Suburban Mom's Political Fix: A Few Last Words on Caroline Kennedy's Failed Senate Bid

Caroline Kennedy exited the odd campaign for the U.S. Senate -- where the only person whose vote was required was New York Gov. David Paterson's who'd be appointing Hillary Clinton's replacement -- was ugly and odd.

While I was pleased to see an active work-life balancer in the form of 42-year-old Kirsten Gillibrand get the nod (she has a 5-year-old and a baby, to whom she gave birth during her second year as a Congresswoman), I was saddened by the collapse of the Kennedy bid.

I opined on the subject at length in my weekly Mommy Track'd column.

Image credit: New York Magazine.

Suburban Mom's Political Fix: Catchin' Up, Caroline, Blago, Corp. Jet$$

I'm just getting back into the swing of things after having spent the week with my family and parents in the grips of the magical world of Disney, where, in addition to enjoying the worst Florida cold snap in many years, I was told by a Disney World "cast member" in a Goofy hat that I could not watch the inauguration at Epcot because Disney is about "fantasy, not reality." Therefore, I trudged to an ESPN bar with my dad to watch President Barack Obama's inauguration speech and hear the inaugural poem. So other than skipping some Epcot rides with my kids in order to catch the tail-end of the inauguration, I've been out of the news loop for the past week (radical, I know, to be unplugged!), so I've got some catching up to do:

Another Senator Kennedy? Not So Fast!

So Caroline Kennedy pulled out (was pushed out?) of contention to be appointed to the U.S. Senate. New York Gov. David Paterson named another female -- younger -- to fill Hillary Clinton's seat. And then we were treated to conflicting reports about why Kennedy did an about-face and whether she truly had "personal issues" which prevented her from seeking the post. The New York Times portrayed sniping and excuse-making on both sides, describing Paterson as of the belief that Kennedy wasn't ready for the job.

Now 42-year-old Congresswoman Kirsten Gillibrand, a two-term centrist Democrat from upstate New York, has been tapped for the post. She has a 5-year-old and a six-month-old baby and, according to the Times, worked up until the day she gave birth, causing House members to give her a standing ovation . . . which is prompting several to compare her to fortysomething mother of an infant Sarah Palin, some positively and some negatively.

Senator Oprah?

Good God. Rod Blagojevich is spending today basking in the bright lights of the New York City media circuit, rather than in Illinois where his impeachment trial is commencing. He's doing the rounds on the TV networks pleading his case and categorically denying attempting to sell Obama's U.S. Senate seat, while complaining that he can't bring his witnesses to defend him.

In an interview on ABC's Good Morning America, he said he considered asking Oprah Winfrey if she wanted to fill Obama's seat, saying, "She was obviously someone with a much broader bully pulpit than other senators."

On The View -- where Barbara Walters bizarrely conducted the interview from Los Angeles while Blago was in New York, and Walters appeared on stage inside a little TV located next to the seated Blago instead of opting for a split-screen -- he said the case against him has been sensationalized by the media and that the conversations captured by federal wiretaps were taken out of context. "I'm an innocent man who hasn't done anything wrong," he said. ". . . I'm going to fight to the finish."

Blago resisted Joy Behar's attempts to goad him into doing a Richard Nixon impersonation and doing "I'm not a crook." Surprisingly, Blago declined the offer.

Corporate Jet$$

Someone -- hello?! -- needs to put an end to the wild orgy funded by taxpayer money intended to help rejuvenate the American economy not provide luxury items for a few people who ran their companies into the ground. CitiGroup got $45 billion in federal bailout money -- your money and my money -- and just wasted $50 million of it on a 12-seater luxury jet, reports the New York Post:

"Even though the bank's stock is as cheap as a gallon of gas and it's burning through a $45 billion taxpayer-funded rescue, the airhead execs pushed through the purchase of a new Dassault Falcon 7X, according to a source familiar with the deal.

The French-made luxury jet seats up to 12 in a plush interior with leather seats, sofas and a customizable entertainment center, according to Dassault's sales literature."

Where are the D.C. fiscal watchdogs? We should get that money back. Pull a Palin, and put the jet up on eBay. Stuff like this should not be allowed to stand.

Image credit: Rep. Gillibrand's web site.

Suburban Mom's Political Fix: Joe the Plumber Feels Hosed, All I Want for Christmas is a Senate Seat

Report: Joe the Plumber Feels Hosed by Presidential Campaign

The famous plumber who has a book (!) coming out this month, told a radio talk show host that after campaigning with Arizona Senator John McCain he felt "appalled" by some things he heard from the senator and that being on the campaign trail left him feeling "dirty." Say it ain't so Joe!

According to Glenn Beck's radio show's web site, here's what Joe the Plumber (the star of a pivotal presidential debate even though he wasn't on stage or running for office) said:

"When I was on the bus with [McCain], I asked him a lot of questions about the bailout because most Americans did not want that to happen. Yet he voted for it . . . And I asked him some pretty direct questions. Some of the answers you guys are gonna receive; they appalled me, absolutely. I was angry. In fact, I wanted to get off the bus after I talked to him."

He added: "I honestly felt even more dirty after I had been on the campaign trail and seen some things that take place. It was scary, man."

But Joe maintained that the prospect of a McCain administration scared him less than an Obama administration.

All I Want for Christmas is a Senate Seat

Just in time for Christmas, Senate seats seem to be cropping up on a lot of Christmas wish lists.

In New York, there's strong lobbying going on to promote Caroline Kennedy -- the last living legacy of Camelot -- to fill incoming Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's post. Some folks are saying she's untested in the public arena and shouldn't ride in on the Kennedy name alone, as if she were entitled to the spot just because she wants it. Others point to her quiet grace, intellect and electability as a plus. As for me, I think that the Kennedy men have long profited from the Kennedy name, and if folks were willing to give those guys a pass regardless of their qualifications, the classiest of all the Kennedys should get a shot too. (PunditMom has an interesting take on the prospect of another Kennedy senator.)

Then, I'm not sure if you've heard, but there's a little dust-up going on over in the state of Illinois regarding the filling of President-Elect Barack Obama's Senate seat . . . something about the governor trying to sell it to the highest bidder, that is, when the gov wasn't extorting local news organizations.

When someone writes a definitive history of American politics, 2008, it will sound like something that emerged from Hollywood on the likes of The West Wing. The things that have happened this year are utterly unbelievable.

New Kids on the Pennsylvania Ave Block

I had a new column published on Mommy Track'd this afternoon about having very young First Kids in the White House.

References John-John and Caroline Kennedy during the Kennedy years, Amy Carter and Chelsea Clinton.

Image credit: Associated Press/New York Daily News.