Marc,
Richardson's endorsement was, without a doubt, one of my favorite moments of the political season so far. It had been a tough week for Obama because of the incessant replays of the Wright sermon clips and the screaming Buchanan and friends analysis of Obama's exquisite race speech. I confess that I was allowing my natural cynicism to begin overwhelming my Obama-generated political optimism.
Then, on the horizon, appeared a great hero to revive the momentum, repudiate the Clintons, and renew my faith in black/brown coalition politics. Bill Richardson is my favorite person of the month.
Let's review. First, I am sure Richardson was on a very short list to be Hillary's VP. The "Hill and Bill 2008" buttons were already in production. (In part because "Bill" could easily refer to Richardson or to the past president!) Richardson chose to follow his conscience rather than his personal stake in the Veep role. That is the kind of choice I can respect. He then used his media platform these past few days to urge the Democratic Party to pull together, choose a candidate and act like adults. I started to get a good idea of why Richardson is an effective hostage negotiator.
Second, this guy could have easily waited a week, two or even a month before offering an endorsement. Richardson chose to stand with Barack at a difficult and potentially costly political moment. He chose to support Obama in the fire of the Wright fervor. His timing signaled agreement with the central tenets of racial healing and reconciliation that Barack articulated Tuesday. Richardson's passionate endorsement symbolizes the linked fates of African Americans and Latinos in the American political project.
Finally, Bill came out wearing a goatee! What?! In a week when Barack fully embraced and articulated his racial identity, momentarily moving against the insistent demands of a de-racializing campaign, Bill joined him with a beautifully, blatant display of his ethnic aesthetic. There they stood, black and brown, with no white politician to condone or bless the actions. Just Barack and Bill. It was beautiful.
Yes, Marc, I am with you on this one. Richardson is now to be referred to as "Brother Richardson" by Obama supporters around the country.
Melissa
