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How hard is it to appoint a replacement for a US Senator? Governor Paterson of New York seems to think it is a very difficult task. When Senator Hillary Clinton accepted the job as Secretary of State, her seat became vacant and Caroline Kennedy told the Governor of New York that she would like the post. Simple, right? Either appoint her or not. Maybe ask for a resume and a background check then talk to a few people who know her, and decide. Otherwise a fairly simple process, right? Not for Governor Paterson.

There were several vacancies due to staffing the new administration. Two were simple: both the Governor of Colorado and the Governor of Maryland simply appointed a replacement without any fanfare. Illinois, of course, had some controversy when the sitting governor tried sell the appointment. But even Blagojevich, after being clobbered politically, simply appointed a replacement. The action of appointing a replacement for a midterm senatorial vacancy occurs frequently. I can not remember any situation similar to what happened in New York.

It is very unusual to ask someone to campaign for an appointment to a senate vacancy. Most of us would not be prepared to do so. We would not have our positions developed for the full range of current issues that a person would encounter in the Senate. Most sitting Senators would ask for time to develop policy positions before confronting the media. For some reason, Governor Paterson decided that Caroline Kennedy needed to tour the state and “campaign”. No one else who expressed interest in the job was asked by the governor to submit to the torture of having hostile press interviews. Why this treatment of Caroline Kennedy. Is it because she is famous, the daughter of a former president and niece of both Robert and Teddy Kennedy? Was the governor hoping for some political gain?

Other than being a member of a famous family, an attorney, and an active citizen in philanthropic work, I do not know if Caroline is the best person to replace Hillary Clinton in the Senate. I do know, however, that no one should be treated with such disrespect. Governor Paterson, shame on you.