Richardson Withdraws Name for Scty of Commerce

The new administration appears to want as few issues as possible in what proves to be a grueling first 100 days. It's no wonder Bill Richardson withdrew his name from nomination for Commerce Secretary due to an ongoing grand jury investigation into his administration's awarding of state contracts to a firm.

Last month a federal grand jury was reported to be investigating how a company that had already threatened to cause in Alabama one of the biggest municipal bankruptcies ever had been paid $1.5 million for similar work in New Mexico. The investigation is said to be examining donations of $100,000 from the California-based CDR Financial Products to Mr Richardson’s efforts to register voters and pay for expenses at the Democratic National Convention in 2004.