A while back we buzzed about the possibility of New Mexico governor Bill Richardson running for president, and wondered if the U.S. was ready for a Latino candidate. Since then, both Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama — a woman and a black man — have revealed that they will run and the same question is being asked about them. Is the U.S. ready for a woman president? An African-American president? A Latino president? Who knows, but what is clear to me is that for many of us (those of us who contemplate race and gender on regular basis) the next presidential elections have potential for being the most exciting ever.

Bill Richardson is — depending on how you want to look at — wearing his Latino heritage as a badge of honor, or hyping himself up to get the Latino vote (check out Bill breaking it down en español on his website). Articles about his Mexican roots are cropping up left and right.

In the taped statement on his website, Richardson says that troops need to be pulled from Iraq and redeployed elsewhere in the Middle East, a region that he is personally quite familiar with. It’s interesting that Clinton, Obama and Richardson have all decided to focus on Iraq as a number one talking point, presumably because of the challenge issued by fellow candidate John Edwards. With everyone jumping on the same bandwagon, it’s hard to tell who’s sincere and who just wants to ride the popular wave, but it’s too early to worry about it.

Via / 20 Minutos