Caroline Kennedy to seek Hillary Clinton's Senate seat

[Carol]

Caroline Kennedy to seek Hillary 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, a person told of her decision said on Monday.

The decision came after a series of deeply personal and political conversations, in which Kennedy, whom friends describe as unflashy but determined, wrestled with whether to give up what has been a lifetime of avoiding the spotlight.

Kennedy will ask Governor David Paterson of New York to consider her for the appointment, according to the person told of her decision. The governor was traveling to Utica Monday and could not immediately be reached for comment.

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

Kennedy has been making calls this morning to alert political figures to her interest.
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Kennedy's decision is likely to have a major impact on the governor's considerations as he mulls who should succeed Clinton. Already, some other Democrats have pointedly questioned her credentials for the job. United States Representative Gary Ackerman, a New York Democrat, said last week that he did not know what Kennedy's qualifications were, "except that she has name recognition — but so does J. Lo."

Others, including Mayor Michael Bloomberg have praised her abilities.

Kennedy first telephoned the governor on Dec. 3 to inquire about the job, but Paterson described that conversation as "informational" and said it was clear that 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 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 Schumer, to advise her.

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

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.

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

Before that, 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 Suozzi, the Nassau County chief executive and a former candidate for governor; and the New York State attorney general, Andrew Cuomo.
http://www.iht.com/articles/2008/12/...16caroline.php

[Carol]

.

Caroline bows out.

http://wcbstv.com/breakingnewsalerts....2.914497.html

[Avid]

Originally Posted by Kathleen

Caroline bows out.

http://wcbstv.com/breakingnewsalerts....2.914497.html

Thank goodness for that! Flamin' Illuminati rights now out of the window at last! (or perhaps she would've rocked their boat) - we'll never know....

[Steve_A]

Hi Kathleen,

As I understand it, Kennedy pulled out because she didn't want to expose her financial details, which can only lead us to think of two things:

She's skint and needs a soft job to finance her and give her a leg up again to get lots of money into her bank account.

or

She's got more money than she's willing to let on, which makes us ask why she's hiding the family fortune. (Tax reasons?).

Either way she appears to have more problems than she has experience for the post. It was almost like a desperate plea to take her on as Senator which also rings alarm bells.

Is there more to her than meets the eye?

Normally in people mixed in politics there is.

Best regards,

Steve

Originally Posted by Kathleen

Caroline bows out.

http://wcbstv.com/breakingnewsalerts....2.914497.html

They're also saying that she wasn't going to be given the job so she bailed to "save face". Who knows?

[giovonni]

Yes this was a surprise, apparently there was concern about a person she has employed in her household? Also, as Steve points out financial disclosure can get messy, (just ask the Clinton's) when the New York press>wolfves are allowed to pry? Note, as you all probably know> New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo, was the heir apparent to the job and was married to Caroline's neice at one time? Politics> can be even more messy> when families are involved??

some insight here;
http://www.time.com/time/politics/ar...873328,00.html

[Dantheman62]

It's definitely not because she's broke!, Kennedy's will never be broke, LOL!

[alyscat]

But, TBH, I don't think I'd want the media pouring through my financial records and speculating on why I'd donated $150 to Planned Parenthood (just hypothetically, of course) - Politics is cr*ppy, and we tend to eat our young in this country. There's no way I'd run for political office in this country.
alys