A Prediction

I'll go out on a limb and predict Hillary will be the Dem nominee. Okay, that's not the out on a limb part. The out on a limb part is that Barak Obama will not be the veep nominee.

I don't think Hillary will take the risk that voters are ready to vote for both a woman and a black to lead this country. Regardless of how sad we think that may be (and I do) Hillary is too much a pragmatist and too cautious to take that chance.

I also think Hillary knows that veep candidates really don't help that much in the general election. They can cause lots of harm, but they can't really help outside their home state. I think she'll make a more conservative pick. If Bill Richardson could stop shooting himself in the mouth it could be him. It would still be an historic first -- a Latino veep -- and he has oodles more experience than the freshman Sen. from Illinois. And he was Secy of Energy (for a fellow named Bill) which could come in handy as the next administration grapples with global warming and energy policy.

Richardson Says He's Sorry for "Maricon" Comment

He was trying to be "playful."

Bill -- next time you want to be playful just ask us to meet you in the bedroom with a can of whipped cream and a bull whip.

And leave the gay slurs at home.

Richardson Says "Faggot" (en Espanol)

So Democratic presidential candidate Bill Richardson utters the word "maricon" on the Imus show (before it went off the air). Even this mid-western white boy knows that "maricon" is the Spanish equivalent of "faggot."

Where's the outrage? Oh, he's a Democrat. I forgot. My bad.

Reax to Dem Debate

Well, no light shed on the candidate's position on achieving the equality for gays they all profess. I didn't really expect it.

Hillary did better than I expected as she didn't come off like the fake, polished automaton I expected. If she believes we need to do more to combat violence like at Columbine and VA Tech I wish Williams had followed up and asked her why she isn't now during more as Senator to toughen gun laws and why the Clinton Administration -- excuse me, "Bill" -- didn't take the opportunity after Columbine.

Obama kind of stumbled some although he looked poised throughout and is the only candidate I would have wanted to kiss to after the debate. But I don't think he really helped himself in this performance.

The one candidate I thought came out looking good was Bill Richardson. He seemed the most genuine of the lot...he looked at times anxious, at times annoyed. I loved his "that's how I felt" response to the Gonzales question: why was he the last person to call for the AG's ouster? Richardson said he wanted to give a fellow Hispanic the benefit of the doubt until he had a chance to testify. "That's how I felt." Good answer. And when he saw Gonzales' awfully testimony, the benefit of the doubt was gone. Of all the candidates, he's the one I'd want to go sit at a bar and talk politics with while knocking back a few.

I hope they keep that Gravel guy around. He was fun.

Bill Richardson

Chris Crain explains why Bill Richardson deserves a second look.

Bill Richardson continues to hit pretty much all the right notes in his underdog run for the Democratic presidential nomination. In a speech last weekend at the Human Rights Campaign's Los Angeles black-tie dinner, the New Mexico governor justifiably trumpeted a record of actually doing, rather than just talking, when it comes to gay rights.

More here.