggressive hearings\u201d on policies and expenditures of the Bush Administration. Udall said much of the executive branch\u2019s activity has gone unchecked for years.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re going to be very aggressively calling the administration to account on its policies,\u201d Udall said.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

Bingaman said he hopes the next two years will be a period of bipartisan cooperation. He said in the Senate, that is currently happening \u2013 Democrats have only a slight majority \u2013 but the question will be whether, as the 2008 election approaches, the bipartisanship can continue.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

\u201cI think the president has a lot of impact on that,\u201d Bingaman said. \u201cIf he chooses to work with us, I think we can make good progress on that.\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

Bingaman said much will be determined by Bush Administration staffers. He said a staffer who was committed to finding compromise on the No Child Left Behind Act was instrumental in that effort.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

Congress is willing to work in a bipartisan nature, Bingaman said, and noted that Bush isn\u2019t running for office, so he can do the same.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

<\/span>\u201cHe has the advantage of being a little bit above the fray, or at least he can choose to be,\u201d Bingaman said.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

Only time will tell whether Bush chooses bipartisanship, Bingaman said. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The two Democratic members of New Mexico\u2019s delegation in Washington, D.C. will support Gov. Bill Richardson if he runs for president. \u201cI\u2019ve urged him to run,\u201d U.S. Rep. Tom Udall said. \u201cGov. Richardson and I go way back and we\u2019ve been good friends.\u201d Sen. Jeff Bingaman, who has several Democratic colleagues running for president, agreed. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1125","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/nmpolitics.net\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1125","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/nmpolitics.net\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/nmpolitics.net\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nmpolitics.net\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nmpolitics.net\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1125"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/nmpolitics.net\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1125\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/nmpolitics.net\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1125"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nmpolitics.net\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1125"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nmpolitics.net\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1125"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}