Actually, the headline should ask WHEN will Democratic Governor Bill Richardson drop out of the Presidential race? One news report says he will. Then another carries a denial by his campaign organization, noting that he’ll announce a decision Thursday.

But it’s all a matter of time. Richardson was the quintessential “dream resume” candidate — someone who had done so many impressive things, been so popular with his home turf voters, a top Hispanic politician…why, he was BOUND to be a contender.

Plus, he was (on most but not all issues) a centrist, which set him apart from a lot of the Democratic Party presidential pack. But, above all, in the end Richardson seemed to be a national political underachiever.

The latest report says he’ll make an announcement Thursday. It’s highly-unlikely (but anything is possible in politics this year) that he’ll call a press conference to announce that he’s not dropping out and that nothing has changed:

New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson will announce Thursday that he is ending his campaign for the presidency, sources inside the Richardson campaign confirmed to NBC News on Wednesday.

Sources told The Associated Press and NBC News about the withdrawal plan on condition of anonymity in advance of the governor’s announcement.

The Richardson campaign would not comment on the governor’s decision, reached after a meeting with his top advisers Wednesday in New Mexico.

Keep in mind that most Presidential candidates stay in the race as long as they have to — until it turns out they run out of money and can’t raise any more. That could be the case with Richardson.

The question will continue to be asked: how could a candidate who seemed to have such a solid resume, great success as politician in his home state, and such high polling numbers from his New Mexico constituents fizzle so dramatically on the national campaign scene? There may be several reasons:

(1) He was prone to make gaffes. Some major, some minor. At times he seemed to have chronic foot-in-mouth disease.

(2) The camera didn’t like him. The camera adds weight to a person (I KNOW…I was on MSNBC two years ago to talk about blogs and the camera made five-foot-1, 145 # me look like six-foot-three 250 # me). A shot of his face looked like a double-chin convention. If his TV impact was offset by other debating and solid qualities as an aspiring nominee, the TV factor could be overlooked. But it was not.

(3) He tended to sound like he was trying to get out as much of his resume in an answer as possible.

(4) His debate replies rambled and often went on too long. Senator Joe Biden got the reputation for being a chatterbox, but Richardson came in a close second at times.

(5) He was not one of the candidates who was a darling of the base and faced competition in the center from the candidacy of Hillary Clinton

So, if you add in his political positioning, performance as a candidate, and how he came across on TV (the method of selling the political package) you get a candidate who fell short of initial expectations and never took off on the national scene.

But even if he drops out, Richardson will be one of his party’s most valuable voices — and one of the country’s best governors.

SOME OTHER WEBLOG OPINION ON THIS STORY:

–Pamela Leavey:

I never felt Richardson had much of a chance to be honest. So now the next speculation will be who Richardson will support in the race. He came to Clinton’s defense in the early debates and yet urged his supporters to support Obama as their 2nd choice in Iowa.

Richardson dropping out leaves the race between Clinton, Obama, Edwards and Kucinich;but Dennis Kucinich is another non starter. I said here recently to watch for Kucinich, regardless of how he fares in the voting booths and polls to hang on through to the convention as he did 4 years ago.

I don’t give John Edwards much more than through Mega Tuesday before he drops. This race has always been between 2 candidates, as very wise man (who’s been down this road before) told me last April.

–Ed Morrissey:

Richardson never caught fire. Barack Obama’s entry into the race overshadowed his own, and Richardson never recovered. Instead of showing his experience, he only gained notoriety occasionally for his gaffes. He proved that a great resume doesn’t guarantee a great or even capable candidate. Why should the manner of his exit be any different?

–Sundries Shack:

Aside from his debate performances, which really were embarrassing affairs, I hardly knew he was in the race. He certainly didn’t bring much more to the table than some pandering to the illegal immigrant lobby and a certain amount of rumpled ineptitude.

–Pam’s House Blend:

He is a Dem with a killer resume, and was Hispanic to boot, showing that the Democrats have a deep, diverse and qualified field that makes the GOP candidates look pathetically retro. Alas, we know credentials in today’s elections aren’t what carry the day, which is too bad. Bill Richardson would be an fine VP pick.

–Michelle Malkin:

But, but, but, didn’t you know that he was Energy Secretary and Governor of New Mexico!?!? Guess it didn’t matter. Don’t let the door hit you on the way out.

–Daily Kos:

Richardson had by far the most impressive resume of anyone in the race. But people don’t vote for resumes, and he never came up with a compelling enough reason for people to vote for him instead of one of the big three. After last night’s performance, where he received only 5% of the vote, his fate was sealed.

–Gun Toting Liberal:

Too bad in a way. The lack “experience level” we now have left in our remaining candidates has gone WAY DOWN as a result of Bill (”Billy Lopez”) Richardson’s choice to exit this race. Open borders and amnesty for illegal aliens? His biggest flaw, by FAR, and most likely the single largest reason I REFUSED to send him a red CENT.

On the other hand, when I look at what we’ve got left and I see Sir Hillary Rodham Clinton versus Sheriff John McCain, I see problems. HUGE problems.

--Sharon Cobb:

Richardson brought a significant amount of foreign affairs experience to the table, and made the bold suggestion that America stop dealing with Pakistan’s dictator Musharraf after Bhutto was murdered. Richardson was a very popular Governor of New Mexico, and by extension, in El Paso, which is 70 percent Hispanic. I suspect that we’ll be seeing Richardson in a cabinet position, whether it’s Obama or Clinton in the White House. There has been no official announcement, but I’m told it will happen later today

–Marathon Pundit:

Richardson has an impressive resume: Diplomat, cabinet member, governor, and congressman, but his lack of charisma sunk his quest. He’ll appear on the media’s short list of vice presidential hopes, as he did four years ago, but I don’t see it happening. Hey, did you know he lacked charisma?

–Max Redline:

Bill Richardson has apparently acknowledged the fact that he never stood a snowball’s chance and will be cutting out of the Democrat nomination race tomorrow. That’s a smart move. It keeps the race in focus. The Democrat race now boils down to a popularity contest among three grossly inexperienced contenders: Obama, Mrs. Bill Clinton, and Edwards. They have to decide whether to support an inexperienced black guy, an inexperienced white woman, or an inexperienced white ambulance-chaser.