Gillibrand Known for Bold Political Moves and Centrist Positions

New York’s Rep. Kirsten Gillibrand and former U.S. Senator Hillary Clinton

Writing for the NY Times today Danny Hakim and Nicholas Confessore fill in the details of Gov. Paterson’s selection of upstate Representative Kirsten Gillibrand to replace Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in the U.S. Senate.

According to the article, Gillibrand has an impressive background as both a candidate for office and as a congresswoman.

“ALBANY — Gov. David A. Paterson was preparing Friday to announce at a noon news conference his selection of Representative Kirsten Gillibrand, a 42-year-old congresswoman from upstate who is known for bold political moves and centrist policy positions, to fill the United States Senate seat vacated by Hillary Rodham Clinton, according to a person who spoke to the governor early Friday.

“An aide to Ms. Gillibrand confirmed early Friday morning that she had accepted the appointment.

“Ms. Gillibrand is largely unknown to New Yorkers statewide, but is considered an up-and-coming and forceful lawmaker in her district and has gained considerable attention from Democratic leaders in Washington.”

The article offers more biographical information about Gillibrand:

“Ms. Gillibrand, who lives near Hudson, N.Y., just outside of Albany, with her husband, Jonathan Gillibrand, a financial consultant, and their sons, Theodore, who is 5, and Henry, who is 6 months old. (Ms. Gillibrand received a standing ovation on the floor of the House from her colleagues for working right up to the day she gave birth to Henry.)

“Ms. Gillibrand, who had never held public office, won her seat in 2006 against great odds, defeating a four-term Republican incumbent in a race that turned intense and nasty in its final days.

“She proved to be a formidable candidate, raising millions of dollars and assembling a campaign organization that aggressively exploited the personal and political baggage of her opponent, Representative John E. Sweeney, who frequently found himself on the defensive.”

Watch Interview with Caroline Kennedy in Rochester, NY

Caroline Kennedy visits upstate New York.

Caroline Kennedy has wasted no time since announcing her desire for Hillary Clinton’s seat as a U.S. senator from New York. Although she says she’s not “campaigning” for the soon-to-be vacated seat, she sure sounds like someone running for office.

News 10NBC reports:

“Kennedy is on an Upstate swing, campaigning to replace Sen. Hillary Clinton in the U.S. Senate. She met with the mayor of Syracuse this morning and also plans to stop in Buffalo. Kennedy is seeking the appointment of Gov. David Paterson to fill the open Senate seat once Hillary Clinton is sworn in as Secretary of State.”

Watch the uncut interview with Caroline Kennedy

Caroline Kennedy’s Experience on the Trail Limited to Obama Campaign

Michele Obama, Caroline Kennedy, Maria Shriver, and Oprah in the California primary. Photo credits: LA Times

Caroline Kennedy is openly lobbying the appropriate power brokers for Hillary Clinton’s U.S. senate seat in New York. If Gov. Paterson appoints Kennedy, she’ll have two years to learn the ropes before she’s forced to campaign for the seat the hard way in 2010.

It’s my understanding that Kennedy’s experience in campaigning is limited to her appearances, along with other members of the Kennedy clan, on behalf of Barack Obama in 2008. You’ll recall that Kennedy decided to endorse Obama at the urging of her children.

(Note: Not every member of the Kennedy clan supported Obama during the primary; one of Sen. Clinton’s most loyal supporters was Robert Kennedy, Jr., a prominent environmental activist.)

It’s hard to estimate how much good the Kennedys did for Obama, but two contests in the Democratic primary stand out in my memory. The first occurred in Massachusetts where Caroline Kennedy joined both Sen. Kennedy and Sen. Kerry as well as Gov. Deval Patrick in backing Obama.

Hillary Clinton took Massachusetts.

The second contest occurred in California where Maria Shriver, the daughter of Eunice Kennedy and Sargent Shriver and the wife of Republican Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, teamed up with Oprah and Caroline Kennedy in heavy duty campaigning for Obama. It was deemed good political strategy for the three women to appear onstage together in opposition to Sen. Clinton.

Sen. Clinton won California.

The results of those two Democratic primary contests are probably not sufficient to predict Caroline Kennedy’s ability to campaign for a U.S. senate seat in New York. But it does give one pause.

In the meantime, by simply expressing her desire for Clinton’s soon to be vacated seat, Kennedy has stirred up the media’s interest in her influential family. Liz Robbins at the Caucus (NY Times) in fact provides a detailed portrait of the Kennedy clan’s “long political tentacles.”

Robbins begins:

“When Caroline Kennedy made it known that she eagerly wants New York’s United States Senate seat left vacant by Hillary Rodham Clinton, the spotlight burned even brighter on the most famous family in American politics.

“The nine children of Joseph P. Kennedy Sr. and Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy have extended the family’s reach to both coasts and all forms of public service. And while it has been mostly Kennedy men who have held public office, Ms. Kennedy can look to her aunt, Jean Kennedy Smith, who was the United States’ ambassador to Ireland from 1993 to 1998, or her cousin, Kathleen Kennedy Townsend, who was the first Kennedy woman to hold an elected office, when she served as Lieutenant Governor of Maryland from 1995 to 2003.”

For a review of all the tentacles of the Kennedy family’s political influence go here.