Caroline Kennedy Has the Qualifications for the Senate
By Robert Schlesinger, Thomas Jefferson Street blog
I don't know if Caroline Kennedy is the best choice to be junior senator from my home state, and, as a general matter, I'm certainly not wild about senators getting elected by constituencies of one. But that said, I disagree with Thomas Jefferson Street colleague Bonnie Erbe regarding whether Caroline K. is qualified to serve.
"Caroline Kennedy is certainly not qualified for the office she seeks," Bonnie wrote this morning.
As Peter Roff (a GOPer) noted in our op-ed section earlier this week, Kennedy is certainly, strictly speaking, qualified. But Bonnie's presumably referring to her paper qualifications.
So take the name (and gender) out of the equation.
Our Senate wannabe has operated at very high levels in major philanthropic and nonprofit efforts, has written bestselling books about, among other things, constitutional law, and is a graduate of the country's No. 4 law school. And there are purely political considerations as well: This candidate is close to the popular president-elect, is fabulously wealthy in a state where running for office costs a bundle, and would be an instant political rock star (read: big money fundraiser) at a time when Senate Democrats have lost some of their biggest rainmakers (Barack Obama to the White House, Hillary Clinton to Foggy Bottom, Ted Kennedy presumably slowed down).
Is that résumé one to be taken seriously? Actually, yes.
Now, that doesn't mean there aren't other candidates who might be better suited for the seat or might have earned a shot at it in a way that Caroline Kennedy has not. And as I've written before, she still has to pass the Palin tTest. But she is legitimately in the conversation.
- Read more by Robert Schlesinger.
- Read more by Bonnie Erbe.
- Read more from the Thomas Jefferson Street blog.
- Read more about Caroline Kennedy.
Tags: Congress | Senate | Caroline Kennedy
Tools: 
Share
|
| Comments (26) | Print
Reader Comments
Subject Change
Can we change the subject from "qualified" to "politically desirable."
Caroline Kennedy Qualified?
Caroline Kennedy is definitely qualified to be the junior senator from New York just as Joe the plumber is qualified to be a senator representing Ohio. You don't need a Harvard law degree to figure that out. The question should be is she most qualified to replace Senator Clinton? The answer to that is clearly no given what we have seen so far. But she will still get the position as compensation for supporting the president-elect when he badly needed a major endorsement. Who cares what is best for New Yorkers?
What's the difference? (corrected copy)
For the first time in my life I wrote Congressmen, Senators and the White House as did many other U.S. citizens regarding my concerns about the bailout and again about the billions to Detroit's "big three". Previously a NYS resident for most of my life I retired to Florida a few years ago and registered Republican. No one listened to the people who disagreed with the aforementioned ideas. It was a Democrat Senator who's office was the only one with the courtesy of a response. Many of us have been infuriated by the actions of those in power from the President to the banks' officers, from the Feds to the U.S. auto makers for the economic fiasco we find our country and ourselves now suffering. If Caroline Kennedy can write her name at the top of the paper as required, she will probably pay as much attention to the wants, need and requirements of the citizens of New York State and the rest of our country as any of the others have done in the past.
advertisement
