Former president Bill Clinton watched the Super Bowl on TV with his old friend and former cabinet secretary, New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson, but that didn't stop Richardson from endorsing Sen. Barack Obama's presidential bid.

The Richardson endorsement came at precisely the wrong time for Sen. Hillary Clinton's campaign.

She had won unsanctioned primaries in January in Florida and Michigan, and now it appears that there won't be new primaries.

This gives Obama a much better chance of winning the Democratic presidential nomination. The only thing that could stop this would be if Clinton annihalates him in the Pennsylvania primary on April 22.

However, Richardson will boost Obama's popularity with Hispanic voters, particularly if Richardson becomes the Democrats' vice presidential candidate.

He has extensive international experience as a former ambassador to the United Nations and as a freelance diplomat who has travelled to other countries to negotiate the freedom of U.S. hostages.

It's really a no-brainer for Obama to put Richardson on the ticket as the vice presidential candidate, given the importance of the Hispanic vote in swing states such as, yes, New Mexico.

However, in recent times, U.S. presidential elections have been determined by voters in Florida, Ohio, and Pennsylvania -- and in all three states, Obama has not fared very well.

He has also fallen seven points behind Clinton in popularity, though Richardson's endorsement could shore up his support.

It's still too early to rule out Clinton, however. She could come forward with an endorsement by former North Carolina senator John Edwards before the Pennsylvania primary (both called for universal health care and both are more popular than Obama with blue-collar workers). That might even catapult Edwards onto the ticket as Clinton's vice presidential nominee.

Then at the Democrats' convention in August, the outcome of the presidential nomination could also turn into a race whether Richardson or Edwards is the vice presidential nominee.