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Saturday, June 06, 2009
Gov. Was Courtside for Magic-Lakers
By Dan Boyd
Journal Capitol Bureau
SANTA FE — Figuring out Gov. Bill Richardson's whereabouts can be tough business, but watching the NBA might help.
Richardson, whose administration is getting some federal scrutiny in connection with state contract awards and investment practices, was nowhere to be seen Friday morning at a high-profile meeting in Albuquerque on U.S.-Mexico security issues — the first meeting of the Southwest Border Task Force.
Those attending included U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder, Homeland Security chief Janet Napolitano, drug czar Gil Kerlikowske, border czar Alan Bersin, Lt. Gov. Diane Denish and Albuquerque Mayor Martin Chávez.
Richardson doesn't always give reporters his schedule, but he did this week, at least for three days. Even so, it said, "No public events scheduled" for Wednesday, Thursday and until noon on Friday.
But we now know this, thanks to an alert from eagle-eye Journal page designer Adam Drey, who watched a little of the Lakers-Magic NBA Finals game during his dinner break Thursday night. Looked like the gov. when the ABC cameras panned the celebs close to courtside, Drey reported.
We discovered on Friday that Los Angeles Lakers Executive Vice President Jeanie Buss also Twittered during the game about meeting Richardson.
"Met the Gov. of New Mexico Bill Richardson don't know if he is a Lakers fan but it is a western state," Buss wrote.
A spokeswoman for Richardson confirmed Friday that the governor was indeed at the game — and seated behind tennis star Billie Jean King — but declined to comment on who accompanied him.
"We don't usually comment on those personal details," Richardson spokeswoman Alarie Ray-Garcia said.
As for Friday's meeting of the Southwest Border Task Force, Ray-Garcia said Richardson was invited but couldn't make it due to a scheduling conflict.
"He had already made some commitments before that was announced," she said.
Richardson's commitments later Friday were two public events in Truth or Consequences, his schedule said. The first, at noon, was a change of command ceremony for the U.S. Border Patrol. The next one was announcement of the New Mexican chosen as officer of the year by the National Association of State Boating Law Administrators.
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