The Heretik

Republican Leader Threatens to Block Seating of Franken (The Caucus, New York Times)
With Al Franken holding on to a razor-thin lead over incumbent Norm Coleman in the protracted contest for the United States Senate seat from Minnesota, Republicans say they are planning to block any attempt by Democrats to seat Mr. Franken when the new Congress is sworn in next week. If the recount in Minnesota, which has entered its sixth week, remains undecided, Senator John Cornyn of Texas, the incoming chairman of the Republican National Senatorial Committee, said on Friday that G.O.P. senators were ready to filibuster the provisional seating of Mr. Franken.
Why not filibuster all of them, Republicans?  See below for all the possibilities.--Caro

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Sources: Reid pressured Blagojevich not to appoint Jackson Jr. to Obama's U.S. Senate seat (Chicago Sun-Times)
Days before Gov. Blagojevich was charged with trying to sell President-elect Barack Obama's U.S. Senate seat to the highest bidder, top Senate Democrat Harry Reid made it clear who he didn't want in the post: Jesse Jackson, Jr., Danny Davis or Emil Jones. Rather, Reid called Blagojevich to argue he appoint either state Veterans Affairs chief Tammy Duckworth or Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan, sources told the Chicago Sun-Times.

Continuing to unwrap the gift of the governor (by John Kass, Chicago Tribune)
President-elect Barack Obama was not found as an infant, floating in a reed basket along the banks of the Chicago River. He is not the gentle faun, the Mr. Tumnus, of the Daley machine. Obama could have forcefully and publicly demanded that Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan and fellow Illinois Democrats support legislation for a special election to fill his vacated Senate seat. Obama had a responsibility to the people of Illinois to do so. But he kept his mouth shut. As always, he avoided conflict with machine political bosses, a consistent character trait stubbornly ignored by his media cheerleaders.

His top White House strategist and his chief of staff are creatures of the Daley machine, and Democrats didn't want to risk the Senate seat. What happened to the promise of transcending the old politics? So when the freak show comes to Washington next week and political hack Roland "I'm a tool of the people" Burris is denied entry to the Senate, and the national political class shrieks in fake outrage and Blagojevich surrounds himself with African-American ministers and he sings "Let my people go!" remember who could have stopped all this: Obama, Madigan, Daley and the Illinois Democrats.

Caroline Kennedy vs. Roland Burris on U.S. Senate qualifications (by Yael T. Abouhalkah, Kansas City Star)
Caroline Kennedy is a strong contender for being appointed to the U.S. Senate. But senators reportedly will deny entrance to Roland Burris as Barack Obama's replacement. Is that really fair?

• Kennedy has no elected political experience.
  
• Burris has been the elected comptroller for the state of Illinois and the elected attorney general for the state.
  
• Kennedy has declined to provide details about her financial holdings or many of her political views -- unless she's appointed.
  
• Burris' views on many local and national issues are well known, given his years in political office.
  
• Kennedy would be appointed by New York Gov. David Paterson. He was lieutenant governor before becoming governor when Eliot Spitzer was forced to resign in 2008 after being linked to a prostitution.
  
• Burris has been appointed by a duly elected governor of Illinois, Rod Blagojevich.

N.Y. governor leaning toward Kennedy? (by Alex Koppelman at War Room, Salon)
Despite the very public beating Caroline Kennedy has taken recently, New York Gov. David Paterson is apparently still likely to appoint her to Hillary Clinton's Senate seat. The Associated Press reports: "Two people close to Gov. David Paterson tell The Associated Press they believe Caroline Kennedy will be his choice, but the governor cautions he's still looking." This isn't too suprising, but it is a little puzzling, I think. Paterson is up for election in 2010, and while New Yorkers seem resigned to the idea of Sen. Caroline Kennedy, they're not exactly wild about it. Plus, the chaos in Illinois means an unusual amount of scrutiny over these appointments; he'd be likely to take at least some political heat if he does pick her.

Bennet pick shocks some in Colorado (Denver Post)
Coloradans responded to the news that Democratic Gov. Bill Ritter had appointed Denver Public Schools Superintendent Michael Bennet as their new senator with a collective "huh?

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Carolyn Kay
MakeThemAccountable.com