A Master of the Diplomacy Game : Politics: A commitment to human rights leads Rep. Bill Richardson in the delicate dance of international relations.

There he was, on the network news, presenting Iraqi President Saddam Hussein with a pot from Acoma Pueblo after securing the release of imprisoned Americans William Barloon and David Daliberti.

Call it just another busy day for Rep. Bill Richardson, the globe-trotting New Mexico congressman who has run up a string of remarkable accomplishments in foreign capitals over the past 18 months.

When it comes to delicate diplomacy, the 47-year-old Democrat seems to succeed where everyone else--including professional diplomats--has failed.

Since February, 1994, he’s met with Burmese Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi (under house arrest at the time); negotiated with the former military leaders of Haiti, helping to pave the way for their peaceful departure, and won the release of an American helicopter pilot and the return of his compatriot’s body after their craft was shot down over North Korean airspace.

Underlying Richardson’s patient diplomacy is a commitment to human rights and a fascination with foreign affairs, say those who know him.

“He’s a classic Democratic internationalist, interested in trade and human rights,” says Richard Parker, the Albuquerque Journal’s Washington correspondent and a former Richardson aide. “He’s always run with the human rights crowd in the House.”

In fact, earlier this year Richardson was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize because of his humanitarian efforts.

Richardson’s roots are uniquely bicultural.

He was born in Pasadena to a Mexican mother and an American father, and spent much of his childhood in Mexico City before moving to the United States for high school.

Along the way he became a serious baseball player. He was drafted by the Kansas City (now Oakland) Athletics at 18, but his sports career was cut short by an elbow injury.

Even now, Richardson takes his baseball seriously. He is a three-time Most Valuable Player in the annual congressional baseball game that pits Democrats against Republicans.

Mike Cerletti, a longtime friend who served four years as New Mexico’s tourism secretary, describes Richardson as “easygoing in a hyperactive way,” eager to seek out people’s opinions.

“He’s definitely able to relax,” Cerletti says. “He’s different than when he’s doing the diplomatic chores of the world. I don’t think I’ve ever seen him at an official social event when he hasn’t had his cigar in his mouth. He has a good sense of humor. It’s remarkable how he’s able to chat with anybody and make them relax.”

Cerletti recalls accompanying Richardson on a trip to Mexico City to visit with then-President Carlos Salinas de Gortari. Richardson, Cerletti says, captivated his audience by telling jokes in flawless Spanish.

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Richardson earned a bachelor of arts from Tufts University and a master’s degree from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy, then headed off to Washington.

He had the makings of a policy wonk, working as a staff member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee before moving to New Mexico in 1978 to become executive director of the Democratic State Committee. He quickly showed himself to be an adroit politician.

In 1980 he ran against Republican Congressman Manuel Lujan, and although he was derided as a carpetbagger, Richardson came within 5,200 votes of toppling the incumbent.

Richardson tried again in 1982 when a new, mostly Democratic congressional district was carved out of northern New Mexico. He won a four-way primary and went on to win the general election handily with 65% of the votes.

His congressional district is diverse, embracing Indian reservations, old Hispanic mountain villages and conservative plains ranching communities, but Richardson continues to win reelection by hefty margins.

He gets back to the state several times a month, and his staff likes to point out that he’s held 2,000 town meetings in his 12 years in office.

Richardson and his Boston-born wife, Barbara, maintain a home in northwest Washington and a condo in Santa Fe. They have no children.

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Richardson, the congressman and the diplomat, also played a key role in winning passage of the North American Free Trade Agreement, Cerletti says, helping to persuade President Clinton of its importance.

“My personal belief is, if it weren’t for him, it wouldn’t have happened,” he says.

Cate Stetson, an Albuquerque lawyer who represents Native Americans and is active in state Democratic politics, says he admires Richardson’s pragmatic, no-nonsense manner, although it can be “intimidating.”

“He doesn’t waste time tilting at windmills,” she says. “He sizes things up. He has quite an advanced political mind.”