Earlier today, the AP reported that New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson will not face federal charges in a pay-to-play case. A few months ago, he withdrew his nomination to head the Commerce Department.
Carrie Johnson, a reporter for The Washington Post, reminds us what happened:
The FBI and a grand jury in Albuquerque had been investigating the award of a state contract to CDR Financial Products, a Beverly Hills-based company that had contributed nearly $100,000 to the governor's political action committees. CDR earned $1.48 million by advising the New Mexico Finance Authority on investment decisions in 2004.
Investigators had been examining whether Richardson or his deputies pressed the authority to hire CDR after receiving financial contributions from the company and its president to help register minority voters and pay for expenses at the Democratic National Convention.
Kate Phillips, on The Caucus, says the federal inquiry "focused attention on the state's extremely loose campaign finance laws and contributions to the governor's campaigns."
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