AURORA, CO – So yet another Democrat bites the dust. It was reported all day Sunday that New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson may be involved in a “pay-for-play” scandal. The details are sketchy – aren’t they always in political scandals? – but there are allegations that the governor’s political action committees received funds from a corporation in New Mexico in exchange for sweetheart government contracts. Frankly, this kind of thing happens all the time. It is very much unethical, it is very much a conflict of interest, but it is also very much commonplace in politics. How else can you expect to get elected if you don’t make certain promises? It’s one of the reasons I have decided to report on politics instead of working in politics. At any rate, this news about Gov. Richardson could not have come at a more appropriate time. He was recently tapped to serve as Commerce Secretary in President-elect Barack Hussein Obama’s administration. While he says he is innocent of any wrong-doing, Richardson has removed himself from consideration for the Dept. of Commerce post.

Of course, Bill Richardson is only the, what, twentieth politician to get caught with his proverbial pants down so far this year? It seems like just yesterday that the Democrats were in an uproar over the “culture of corruption” that seemed to plague only the Republicans. It just goes to show how small the aisle is that separates the two parties in Washington. The “culture of corruption” is an equal opportunity destroyer.

“Pay-for-play” seems to be the political term du jour. It recently became popular again thanks to the incorrigible Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich, though instead of giving away government contracts, this guy gave away a Senate seat. What am I saying; he probably gave away contracts too. What a country! The more time passes, the more I think the good Reverend Jeremiah Wright may have had it right all along – God Damn America. The old adage that in a democracy we get the government we deserve is so true, which leads me to wonder: What the hell is wrong with us? Why do we keep electing the same people when they have proven innumerable times their incompetence? Why do we always have to choose the lesser of two evils when we walk into the voting booth? And how is it, more often than not, that we end up electing the worst choice in the end?

For the past several years I have worked behind the scenes in politics, as a blogger and advisor on numerous state and national campaigns and as a state Republican Party liaison. I have had the indistinct privilege of getting to know both elected officials and those who wish to be elected officials, and the one thing they all had in common was an unhealthy ability to hide their true personas from the public. The true test of a politician is that they can look you in the eyes and tell you what you want to hear, meanwhile pursuing their own agendas.

This is what makes this whole Bill Richardson scandal is so disheartening to someone like me. I put my heart and soul into my political career only to be burned over and over again. I met Bill Richardson when he first ran for governor of New Mexico. He was so kind and concerned and, as it turns out, just like so many other politicians, he was corrupt. Excuse me – allegedly corrupt.

I have had numerous opportunities to see the ugliness that indelibly accompanies governance. I even wrote a blog about it last year entitled “How Sausage is Made”. It is a heavy burden to know when a politician is lying to the people, while the people lap it up. It’s even more disappointing to believe in someone who ultimately lets you down; which brings me to my final thought.

Barack Obama was elected to the most prominent and important post in the world by millions of hopeful Americans who saw the Illinois Senator as the savior of US politics. In the short time I have gotten to know Obama via the media, which as we all know is completely unbiased and objective, all I have learned about the man is that the more questions he answers, the more questions I have. There is another adage that rings true in politics: If it sounds too good to be true, it is. I have never known another politician who fit this saying more than Barack Obama.

I pray that Barack Hussein Obama has a successful presidency. I hope that he can fulfill his campaign promises to bring about change to Washington, DC. But we are talking about a politician, not a messiah, and I predict within his first year in office, President Obama will prove himself to be like so many prior presidents – a disappointment.