Richardson Renounces Appointment by Obama

Bill Richardson, the governor of New Mexico and Barack Obama’s choice for the next secretary of commerce, was forced to give up the nomination because he is under investigation. In a statement to NBC, Obama announced that he has accepted Richardson’s decision with “deep regret.” The president-elect called the governor “an outstanding public servant” and states that he “would have brought to the job of commerce secretary and our economic team great insights accumulated through an extraordinary career in federal and state office.”

According to NBC, Richardson’s decision is linked to an investigation concerning a company that has worked for the state of New Mexico.

The governor and former presidential candidate said that he acted properly and has nothing to fear from the investigation. “But I have concluded,” Richardson said, “that the ongoing investigation also would have forced an untenable delay in the confirmation process.”

Richardson, 61, was the energy secretary and the U.S.’s ambassador to the U.N. under the Clinton administration. Before Hillary Clinton’s nomination, his name was also a long shot on the list of possibles for secretary of state.

Had Robinson accepted the position of commerce secretary, he would have been the highest ranking Hispanic member of the incoming administration.