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Richardson said that North Korea wanted direct talks with the United States.

(CNN) – A day after meeting with New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson, two North Korean diplomats will meet Thursday with community and business leaders in the state to discuss renewable energy initiatives, the governor's office said.

Richardson spokesman Gilbert Gallegos said the governor would not be part of the briefings because he would be in Las Cruces. However, the governor will try to meet them at the Albuquerque airport before they leave, Gallegos said.

After meeting Wednesday with Kim Myong Gil and Taek Jong Ho - senior diplomats with the North Korean mission to the United Nations - Richardson said that North Korea wanted direct talks with the United States.

"I think there's a little bit of a thaw," he told CNN's American Morning on Thursday. "I think they wanted to basically send a message that they're ready to engage in a dialogue with the United States."

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WASHINGTON (CNN) - White House officials are pouring cold water on North Korea's claim that it is "owed" direct talks with the Obama administration after a meeting Wednesday with New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson.

Senior Obama administration officials said the six-party talks are still the proper venue for such a dialogue, and the officials stressed that Richardson was not negotiating on the president's behalf.

"Our policy toward North Korea remains today as it has been - calling for the complete de-nuclearization of the Korean Peninsula," said one of the senior administration officials. "We believe the six-party talks are the best forum for that. The bottom line is the ball is in North Korea's court."

The officials said North Korea can choose one of two paths, either continued provocation by testing missiles or a more peaceful road in which they live up to previous commitments.

SANTA FE, New Mexico (CNN) - North Korea believes it's owed bilateral talks with the United States after the communist government released two detained American journalists this month, New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson said Wednesday after meeting with two North Korean diplomats.

"They feel, the North Koreans, that by giving us the two American journalists that they've made an important gesture," Richardson said on CNN's "Situation Room." "And now they're saying the ball's in our court."

The visit comes on the heels of a trip to the communist nation by former President Bill Clinton to gain the release of the two journalists, Euna Lee and Laura Ling. During the visit Clinton met with reclusive leader Kim Jong Il, whose government is under U.N. sanctions for its efforts to develop a nuclear weapons program.

"They do feel they are owed a gesture on the U.S. part," Richardson said, adding, "I don't believe that should be the case because this was a
humanitarian gesture that needed to happen."

The North Korean diplomats felt Clinton's trip, while a humanitarian one, helped "thaw relations" and gave North Korea "international prestige,"
Richardson said.

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New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson, right, will meet with diplomats from North Korea.

WASHINGTON (CNN) - Two top North Korean diplomats were traveling to Santa Fe, New Mexico, to hold talks with Gov. Bill Richardson, the governor's spokesman said.

Kim Myong Gil and Taek Jong Ho, senior diplomats with the North Korean mission to the United Nations, left New York on Tuesday and are scheduled for a two-day meeting with Richardson, said a U.S. source with knowledge of the visit and a senior State Department official.

Richardson, a former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, has traveled to North Korea several times in the past, most recently in April 2007 to secure the return of remains of U.S. soldiers killed during the Korean War.

The U.S. source with knowledge of the visit said that the North Koreans had asked Richardson for the meeting.

Richardson would listen to what the North Koreans had to say but would not do any negotiating, the source said.

Full story

In an article in an upcoming issue of New York Times Magazine, former President Clinton discusses his wife's new role as the country's top diplomat.

WASHINGTON (CNN) – Bill Clinton's campaign-year resentment of President Obama is a thing of the past, according to a lengthy profile of the former president in Sunday's New York Times Magazine - but he hasn't quite come to terms with the Kennedy family's decision to back Obama over Hillary Clinton during the primary season.

Clinton reportedly has yet to make his peace with Sen. Ted Kennedy and the Massachusetts senator's niece, Caroline, over their high-profile endorsements of Barack Obama during the primaries.

The Times, also citing unnamed sources, says Clinton harbors hard feelings toward New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson, who held several posts in the Clinton administration but who chose to endorse Obama instead of Hillary Clinton.

The former president has adjusted to his wife's new role on the international stage. "She used to look forward to me coming home from wherever I've been," Clinton says in the magazine article. "Now I'm afraid I'll be second fiddle to whatever world leader she's just met.

Later, he added: "... We've reversed roles."

Clinton also made clear that his vast network of global contacts and knowledge of world affairs is always available to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. "'If she asks, I tell her what I think,'" the former president says in the profile. "And if there's something that's going on that I feel that I have particular knowledge of, I say that.'"

New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson was a Democratic presidential contender in the primaries.

(CNN) - Bill Richardson's withdrawal from his commerce secretary nomination Sunday didn't just leave a major gap in the new administration, but it also sorely disappointed Latinos who view the New Mexico governor as their most prominent representative.

"We are hugely disappointed. It's a stunned community out there," said Janet Murguía, president and CEO of the National Council of La Raza (NCLR), the largest national Hispanic civil rights and advocacy organization in the United States.

"He is a very well-recognized leader not just in the Latino community but in this country and he has a long record of public service," she said.

Full story

Gov. Bill Richardson withdrew his nomination as secretary of commerce Sunday.

(CNN) - New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson spoke out foir the first time since withdrawing his nomination as secretary of commerce, citing the distraction of a federal investigation into ties to a company that has done business with his state.

Speaking to reporters Monday, he said that he underestimated how long the investigation would take, calling it an "untenable delay" likely to hinder his confirmation process.

Watch: Richardson speaks out

Two Democratic officials told CNN the investigation involves a California company that won municipal bond business in New Mexico after contributing money to various Richardson causes.

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Gov. Richardson and President-elect Obama announced Richardson's decision to withdraw Sunday. (Getty Images/File)
(CNN) - New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson is withdrawing his nomination as Commerce Secretary, two Democratic officials told CNN's Ed Henry on Sunday.

The Democratic officials said Richardson cited the distraction of a federal investigation into his ties to a California company that won municipal bond business in New Mexico after contributing money to various Richardson causes.

Richardson, one of the best-known Hispanics in the Democratic Party, served as the energy secretary in the Clinton administration as well as ambassador to the United Nations.

Full story

(Full statements from Obama and Richardson after the jump)

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CNN=Politics Daily is The Best Political Podcast from The Best Political Team.

(CNN) – They call him “Rahmbo.” In the latest installment of CNN=Politics Daily, Rahm Emanuel is known for his tough tactics as a power on Capitol Hill, but sources close to him say there is more to the man than meets the eye. CNN’s Alina Cho takes a closer look at the pit bull politician, Barack Obama’s new chief of staff.

Plus: Barack Obama promised healthcare reform before the economy crumbled. Can the president-elect still keep his word? CNN’s Dr. Sanjay Gupta has the latest “Memo to the President.”

Also: Hillary Clinton, Bill Richardson, Joe Biden - it seems that those who ran against the president-elect get a place in his cabinet. CNN’s Frank Sesno takes a look at Obama’s team of rivals.

Finally: Congress may be in love with its new half-billion dollar Capitol Hill visitor’s center, but there is no love for the lawmakers. CNN’s Jim Acosta reports.

Click here to subscribe to CNN=Politics Daily.

The latest debate in Washington: Does Richardson look better with or without a beard?

(CNN) – Gov. Bill Richardson showed up to his press conference with President-elect Barack Obama Wednesday morning without the beard he has been sporting since dropping out of the presidential race in January, sparking his new boss to tell reporters he is "deeply disappointed with the loss of the beard."

"I'm going to answer this question about the beard," said Obama, when Richardson was asked where the facial hair went. "I think it was a mistake for him to get rid of it. I thought that whole Western, rugged look was really working for him.

"For some reason, maybe because it was scratchy when he kissed his wife, he was forced to get rid of it.," Obama continued as his nominee for commerce secretary smiled broadly. "But we're deeply disappointed with the loss of the beard."

Obama didn't let Richardson answer the question, but the New Mexico governor told Esquire Magazine in an interview posted online Wednesday that "After the campaign, I grew a beard as a rebellion against those consultants who told me I had to comb my hair, shave, lose weight. I said, You know, I’m gonna do what I want now. That was a good feeling."

Obama officially named Richardson Commerce Secretary Wednesday.

WASHINGTON (CNN) – President-elect Barack Obama announced New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson as his pick for secretary of commerce on Wednesday, calling him a "leading economic diplomat for America."

"I know that Bill will be an unyielding advocate for American business and American jobs, at home and around the world. And I look forward to working with him in the years ahead," Obama said at a news conference in Chicago, Illinois.

Richardson, one of the best-known Hispanics in the Democratic Party, served as the energy secretary in the Clinton administration as well as being the ambassador to the United Nations.

With the announcement, Richardson becomes the third former presidential rival to join Obama's team. Vice President-elect Joe Biden and Sen. Hillary Clinton, Obama's pick for secretary of state, also competed for the Democratic presidential nomination.

Richardson on Wednesday called it a "great honor" to be chosen for the post.

Watch Richardson describe how Commerce can push economic recovery

"There are some who speak of a team of rivals, but I've never seen it that way. Past competitors? Yes. But rivals implies something harder-edged and less forgiving. And in the worlds of diplomacy and commerce, you open markets and minds not with rivalry, but instead with partnership and innovation and hard work," Richardson said.

Full story

New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson is headed to Washington.

(CNN) - Bill Richardson and Janet Napolitano: Both are governors of neighboring states in the Southwest. Both are headed to Washington. But their departure is triggering very different succession scenarios in their home states.

CNN has learned that New Mexico Governor Richardson will be nominated tomorrow as President-elect Obama's Commerce Secretary. For Richardson, who was Energy Secretary and UN Ambassador under President Clinton and a former Congressman from New Mexico, it means a return to the nation's capitol.

But who takes Richardson's job?

That person would be the state's lieutenant governor, Democrat Diane Denish, who stands to become become New Mexico's first female governor. Denish was Richardson's running mate in the 2002 and 2006 elections and with the governor term-limited out of the 2010 race, was planning a gubernatorial run of her own.

While the governorship in New Mexico stays in Democratic hands, it's just the opposite in neighboring Arizona.

That state's governor, Janet Napolitano, was nominated yesterday by Obama to serve as Secretary of Homeland Security. Arizona doesn't have a lieutenant governor, so when Napolitano steps down to head to Washington, Arizona Secretary of State Jan Brewer — a conservative Republican - takes over the job.

Bill Richardson is expected to be named as the Secretary of Commerce, two Democrats tell CNN.

(CNN) - Two Democrats close to the transition tell CNN that New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson is now expected to be nominated as Secretary of Commerce by President-elect Barack Obama, pending the final vetting process.

Richardson, one of the leading Hispanics in the Democratic Party, had been seeking the Secretary of State post but lost out to Sen. Hillary Clinton. Obama aides have told CNN that Obama is “on track” to nominate Clinton as his secretary of state after Thanksgiving.

The precise timing on the announcement of Richardson’s appointment is unclear.

Two Richardson advisers said privately that Richardson had been hoping State would be his prize after facing political heat for picking Obama over Clinton, but the governor is willing to accept another post in hopes that he will move up in the Cabinet later in the administration.

Richardson served as Energy Secretary and U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations in the Clinton administration.

Obama’s pick will now mean that at least three former rivals from the Democratic presidential primaries will be in senior posts in the Obama administration - Richardson, Clinton and Vice President-elect Joe Biden.

After dropping out of the presidential race, New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson, who had worked in Bill Clinton's administration, endorsed Barack Obama.

CHICAGO, Illinois (CNN) - Gov. Bill Richardson of New Mexico is a serious contender for commerce secretary in the Obama administration, two sources close to the transition said Friday.

The same sources, however, cautioned that Richardson could be tapped for another senior post as well. They do not consider Richardson's appointment to the Commerce Department to be a done deal.

Richardson, 61, was a candidate for the 2008 Democratic presidential nomination. Currently in his second term as New Mexico's governor, he previously served as ambassador to the United Nations and energy secretary in the Clinton administration.

Sen. Hillary Clinton has emerged as a leading contender to be the country's top diplomat in the next administration.

(CNN) – Sen. Hillary Clinton continues to top the short list of possible contenders to be the next Secretary of State under President-elect Barack Obama.

In addition to Clinton, there are several prominent Democrats and even one Republican on CNN’s list:

SEN. JOHN KERRY: The 2004 Democratic presidential nominee has served on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee for almost 20 years.

DR. SUSAN RICE: A veteran of Bill Clinton’s State Department, Rice was also a senior adviser to Obama’s presidential campaign.

GOV. BILL RICHARDSON: The New Mexico governor was tapped by Bill Clinton to be U.S. Ambassador to the U.N., but Richardson broke with the Clintons when he decided to endorse Obama after ending his own 2008 presidential bid.

SEN. DICK LUGAR: The Republican, who sits on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, worked with Obama last year to expand a program that destroys weapons of mass destruction in the former Soviet Union.

SAM NUNN: The former Democratic senator from Georgia currently co-chairs an effort to reduce threats from nuclear, biological, and chemical weapons. While in the Senate, Nunn worked with Lugar to destroy weapons of mass destruction amassed by the former Soviet Union.

Click here for additional CNN short lists for Obama’s potential cabinet.

(CNN) - CNN has learned that President-elect Barack Obama spoke with New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson Friday to discuss the post of Secretary of State. A senior Democratic source tells CNN that Richardson’s name has always been on Obama’s list for that post. Obama has also gauged Sen. Hillary Clinton’s interest in the post if she were offered it. If Clinton does not express interest in the post, then Richardson and others would be candidates for the job.

Another source close to the Obama transition team tells CNN that among the key details to be worked out with Sen. Clinton, should she express interest in the position, are issues of how her husband, former President Bill Clinton would be able to continue his work with the Clinton Global Initiative without complicating her work as Secretary of State.

Watch Gov. Richardson discuss Sen. Lieberman's speech at the Republican convention.

(CNN) – Whatever goodwill Sen. Joe Lieberman may have still had with Democrats may be gone after his criticism of Sen. Barack Obama in an address to the Republican convention Tuesday.

"It's a little bit sad," New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson told CNN Wednesday. "I think he must be very bitter after his Senate issues with Democrats and the fact that he wasn't supported in the primaries but this is just going too far."

The Democrat-turned-independent's split from his former party has centered largely on issues of foreign policy - especially the conduct of the Iraq war, where Lieberman agrees with the views of his friend Sen. John McCain, the presumptive Republican nominee.

"I don't believe that Sen. Lieberman still has credibility among Democrats," Richardson told Kiran Chetry on American Morning. "He's basically said that anybody, like myself and many others, that have opposed this war - that want to bring our troops home safely but as quickly as possible - are basically not just wrong, but unpatriotic."

Richardson also took the opportunity to take a swipe at Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, the presumptive Republican VP nominee. "Foreign policy, national security experience is something that she obviously doesn't have," said Richardson, who served as the U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. under President Bill Clinton. "To have a vice president without those credentials is going to be a problem."

Watch Richardson share his thoughts on the convention and other topics.

(CNN) - New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson said he’s now comfortable with Sen. Hillary Clinton placing her name in nomination at the Democratic convention, but he admitted he was uneasy about the move at first.

“It's going to be placed in nomination in recognition of the 18 million votes that she got - her historic candidacy. But then she is going to pledge her delegates to Sen. Obama so that it's a unanimous - a unanimous election. That - that gives me comfort,” he said Sunday on CNN’s “Late Edition.”

“Until that had been worked out, I was a little uneasy about there being just a roll call without any transference of that support to Sen. Obama. But the point is the party is united.”

Last week, Barack Obama’s campaign said it encouraged Clinton to put her name in roll call "as a show of unity and in recognition of the historic race she ran and the fact that she was the first woman to compete in all of our nation's primary contests."

Clinton last month suggested that doing so could provide a "catharsis" for her supporters.

Richardson on Sunday called Clinton a “long-time friend” who “ran a great race.”

He and the New York senator were scheduled to hold two private fundraisers Sunday to help retire her campaign debt.

Things got ugly between Richardson and the Clintons after he endorsed Obama in March.

Richardson, who served as secretary of energy in Bill Clinton’s administration, said in April that he was "very close to endorsing" Clinton, but decided not to after the campaign became negative.

"The Clintons should get over this," he said in April.

His endorsement was viewed as an act of betrayal by some longtime supporters of the Clintons. CNN Political Analyst James Carville, who has long and deep ties to both Clintons, even likened Richardson’s endorsement to Judas’s betrayal of Christ.

Richardson responded to Carville’s criticisms by saying that Carville and other Clinton supporters believe they are a “dynasty” and that they were “clinging to the throne.”

Sens. Obama and Clinton appeared with Gov. Richardson at a New Hampshire debate in January.

(CNN) – Is Bill Richardson about to kiss and make up with the Clintons? It certainly looks that way.

The New Mexico governor announced Wednesday that he will host two fundraisers to help Sen. Hillary Clinton retire more than $20 million in outstanding campaign debt accumulated during her failed White House bid.

"Governor Richardson's efforts reinforce Senator Obama's commitment to unifying the Democratic Party and assisting Senator Clinton's effort to retire her campaign debt," Bill Burton, a spokesman for Barack Obama’s campaign, said in a statement released by Richardson.

Richardson, who served as secretary of energy in Bill Clinton’s administration, decided to endorse the Illinois senator, now the presumptive Democratic nominee. The move was viewed as an act of betrayal by some longtime supporters of the Clintons. CNN Political Analyst James Carville, who has long and deep ties to both Clintons, even likened Richardson’s endorsement to Judas’s betrayal of Christ.

In late April, Richardson responded to Carville’s criticisms by saying that Carville and other Clinton supporters believe they are a “dynasty” and that they were “clinging to the throne.”

WATCH: Carville, Richardson on Larry King Live

Since announcing his support for Obama, Richardson has made numerous television and campaign appearances on Obama’s behalf. He is also mentioned as a potential pick for vice president.

In the statement from Richardson, Clinton spokeswoman Kathleen Strand said, "Senator Clinton is grateful for Governor Richardson's and Senator Obama's efforts to assist with retiring her campaign debt and she is looking forward to continuing to campaign for Senator Obama and help ensure victory for Democrats throughout the country this fall."

Senator Clinton will attend both invitation-only events in New Mexico in mid-August.

New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson.

(CNN) - Sen. Barack Obama supporter Gov. Bill Richardson, D-New Mexico, attacked Sen. John McCain’s stance on offshore drilling on Sunday, calling the Arizona senator’s plan “cosmetic steps.”

“The point is that we have got to have a bipartisan comprehensive strategy and this administration, it seems Senator McCain, all they want to do is drill, drill, drill,” the former Democratic candidate told CNN’s Wolf Blitzer. “You can't drill your way out of the problem.”

Democrats have criticized the presumptive Republican nominee for his apparent “flip-flop” on the issue of offshore drilling. The McCain camp denies that he’s changed his position, arguing that he has always supported a state’s right to choose what happens in its coastal waters. Aides said recently that the senator voted to uphold the federal ban on ocean drilling in 2000 as a way of supporting states’ rights.

Throughout his appearance on Late Edition, Richardson frequently linked McCain’s proposal to the plan put forth by President Bush.

“The Bush administration has waited eight years to pressure OPEC and their great friends, the Saudis. When President Bush came in, he said he was going to jawbone OPEC to increase production,” the governor stated. “What is needed is not what the president and John McCain want to do, which is drill offshore. What is needed is a comprehensive strategy of fuel efficiency, 50 miles-per-gallon vehicles… mass transit. What is needed is investments in renewable energy and solar and wind,” he said.

Richardson is the latest in a string of Democrats to slam McCain’s solution for lowering gas prices. On Wednesday, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nevada called it a “cynical campaign ploy” and House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, D-Maryland, said: “It is so hard to tell what Sen. McCain’s positions are because they change so rapidly… [This] is certainly not the position he had just six months ago.”