Meet The New Massachusetts Senator, Paul Kirk
The new interim Massachusetts Senator is expected to be named today at an 11 a.m. press conference. His name is Paul Kirk:
Multiple media sources this morning, indeed, are pointing to the 71 year-old Kirk, a Boston-based attorney who served as the head of the Democratic National Committee in the late 1980s. Kirk, perhaps most importantly in this matter, served the late Senator Edward Kennedy as a top-level staffer for nearly a decade prior to his tenure at the DNC.
Kirk is a friend of the Kennedy family and was privately endorsed to Gov. Patrick by Kennedy’s wife and son. It may not be completely smooth sailing however.
There is, even at this final hour, the slight probability of a snag for Governor Patrick. Because the legislature failed to pass the measure with the two-thirds of the vote necessary to create an “emergency preamble”, the bill is not supposed to take effect for 90 days. Patrick can get around that by declaring the bill a response to an emergency situation, which will allow him to waive the 90-day requirement. Not surprisingly, the Massachusetts GOP is crying foul:
Republicans have toyed with the idea of challenging Patrick’s legal authority to declare such an emergency, and legal challenges could also come from citizens.
“This is not an emergency,” state Rep. Paul Frost (R) told The Associated Press, noting that it would be difficult for Patrick to declare an emergency after the State Legislature declined to do so.
Tags: MA-Sen, Ted Kennedy
Geez, so how many “interim” senators do we have now in DC?
Although I admire the Kennedy family’s contribution to the country, I don’t think it is up to the family to pick the next senator. It should be up to the MA voters and Governor Patrick will be held responsible for his choice.
Joanne,
You did this as a test didn’t you?
The interim senators right now are Kirk (MA), Kaufman (DE), Bennett (CO), Gillibrand (NY), Lemieux (FL) and Burris (IL). There are two that were first appointed and later elected Murkowski (AK) and Menendez (NJ).
HGP — You may not realize it (and I mean this respectfully), but the family is not picking “the next Senator” as such, only giving input on the interim replacement. You are absolutely correct that the MA voters should select the next permanent Senator, and they will, on January 19, 2010. This pick now is only basically a temp position for less than 4 months.
Thanks UI–I knew that would stick in your research minded “craw”…and I tell you I’m surprised we had that many. Thanks again.
I think we probably do have an unusually high number of replacements right now, although I have no data to back that up. Just my impression. I think there are probably usually a few, but now not only are there more, but they’re high profile — replacing the current President, Vice-President, Sec of State, and probably the most famous Senator. The issue of how to replace them fairly is big right now, but will fade, just like the Electoral College does when there’s not a close election going on.
FWIW, I posted my thoughts on how to do it a few days ago.
And the Secretary of the Interior, plus a guy who was tired of being the only Hispanic Republican in the Senate.
What a pity that the Dems had to change the rules a second time — and then the Dem governor had to lie about it being an emergency — in order to accomplish this move.
Were Massachusetts Dems honest and not power hungry, this never would have happened.
“Governor Patrick will be held responsible for his choice.”
If you find a single Massachusetts resident who decides to vote against Gov. Patrick because he named the distinguished Paul Kirk as interim Senator … take his picture and mail it to me.
Concern troll RWR meanwhile bleats because Massachusetts returns to the 2-Senator complement for which it bargained in 1787.
Yeah, I am not understanding this criticism from the right. Massachusetts now has the optimal law for the replacement of Senators who die or resign: an interim appointment to maintain representation followed by a special election in a few months time. Straight out appointments are undemocratic, and a lack of representation while we wait for a special election is as well.
Where is the conservative criticism of Crist and his long term appointment of Lemieux? The silence on that reveals their hypocrisy.
My criticism is not the appointment per se. I’m completely happy with whatever system a state chooses to use — appointment, election, or the hybrid that now exists in Massachusetts.
However, I’m criticizing the raw hypocrisy of the thing.
Massachusetts had an appointment system for years. In 2004, when it appeared that a duly elected governor might have the audacity to appoint a Republican, the state legislature (at the urging of now deceased senior senator from the state, Jabba the Drunk) changed the law to require a special election — and deemed an interregnum to be no hardship or emergency for Massachusetts.
And so it sat for five years. Even when the Senator from Chivas was so incapacitated by his illness, the legislature was content to allow the law to remain as it was — and no one dared suggest that Massachusetts was harmed by being short one Senator (and let’s be honest — it has been short a Senator since extended illness began) or that filling the seat was a priority — much less an emergency.
Only now, when the seat will remain safely in the hands of a Democrat, has the law been changed to this hybrid because the Swimmer’s death left the position vacant. However, it was impossible to muster the constitutionally required number of legislators to make the law take effect immediately, indicating that the Massachusetts legislature did not consider such a vacancy to be a true emergency (if they had, they might have passed this legislation any time over the last year rather than dithering until now).
Yet given this history, Deval Patrick somehow thinks he can make a credible claim that the vacancy is such an emergency that the law should go into effect NOW? Sorry folks — such a declaration passes neither the laugh nor the smell test.
I suspect the court challenge on this matter will hold that Patrick’s actions today are invalid.
incredible…
its like a Rush drug fueled rant imitation, but more hate filled. i assume the “Swimmer” is a reference to chapaquidik. (sp)
… nice. RWR you KNOW why its getting filled…. to pass nazi health care 🙂
Seriously, at first i wanted to be deeply offended and get all huffy and turn down MSNBC and be angry. But this is a hilariously constructed hate rant.
bravo
I will say that i agree with this in a very undemocratic way…. but this logic can also apply to republicans.
A senator is elected to serve for 6 years. They are elected because of their platform, what the stood for, hair.. whatever. So the people basically opt for that bill of goods for the next 6 years. If something happens to that senator, it is logical to think that what they stood for.. and were elected to do.. continue to be represented. Finnish out that term by someone who basically has the same ideas and hopefully hair… to vote the way the retired or deceased senator would have voted.
I admit it is kind of twisted logic, but Delaware has an interim senator, and i don’t feel my democratic rights have been violated.. i actually might consider voting for him if he ran, even though he has terrible hair…
a.price — no hate in my post. Contempt for the late and unlamented previous occupant of that Senate seat, but not hatred. And nothing at all about Nazis.
And as for your last post, might i point out that there is also an argument to be made that when the people of mMssachusetts elected that GOP governor in 2002, they did so knowing that one of the powers he would have was the filling of a vacant Senate seat with a member of his own party. For the legislature to strip him of that long-standing power can be seen as thwarting the will of the people…
But beyond that, given that the current situation has been one that could be readily foreseen for well over a year (since the tumor was discovered and the seat left effectively vacant due to the incapacity of its occupant) and ther was no effort made to change the law, it is hard to argue that the current vacancy is an emergency. That is doubly true given the willingness of the legislature to mandate a five-month interregnum back in 2004 and the inability to get the legislature to meet the state’s constitutional requirement for the legislation to go into effect immediately when they passed the current law.
Hey Rhymey – I know that you and your ilk hate it, but elections have consequences. This is one of them. The laws are enacted by people elected by a majority of votes – there was no “thwarting the will of the people” when that power was stripped.
What I find more interesting is the “contempt” (hatred) evident in every sentence RwR writes about Ted Kennedy. I find it interesting because it directly mirrors the same emotions left-wingers have about all those Republicans who mouth family-values talk while walking the swingers’ walk. We on the left have the same sort of blind spot about the Kennedys — let’s face it, most of us have no more admiration for the rather massive black spots on Ted’s record than we do for Larry Craig or David Vitter, but we almost never say so.
In short, next time one of us lefties can’t see how conservatives can defend their sleazeballs, think of Teddy and maybe we’ll better understand.
Geezer — when Craig or Vitter reach Kennedy’s level of legislation that helps American people, I’ll consider it.
Actually, do they have ANY legislation that helps American people, as opposed to corporations?
And when was it that Kennedy held himself up as a paragon of family values, as Vitter did?
And when, exactly, did Larry Craig acknowledge and apologize for his behaviors? I thought he said he never did them?
Sorry, Geezer, but I don’t think the comparison holds. I also think the comparison is a bit too much troll sympathy and pandering.
I understand your complaint, PM, but would note that satisfying the faithful is exactly the reason Republicans are willing to overlook the sins of their own politicians. Granted, theirs aren’t as accomplished, but remember that talking the talk is good enough to become a conservative icon in this country (see Limbaugh, Rush).
It’s not an arguing point, PM. Just something to consider. If you’re unwilling to look in the mirror, well, that’s something I find marks conservatives in this country, too.
I’ve not defended ANY of the unworthies on the right who you mention.
You, on the other hand, defend Kennedy, Frank, and Gerry Studds before you even get out of Massachusetts.
Democratic double standards! This is an emergency because the Dems want to be sure they have a “YES” vote for OBABA-CARE! And who better to do it then a close friend and colleague of Kennedy!
Did you all just feel the ground shake?????? It’s our founding fathers rolling in their graves!
Disgusting crooked politics! What has happened to this beautiful country??? Oh yah, liberals happened! “YES WE CAN DESTROY AMERICA”, or shall I say yes YOU can destroy america! I am I Massachusetts resident who is disgusted with our Governor, President, and all that voted them in!
Heather, sweetie, this thread is as dead as Kennedy. The issue is also dead; Kirk has been installed in the Senate.
Try trolling on more current issues. And, if you really live in Massachusetts, there are tons of sites you can use your question marks in.
Progressive Mom, I hear your passive aggressiveness loud and clear. I just happened to stumble on this site and exercised my constitutional right to comment. At least that hasn’t been taken away from me yet!
???????? 😛