Obama Transition Team Blames New Mexico Gov Bill Richardson for being Misleading about Grand Jury Investigation

A funny thing has happened on the way to the Obama transition to the White House, a second “pay for play” investigation scandal that has touched Obama’s transition to the presidency. New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson has withdrawn his nomination to be President-elect Barack Obama’s commerce secretary amid allegations and a grand jury investigation into how a California company that contributed to Richardson’s political activities won a New Mexico transportation contract worth more than $1 million.

No sooner had Barack Obama released a statement regarding his regret for Richardson’s nomination withdraw, the Obama transition team began slinging arrows at the New Mexico Governor stating that they were misled.

Sources tell ABC News that officials on the Obama Transition Team feel that before he was formally offered the job of commerce secretary, New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson was not forthcoming with them about the federal investigation that is looking into whether the governor steered a state contract towards a major financial contributor.

Once the investigation became more widely known through national media reports last month, sources tell ABC News, the Obama Transition Team realized the FBI would not be able to give Richardson a clean political bill of health before the new administration is ready to send his nomination up to the Senate for confirmation.

Obviously the Obama transition team is reading the tea leaves and the fact that this Richardson nomination and nomination withdrawal does not cast a very good light on them. By association, it also cast a questionable decision light on Barack Obama as well. The buck is supposed to stop somewhere. The fact that the Obama transition team continually has brought back former Clinton cast members while promising America change has come back to bite them. Shouldn’t they have known better?

However, once again when a scandal erupts that Barack Obama is associated with, the Obama patented line is … This is not the Bill Richardson I knew.  The same was said for Reverend Wright, Bill Ayers, etc.