Obama joins list of presidents accused of short-changing Latinos

The nomination midweek of Hispanic Bill Richardson, Governor of New Mexico, for the post of Commerce Secretary in Barack Obama's administration, has not placated all those who have argued that Obama's early appointments have been disappointingly light on Latinos.

Ruben Navarrette Jr of the San Diego Union-Tribune, writing on CNN Politics today, claims that Obama is just the latest in a long line of presidents, including Jimmy Carter and Bill Clinton, who have enjoyed considerable support from senior Latinos and then failed to give any of them top jobs.

Navarrette says Richardson, one of the first of Obama's rivals for the Democratic nomination to throw in the towel and endorse the Chicago senator, was a "shoo-in" for Secretary of State.

Richardson, he argues, had a "gold-plated" resume for the role: seven-term member of Congress; special envoy to North Korea, Iraq, Cuba and Sudan; UN ambassador; Energy Secretary; New Mexico governor and five-time nominee for the Nobel Peace Prize for brokering ceasefires and negotiating the release of hostages.

Navarrette writes: "Instead, Obama gave the job that Richardson coveted to Hillary Clinton. And then, adding insult to injury, Obama nominated Richardson to be - wait for it - Commerce Secretary.

"It's no wonder that, at the press conference where Obama announced Richardson's nomination, a Latino reporter asked the President-elect if this wasn't just an elaborate consolation prize. Obama insisted it wasn't, and that this was a very important job. What else could he say?"

As if this slight were not enough, says Navarrette, it turns out that Richardson was not even first choice for Commerce. Obama's top pick was apparently Penny Pritzker, his chief fundraiser and heir to the Hyatt hotel fortune. But she withdrew her name from consideration.

FIRST POSTED DECEMBER 5, 2008