[Rhodes22-list] Political- Caroline To Seek NY Senatorial Seat

[Ben Cittadino]

December 16, 2008    New York Times
Caroline Kennedy to Seek Clinton’s Senate Seat 
By NICHOLAS CONFESSORE
Caroline Kennedy, the daughter of an American political dynasty, has decided
to pursue the United States Senate seat being vacated by Senator Hillary
Rodham Clinton of New York.The decision came after a series of deeply
personal and political conversations, in which Ms. Kennedy, whom friends
describe as unflashy but determined, wrestled with whether to give up what
has been a lifetime of avoiding the spotlight. 

Kennedy made calls on Monday morning to alert political figures to her
interest.

Gov. David A. Paterson of New York confirmed that she was interested in
being appointed. 

“She told me she was interested in the position,” Mr. Paterson said at a
news conference. “She realized it wasnot a campaign, but she was talking to
other people because shethought that a number of people, she felt, should
know that she’sinterested in the position. She’d like at some point to sit
down andtell me what she thinks her qualifications are.”

Senator Charles Schumer said that he had also spoken to Ms. Kennedy and that
said she was “clearly interested.” “Bottom line isthat the Governor and I
talk regularly on this,” he said in a television interview, “but we have
decided to keepeach other’s counsel, so that is all I am going to say right
now.”

If appointed, Ms. Kennedy would fill the seat once held by her uncle, Robert
F. Kennedy.

Ms. Kennedy’s decision is likely to have a major impact on the governor’s
considerations as he mulls who should succeed Mrs. Clinton. Already, some
other Democrats have pointedly questioned her credentials for the job.
United States Representative Gary Ackerman, a Queens Democrat, said last
week that he did not know what Ms. Kennedy’s qualifications were, “except
that she has name recognition — but so does J. Lo.”

Others, including Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg have praised her abilities.

Ms. Kennedy first telephoned the governor on Dec. 3 to inquire about the
job, but Mr. Paterson described that conversation as “informational” and
said it was clear that Ms. Kennedy had not decided whether she wanted to
pursue the position.

But since then, she has begun reaching out to key political figures in New
York, including Sheldon Silver, the speaker of the State Assembly, and
Thomas P. DiNapoli, the state comptroller. She has also hired Knickerbocker
SKD, a prominent political consulting firm headed by Josh Isay, a former
chief of staff to Senator Charles E. Schumer, to advise her.

Ms. Kennedy’s family members, especially her cousin, Robert F. Kennedy Jr.,
have urged her to seek the post.

Mrs. Clinton has said that she would not vacate the Senate seat until she
was confirmed as President-elect Barack Obama’s secretary of state, which is
expected to occur in January or February, and the governor has said that he
would wait until then to make the appointment. But he has also said that he
might make his selection known before then, to allow whomever is chosen to
prepare for the new role.

Ms. Kennedy, 51, a resident of Manhattan’s Upper East Side, took an
unusually public role in Mr. Obama’s campaign, and the two became friends.
Mr. Obama appointed Ms. Kennedy to the panel that vetted potential
vice-presidential candidates for him. 

Before that, Ms. Kennedy had devoted much of her time to charitable works
and institutions linked to her family, like the John F. Kennedy Library
Foundation, of which she is president.

Others likely to be considered for the Senate seat are members of Congress
including Kirsten Gillibrand, a rising star in the Democratic party who
represents an upstate district; Thomas R. Suozzi, the Nassau County chief
executive and a former candidate for governor; and the New York State
attorney general, Andrew M. Cuomo.


I think this is just an outstanding idea. Brad? Others?

Ben C.

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