JK for Dept of Interior?

[sandnsea]

http://blog.oregonlive.com/mapesonpolitics/2008/11/watch_the_interior_department.html

"Marc Ambinder, the Atlantic's prolific political blogger, says Sen. John Kerry may be in line for a consolation prize now that reports suggest that President-elect Barack Obama wants to make Sen. Hillary Clinton the secretary of state.

Ambinder says that Kerry would happily settle for the Interior Department, an agency of particular importance to those us Way West of the Beltway. The Oregon media, of course, has been talking up the possibility of former Gov. John Kitzhaber as interior secretary. (He's also been mentioned for the Health and Human Services Department).

Appointing the Massachusetts senator would be a departure from the tradition of putting a Westerner in the job, and it would cause some major flurries of anxiety from the natural resource industry. At least with Kitzhaber, they're getting someone they've worked with in the past even if they've had their differences."

I'd bet the natural resource industry wouldn't be thrilled with JK, and thank god for that. He would be a huge sigh of relief in that position - huge. As would Kitzhaber at HHS, although he's always said he won't go to DC.

[beachmom]

1. I doubt it. nt

[karynnj]

2. Prosense has a post where David Wade has said it is "cuckoo for Cocoa Puffs"

The article is by someone who interviewed Kerry earlier this year. I would assume he would prefer to stay as a powerful Senator. I think Secretary of State was the only thing that would be as good as the Senate seat.

(It was good hearing that Wade is back with him.) http://blogs.tnr.com/tnr/blogs/the_plank/archive/2008/11/18/the-restless-mr-kerry.aspx

[sandnsea]

3. lol, and back in rare form too

I love David.

I think our public resources would benefit enormously under JK and that he could do more long-term good there than just about anywhere really.

[Muttocracy]

4. oh, is that the same one who was Biden's spokesman during the campaign?

I never knew he was a Kerry staffer. That's a great quote :)

[Democrafty]

7. Yeah, he's been with JK for years

even though he perpetually looks 22, haha! And he is AWESOME. I think he toned himself down for the pres. campaign - he's funny as hell.

[Muttocracy]

25. further proof that Kerry has a sense of humor :)

[karynnj]

10. Yes

He was a long time Kerry spokesperson - includingh in 2004. His announcement (before Biden was named)signaled to me that the VP would not be HRC.

Here was the announcement that he would work for the VP.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/07/30/AR2008073003186.html

and this in a 2004 NYT article:
"Then there is John Kerry the father figure, who drove an hour after an overseas flight to attend the 2001 nuptials of his press secretary, David Wade, who has not seen his own father since he was a baby."
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=273&topic_id=141205

[Muttocracy]

24. thanks.nt

[Noisy Democrat]

5. Ye gods, I hope not

Why are so many people determined to make it sound as if JK will be losing out if he stays in the Senate? I, for one, am praying he does stay in the Senate, and becomes chair of SFRC, and becomes an even more powerful senator. Nobody is asking us bloggers what he should do, so it's kind of pointless for us to even talk about it, but I'm glad if he doesn't become Secretary of State. I think his Senate position is very important, and is about to become even more so. It seems as if quite a number of people want to do damage to him by portraying his position in the Senate in a negative light, making it appear that Obama has passed him over, etc.

Seeing the respect Obama has shown for JK, I'm sure that Obama has seriously considered offering JK something, or may even have made an offer. But obviously he's not going to be able to say, "My first choice was John Kerry, but since he wants to stay in the Senate, I had to settle for so-and-so." Unfortunately, this means that it's open season for anyone who wants to claim that JK has been passed over.

[sandnsea]

6. The forests and rivers are very important to me

I would love for JK to be in charge of them. I don't really care what he wants to do, but I certainly wouldn't say "ye gods, no" if JK were to take charge of our public lands. I would breathe a huge sigh of relief. Perhaps people don't know how bad it is out here, how fragile it all is and how quickly we could be past a point of recovery.

[Mass]

9. This could be a good idea. It may be a good symbol to put people who care in these responsibilities

position, but whether it is him or somebody else who cares, it does not seem to be headed this direction.

[Fabio]

11. I dont disagree with you

but two things:

1) it is a political demotion to go from senate to interior -- especially with a new six year term in hand.
2) JK is more of a fisheries and climate (air) guy, because of the topography of Mass, his efforts on transnational envir issues and the legacy of NE industrialization/acid rain that made this a key issue in the 1980s.

[sandnsea]

16. I'm in Oregon

so maybe his work on fisheries has special purpose to me, he was one of the first to notice the disaster of the Klamath River and that was well before we had to close our salmon fishing season. The forests was Carole King's key issue in 2004 and I recall that she first became impressed with JK due to his knowledge of the forests, even though he is from Mass. You can't deal with fisheries without dealing with logging, ranching, farming, mining, the land around the water. I wouldn't dream of suggesting JK should do anything in particular, as I stated, I just thought it was an interesting article, an intriguing idea, and a real credit to who the man is that he would be considered viable for so many areas of the government.

[TayTay]

17. Climate change and energy are going to be big deals in the next Congress

and, we all hope, in the next Admin. I should think that the good Senator might want a hand in all of that. He was referred to as the "go-to guy" for climate change. It seems the Senate might be a better perch in which to attend to that than Interior.

Isn't the next round of climate change talks coming up soon? I think there are sessions in Poznan, Poland in December. These are the middle round of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change http://unfccc.int/2860.php">(UNFCCC) discussions that began in Bali last year. I should think the Senate would like to send strong representation this year. (Unlike last year when the Repubs scheduled votes on energy just to complicate things and prevent or delay Senators from going to Bali.)

I still have not completely wrapped my head around the thought that we might have an Administration that takes these talks and the urgency of climate change seriously. That is such a huge change.

[Noisy Democrat]

13. The reason I said 'ye gods' is the 'consolation prize' part

JK doesn't need a consolation prize. He's a powerful senator and about to get more powerful. It disturbs me that so many in the media are working so hard to obscure that fact.

[Mass]

15. Because of the efforts made by the media and his senate colleagues to

make it look this way.

Look at the reaction of the Senate people when he was thought to be frontrunner for SoS (or rather absence of). Contrast that with the reaction when it comes to Hillary.

AP has an article today explaining how Hillary could get a higher leadership place and how other senators are for it. Compare that to what was said 4 years ago when some were suggesting Kerry would take a higher leadership role in the senate. Remember the snickering of some of his fellow senators (and staff). He took this leadership role. It shows from time to time, but this is definitively not something the media or other senators will recognize. (BTW, here is the article, because, aside the irritation of being about Hillary, it asks a real question. How giving the leadership of the appropriation Committee to Innouye (84) rather than Byrd (92) while many less senior (though full of merit and with already more than one term senators) cannot get a chairmanship or either a full committee or an important subcommittee), but nothing to do with your point.)


So, I think we need to accept that SOME media will never be positive when it comes to Kerry (Maureen Dowd and Gail Collins are the epitome of this, but hardly the only ones). Actually, it has gotten better these last few months, surprisingly.

[MBS]

8. this sounds right to me

especially, unfortunately, the "open season" part. (Check out MoDo's gratuitous mention of the "pompous John Kerry" this morning. Honestly. Part of me wonders whether JK failed some sort of Girl Test because he hasn't flirted -- high-school-girl-wise, or political-Beltway-schmooze-wise -- with Dowd or Collins.)

[karynnj]

12. You might be right - but he won Teresa Heinz

which shows he has better taste and judgment. If there is anyone who is pompous, it is Maureen Dowd, who seems to find fault with everyone else in the world.

[MBS]

14. oh, I have absolutely NO doubt that JK has superior taste and

judgment on all fronts, including especially the spousal dept. :) (That was actually the point I was trying to make, indirectly, in my first comment).

[paulk]

18. I wonder if Kerry really wants a cabinet position

in fact, I wonder if any of the people that keep getting mentioned, like Richardson, Clinton, Kerry - are really wanting jobs in the administrative branch. Maybe I'm wrong, but I don't remember many senators and govornors being tapped for these jobs in the past.

Kerry is poised to become a very powerful figure in the Senate - a Senate that, with the majority we've got and a Democrat in the WH, is in a position to effect some real change.

Same goes for Clinton.

[TayTay]

19. Hey, nice to have you back

It is a pleasure to see your posts again.

[Democrafty]

20. Well, wanting is one thing.

But the likelihood of Obama poaching half the Senate to fill his cabinet is far slimmer than the media would suggest.

[karynnj]

22. I'm with you - Unless I missed one, the last Senator was Muskie - under Carter

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Secretaries_of_State_of_the_United_States

I agree with you that given everything Kerry is interested in and the committee seats he holds, he is very well positioned to be a powerful legislator. I don't think HRC is positioned anywhere near as well - she is very junior in every committee she is in - the interesting story yesterday was that Kennedy was willing to give her a health task force. This was interesting as it gives her something rather than leaving her with no real power.

[Mass]

23. Bentsen was the last one.

[MonteLukast]

21. Hmmm... I've actually heard Ken Salazar.

Now THAT would be exciting. He's very popular here, at the same time as he's too much of a Blue Dog for a lot of progressives. His replacement could potentially be VERY exciting, seeing as how no one knows where our extremely popular term-limited State House Speaker Andrew Romanoff is supposed to go. Romanoff for Senator alongside Mark Udall? Sounds good to me!

[rockymountaindem]

28. That would be awesome

Hell, I've been looking for excuses to drop out of grad school. Working on Romanoff's staff might be good enough. On the other hand, Rockymountaindem, PhD sounds pretty good as well :)

[beachmom]

26. Marc Ambinder, the source for this rumor, has now pretty much retracted it:

http://marcambinder.theatlantic.com/archives/2008/11/the_atlantics_bravest.php

2. Earlier this week, I speculated about John Kerry and the Department of the Interior. Actually, I'd be surprised if Kerry leaves the Senate if he doesn't become Secretary of State.

Not going to happen.

[JI7]

27. there is talk of Richardson offered and/or accepting Sec of Commerce