CHICAGO, IL -- President-elect Barack Obama named New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson on December 3rd to serve as Commerce Secretary, a position that Obama says will be a key one in his administration.

If confirmed, Richardson will be the last democratic adversary converted to an Obama allied.



Others are, Sen. Hillary Clinton, who will be the next Secretary of State and Joe Biden, who will be his Vice-president.



A former energy secretary, ambassador to the United Nations and member of Congress, Richardson, a two-term governor, brings a breadth of experience to a job which Obama says will require exactly that.



"He will be a key member of my economic team," Obama said, citing a "mixture of diplomatic experience, hands-on experience as a governor, experience in the Cabinet, experience in Congress that means he is going to be a key strategist on all the issues we work on."



Richardson, who grew up both in the U.S. and in Mexico, addressed a press conference in Chicago in both English and in Spanish, crediting Obama with a vision which he thinks will revitalize the American economy and restore the country's position of respect around the world.



Richardson said, "It will be a great honor to serve a president that recognizes America's diversity is its greatest strength."



Although Richardson becomes the first Hispanic appointed to the Cabinet now in formation, Obama suggested the New Mexico governor won't be the last Latino to have an important position in his administration.



"There's no contradiction between diversity and excellence," Obama said. "I'm looking for the best people first and foremost. I just so happen that Bill Richardson ...