A Special July 4th Message from Governor Bill Richardson

On Independence Day, I'm Grateful

By Governor Bill Richardson

Today as we celebrate the anniversary of the birth of our great nation we remember the sacrifice of those who fought for freedom in 1776, and those who have fought to preserve that freedom ever since. There are approximately 150,000 brave American men and women serving in Iraq, more than 24,000 in Afghanistan, and tens of thousands more serving around the world. Each of us owes all of them a tremendous debt of gratitude.
More than 3,987 American troops have been killed in Iraq and Afghanistan. They died serving their country, and they are heroes. My wife Barbara and I send our thoughts and our prayers to the families and loved ones of those who have fallen, and we ask all of you to remember and honor them, and never forget what they have sacrificed on behalf of this nation.
This is a day not for partisan politics, but for grateful remembrance and joyous celebration. A day of optimism and hope. A day to remember that we live in the greatest nation on earth, where our best days are still ahead of us. A day to celebrate our freedom, but also to remember that freedom comes at a cost.
God bless you, and God Bless the United States of America.


http://action.richardsonforpresident.com/page/community/post_group/Headquarters/BjJ

Help Bill Richardson End the Iraq War: NoTroopsLeftBehind.com

From Governor Bill Richardson:


I've been saying it for months. And just this morning, at the Take Back America conference, I made it crystal clear: my position on Iraq is totally different than every other candidate.



I want to start bringing ALL of our troops home right now -- every last one.



While other candidates push plans to get troops out sometime in Spring 2008, I am calling for all troops out in 6 months.



And, perhaps more importantly, while every other major candidate voted for or supported recent legislation with loopholes that allow Bush to leave an indeterminate number of troops indefinitely in Iraq, I want ALL of our troops out -- every last one.



That means no airbases, no embedded soldiers training Iraqi forces, no troops in the Green Zone. Zero troops. I would leave the customary small marine contingent at the embassy, but if that became unsafe, then I'd bring them home too.



I've had my campaign set up a website with the sole purpose of generating the grassroots support needed to get our troops home: www.notroopsleftbehind.com



And I hope you will join me.



Sign the petition calling on Congress to end the war NOW and bring ALL the troops home. www.notroopsleftbehind.com



Here's the deal: over 70% of Iraqis want us out of their country. Over 60% think its okay to kill Americans. At the rate we're losing American lives, over one thousand American troops will be killed this year alone. In a war where our troops are the #1 target, who are the poor souls we'd choose to leave behind?



Every indication is that Iraq is not getting safer -- it's getting more and more dangerous. Waiting until September to act will only lead to more lost American soldiers. We must act now.



That is why I am calling on Congress to de-authorize and end this war BEFORE they leave for their summer break.



The American people are with me -- we want this war over NOW and ALL the troops out.



Now we just have to pressure those in power to do what they've been elected to do.





www.notroopsleftbehind.com



I have had it with cautious leadership -- we need bold action. Congress can end this war now -- but they seem dead-set on waiting until the fall to do anything. I see no reason to give George Bush any more time to come up with absurd excuses and stalling tactics to drag out this war any longer.



Thank you for joining me to end this war now, and bring all of our troops home.



Sincerely,





Bill Richardson

Gov. Richardson: De-Authorize the War Now, No Residual Troops

Governor Richardson has written an op/ed for The Huffington Post:

De-Authorize the War Now, No Residual Troops
By Governor Bill Richardson

I first called for de-authorization of the war in Iraq in January, and I have repeated that call all around the country -- because I believe immediate de-authorization and removing all of our troops from Iraq this year is the only way to end Bush's war.
Congress should de-authorize the war today and demand that the President begin redeploying our troops.
There would be no need to negotiate the withdrawal with the President, and he could not veto the resolution.
The time has has come for Congress to stand up to this President who refuses to recognize that his war is bleeding our military and weakening our country. He believes mere stubbornness is a foreign policy and that he can just ignore the will of the American people. In the interest of our national security, he must be stopped.
Congress has the ability to end this war under the War Powers Act -- let's not wait or waver while more people die. And de-authorizing the war should mean removing all our troops. Every last one.

Continue reading De-Authorize the War Now, No Residual Troops

Global Days for Darfur

From Save Darfur:

Global Days for Darfur events are taking place through April 30th. Darfur activists across the country are conducting hundreds of events and there is one near you!
Please take a moment to find an event near you and sign up to participate.
Click here to find an event near you and RSVP. When you RSVP you will be joining thousands of Darfur activists from around the world. Concerned citizens are uniting in more than 30 countries around the globe and at more than 400 events across the U.S. to demand peace and protection now for the people of Darfur. Click here to find an event near you and RSVP. Thank you again for helping to make sure world leaders get the message that the time for talk is over.

The Save Darfur Coalition is an alliance of over 175 faith-based, advocacy and humanitarian organizations whose mission is to raise public awareness about the ongoing genocide in Darfur and to mobilize a unified response to the atrocities that threaten the lives of more than two million people in the Darfur region.

To learn more, please visit: http://www.SaveDarfur.org.

Bring the troops home -- Support Bill Richardson's plan to end the war in Iraq

Bill Richardson is the only major candidate who would withdraw ALL American troops troop from Iraq before the end of 2007. At the debate in South Carolina, he repeated his commitment to leaving behind no residual force.
Every other major candidate supports leaving at least some troops behind. While others refine and rephrase their positions, Bill Richardson is the only major candidate who is committed to getting all our troops out and ending this war.
It's time to bring the troops home. All of them. Click here to support Bill Richardson's plan to end the war in Iraq.
Pundits analyzing the debate seemed more interested in haircuts and horse races than the crucial distinction on which candidate will really end this war.
With your help, our campaign can overcome all that and bring experienced, competent leadership back to the White House. But to do that we must build a chorus of right-minded voice committed to doing what's necessary to protect American lives and end the violence in Iraq.
If you believe America should withdraw all our troops from Iraq as soon as possible, then I urge you to take immediate action in support of Governor Richardson and his plan to bring the troops home.
It's time to bring the troops home. All of them. Click here to support Bill Richardson's plan to end the war in Iraq.
Governor Richardson is the most qualified and experienced candidate in this race. He's been to Iraq, he knows and understands the region. He knows that our presence there is no longer helping, and indeed is playing into the hands of our enemies, including Al Qaeda.
He knows that we have to bring our troops home because there is no military solution to Iraq's political crisis. The Iraqis must take responsibility for their security, their government, and their future. As the Governor has said, "They need to stop killing each other and start compromising."
We need to get out of their way. Our troops have done their job under terrible circumstances, but now they are stuck in the middle of a civil war. Jihadist propaganda exploits the American presence to foment more hate and violence. Sixty percent of Iraqis say it is justifiable to kill Americans. Eighty percent want us to leave.
Only Governor Richardson has shown the wisdom to call for the withdrawal of every American troop before the end of 2007. Every single one.
Sincerely,
Dave Contarino

Campaign Manager

Richardson for President

P.S. Please share this message with your friends and family. Once they see the crucial differences in this field of candidates, I am certain they will side with us.

It's time to bring the troops home. All of them. Click here to support Bill Richardson's plan to end the war in Iraq.

Presidential candidate Richardson talks of need for diplomacy

From Iowa:

Presidential candidate Richardson talks of need for diplomacy

By EMILY CHRISTENSEN, Courier Staff Writer

CEDAR FALLS --- Bad guys like Gov. Bill Richardson.The New Mexico governor has worked with Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir to broker a fragile 60-day cease fire agreement in Darfur. He has helped a scared wife rescue her journalist husband from a Sudanese prison thanks to his relationship with the African leader.More recently Richardson was in North Korea, collecting the remains of six soldiers lost during the Korean War, from a country that has been less-than-friendly with the United States in recent history.Richardson, a Democratic presidential hopeful, said it is his commitment to diplomacy that has afforded him the opportunity to arrange such meetings.
It is that same diplomacy Richardson said is needed in Washington to begin moving this country in the right direction. "We should have a foreign policy that we do things not just for our own interest, but because it is right," Richardson told a group of about 150 on the University of Northern Iowa campus Friday. "... We have forgotten that element in our foreign policy. ... I think that buys us goodwill and eventually that translates into something that advances our issues." He was in Cedar Falls as part of a larger program sponsored by the Center for International Peace and Security Studies that focused on conflict and conflict resolution in Africa. "What you do here, mediation and conflict resolution, that's the reason I am running for president," Richardson said. If elected, Richardson said he will make Africa and the Darfur region and other third-world countries that he said have been neglected under the current administration a top priority of his international agenda.
But, Richardson said he isn't interested in starting another war on the behalf of these countries. Instead he wants to use United Nations peace-keeping envoys, economic sanctions and diplomacy to end the wars now raging in many third-world countries. He also would divert funds currently being used in Iraq --- his first order of business would be to remove troops from that area --- to fund additional foreign aid and refocus our military efforts at U.S. ports and in Afghanistan." America also has to protect its own interests. ... The war in Iraq is taking away from the real threats to America," he said.
Richardson, who is in his second term as the New Mexico governor, served as the Secretary of Energy under President Bill Clinton, was a Congressman and an Ambassador to the United Nations. His work has earned him four nominations for the Nobel Peace Prize.

Richardson Vows More Emphasis on Africa

From the Associated Press

NEW YORK - Democrat Bill Richardson told black leaders Thursday that he would make Africa a major foreign policy priority if he's elected president in 2008.
Speaking to a meeting of the National Action Network, a civil rights organization founded by Rev. Al Sharpton, the New Mexico governor said the continent had been neglected by the Bush administration in favor of the Middle East and other regions thought to have greater strategic significance.
"Somehow it's not considered by American policymakers to have the importance it deserves," Richardson said. "Issues related to AIDS, refugees, issues related to governance, international poverty - somehow this continent is forgotten."
Richardson, a former ambassador to the United Nations, said that as president he would press to add an African nation to the U.N. Security Council. He also touted his recent efforts to help bring about a fragile cease-fire in the war-torn Darfur region of Sudan.
"Why is it that America forgets about the Rwandas and the Sudans but is quick to move into other areas that are considered more strategically important?" he asked.
With black voters a key part of the Democratic electoral base, all the major Democratic candidates were scheduled to speak to the NAN conference during its three-day annual convention.
Attendees were getting a double dose of the Clintons: President Bill Clinton was set to address the group later Thursday, and Hillary Rodham Clinton was scheduled to speak Friday afternoon.
Richardson acknowledged he was not well known to most voters, but said he felt "very good" about his campaign so far. A Hispanic American, he said he was proud to be part of a diverse field of candidates that includes a woman - Mrs. Clinton - as well as a black man, Barack Obama.
"I'm going to be, hopefully, the first Hispanic elected president," he said to applause. "If it's not me, we may have the first African-American president, or the first woman president.
"We may also have the first Mormon president," he said, referring to Republican Mitt Romney. "Although I'd prefer the other three."

RICHARDSON BROKERS NUCLEAR DEAL WITH NORTH KOREA

Sometimes words fail to capture the magnanimity of a situation...and this is just such a situation.
Governor Bill Richardson has brokered a deal with North Korea over their nuclear reactor.


This Breaking News Announcement:
While in North Korea this week to negotiate the return of US remains from the Korean War (at which he was successful), 2008 Presidential Candidate Governor Bill Richardson was also able to broker a deal with North Korea -- resulting with them agreeing to dismantle their nuclear reactor and allow inspectors back into their country.
Please spread this to everyone you know, as this is a great success for both the United States and Governor Richardson.

Link for the video: http://video.msn.com/v/us/fv/msnbc/fv.htm??g=e42bcb7d-a47c-45f3-831b-aa3b6e4f01f3&f=00&fg=copy


One of the finest diplomats and peacemakers in our nation's history is running for President...he's my candidate...and I'm so very proud to support him.
I'm so very proud to support Bill Richardson.

Richardson's North Korea Visit Yields Nuke Breakthrough

New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson's visit to North Korea appears to be yielding unexpected fruit.
Richardson, part of a bipartisan delegation dispatched to North Korea to return remains of U.S. MIAs, appears to have secured a concession from the communist state on its developing nuclear weapons program.
Monday, a North Korean nuclear arms negotiator relayed to Richardson that the country would be willing to allow international U.N. arms inspectors into the country if some $25 million in North Korean money that has been frozen is released.
On Tuesday, U.S. envoy Christopher Hill signaled from Tokyo the U.S. willingness to deal.
What was positive coming out of Pyongyang (the North Korean capitol) yesterday is the report that the Democratic People's Republic of Korea is prepared to take these actions to get the IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency) in there, and take these first steps, said Hill.
The North Koreans also told Richardson that it will be difficult to stop production at the country's main nuclear reactor by Saturday, a pre-negotiated deadline. A State Department spokesman responded that the U.S. might not object to extending the deadline.
Richardson, a Democratic candidate for president, is expected to return to New Mexico on Friday.

Richardson to travel to North Korea

Richardson to travel to North Korea

By NEDRA PICKLER, Associated Press Writer
Fri Mar 30, 11:43 AM ET

WASHINGTON - Democratic presidential candidate Bill Richardson plans to travel to North Korea for meetings with government officials from the hardline communist nation.
Richardson plans to make the trip in early April, officials familiar with the trip told The Associated Press on Friday. They spoke on condition of anonymity because plans were still being completed.
The New Mexico governor is a frequent diplomatic traveler. He was in Sudan in January to meet with government leaders and made a trip to the Darfur region where he visited refugee camps.
Richardson — a former congressman, U.N. ambassador and energy secretary in the Clinton administration — trails his top Democratic rivals in public opinion polls.
The United States and other nations have been trying to get the secretive regime of Kim Jong Il to curb its nuclear weapons program. At international disarmament talks in Beijing last month, North Korea pledged to shut down its sole operating nuclear reactor in exchange for energy aid and political concessions.
However, the country refused last week to return to six-nation nuclear disarmament talks until millions of its funds frozen at a bank were released.