New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson targeted Latino veterans Friday night, wooing their support for Sen. Barack Obama, the presumptive Democratic nominee.
Richardson’s speech during the American GI Forum at the Grand Hyatt Denver hotel downtown came hours after Republican candidate Sen. John McCain lambasted the Illinois senator for his opposition to the surge in Iraq.
Richardson, a Latino who made an unsuccessful bid for his party’s presidential nomination, said it’s important that Latinos and veterans alike vote for Obama because he exercised clear judgment on the Iraq war from the very beginning.
“I know there’s different views on this war,” Richardson said. “But it was Obama who said we must first use diplomacy” before invading Iraq.
Richardson said Obama has the intellect, the charisma and judgment to move the country forward.
“I think what he represents is hope and bringing the country together,” he said.
He said Obama has always supported veterans, calling the freshman senator a “patriot.” Richardson said Obama will ensure all the troops are taken care of once they return home from the war.
Richardson used most of his speech to tout Obama’s credentials and was careful not to bash McCain, who he called “a true war hero.” But he did point out what he called inconsistencies in McCain’s political record.
“I salute Sen. McCain,” he said. “But he was a little critical against my candidate, so I’m going to point to the record here.”
Richardson pointed out that in 2003, McCain said the war would be short. He said McCain showed poor judgment in his statement.
Richardson drew laughter when he talked about the first time he really started to like Obama.
During a debate, he was chatting with Obama while another candidate was answering a question. The moderator then asked Richardson what he thought about the issue, but he hadn’t been listening and didn’t know what the question was.
He then heard Obama whispering, “Katrina. Katrina. Katrina.”
“He could’ve thrown me under the bus, but he didn’t,” he said. “This is when I knew he was a man with a great message.”
Christopher Sanchez: 303-954-1698 or csanchez@denverpost.com
