Since so many in the blogosphere have expressed their dismay at the possible appointment of Caroline Kennedy to Sen. Clinton's seat in the Congress, I decided to weigh in with WHY NOT?
Ms. Kennedy is not some do-nothing socialite who sits around pondering what to wear at the opening of the Met. From her Wiki entry:
"Kennedy is an attorney, editor, writer and member of the New York and Washington, D.C. bars. She is one of the founders of the Profiles in Courage Award, given annually since 1990 to a person who exemplifies the type of courage examined in her father's Pulitzer Prize-winning book of the same name. The award is generally given to elected officials who, acting in accord with their conscience, risk their careers by pursuing a larger vision of the national, state or local interest in opposition to popular opinion or powerful pressures from their constituents. In May 2002, she presented an unprecedented Profiles in Courage Award to representatives of the NYPD, the New York City Fire Department, and the military as representatives of all of the people who acted to save the lives of others during the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001.[4]
From 2002 to 2004, Kennedy worked as chief executive for the Office of Strategic Partnerships for the New York City Department of Education. During this time, she helped raise more than $65 million for the city’s public schools. [5] She currently serves as the Vice Chair of The Fund for Public Schools, a public-private partnership founded in 2002 to attract private funding for public schools in New York City. [6]
In addition, Kennedy is currently President of the Kennedy Library Foundation,[3] a director of both the Commission on Presidential Debates and the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, and Honorary Chairman of the American Ballet Theatre. She is also an adviser to the Harvard Institute of Politics, a living memorial to her father."
http://en.wikipedia.org/...
Why shouldn't she be appointed to serve out the term of Sen. Clinton? Why should she be penalized because her last name is Kennedy? Who else currently serving in the Senate is more worthy than she?
If a woman with the above-mentioned CV with the last name of Schwartz was named by the NY governor to fill the seat, would we be hearing from all these nay sayers?
This woman jumped into politics for the first time because she was inspired by Barack Obama. She proved helpful to his campaign. If the governor of the state of New York wants to appoint her, that's his prerogative. If the people of the state of New York want her to continue, they will vote for her in 2010.
Being a legislator is not brain surgery. Ms. Kennedy could do it as well as anyone else from the Empire State.