Human Events on Governor Patrick's next step.
As Edward Kennedy was mourned and laid to rest over the weekend, talk about what will happen to his open Senate seat grew louder.On Friday, there were reports that the Massachusetts legislature would follow Kennedy’s final wish and change the five-year-old Senate succession law. Such a change would permit Democratic Gov. Deval Patrick to appoint an interim senator until the special election is held no earlier than 145 days after Kennedy’s death and no more than 160 days. (That means in January).
This would be the second Democratic opportunistic change to the law. The last time – when Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry might have vacated his seat for the presidency -- the Democratic legislature took the power of gubernatorial appointment away from then-governor Mitt Romney.
Senate Democratic Leader Harry Reid (Nev.) encouraged the Bay State lawmakers to give the governor power to appoint a senator. Reid seemed to be speaking for many national Democrats on Thursday when he voiced the feeling that as many Democratic votes as possible were needed in the Senate if Obama-backed health care reform comes to a vote before January.
On Thursday, there was speculation that if the rules change was passed, Gov. Patrick might appoint a “senior statesman” such as former governor and 1988 Democratic presidential nominee Michael Dukakis to serve in the Senate until January. By Friday night, however, speculation on a stopgap senator seemed to move toward former Democratic National Chairman Paul Kirk, Jr. As Joe Kennedy noted in his remarks about his uncle, Kirk had been a close friend of Ted Kennedy since his first Senate race in 1962.
Few in Massachusetts would think the state legislature is not shameless enough to reverse itself in four years for blatantly political reasons. But sources in Boston said that there were a number of Democratic legislators -- notably State Sen. Brian Joyce -- having jitters about a reversal that is that self-serving. The Boston Herald’s columnist Howie Carr was his usual cynical self when he concluded: “Ultimately, there’s nothing in the bill [to permit a Senate appointment] for the Legislature, so we must assume it won’t be passed.”
UPDATE: More from the Boston Herald.
SECOND UPDATE: From WBUR, Michael Graham and Boston Globe.