"There are some who speak of a team of rivals. But I've never seen it that way. Past competitors, yes. But rivals implies something harder edged and less forgiving."

When New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson uttered the above lines at today's announcement that he was President-elect Barack Obama's pick to be Commerce Secretary, it was easy to think he was talking about his relationship with his new boss.

After all, they were rivals for the Democratic presidential nomination earlier this year and Richardson -- particularly during the debates -- often sided with Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton in disagreements with Obama. (Of course, so did Delaware Sen. Joe Biden -- who wound up as Obama's veep pick.)

But, to our mind, Richardson's comments about forgiveness are better understood in relation to the Clintons with whom his relationship soured during the campaign.

After Richardson dropped out of the presidential contest in early January, there was an expectation among political observers that he would back Clinton. Former President Bill Clinton had appointed Richardson as the U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations and Secretary of Energy and it was no secret that the two men were close. That expectation only increased when Richardson and Clinton were spotted watching Super Bowl together in the New Mexico governor's mansion.

When Richardson decided to endorse Obama then, it made for a major coup in the political world and, according to published reports, stoked real anger in the Clinton world. There was Clinton confidante James Carville calling Richardson "Judas", and a story that Bill Clinton had lost his (famous) temper when asked in a private meeting about Richardson's endorsement of Obama. Richardson, too, pushed back aggressively -- derideing the "gutter" politics of those around Clinton.

The Clintons -- particularly Bill Clinton -- are well known for their long political memories, and Richardson knows that fact better than most.

His "water under the bridge" pronouncement today is rightly seen as an olive branch offered to the Clintons as he prepares to serve alongside Hillary Clinton in Obama's Cabinet.