Massachusetts House Approves Amendment To Appoint Interim Kennedy Successor

Boston, MA (AHN) - The Massachusetts House of Representatives voted Thursday night to approve a bill amending the state's election law so Gov. Deval Patrick can appoint an interim replacement for Ted Kennedy in the U.S. Senate. Final passage of the measure still requires approval of the state Senate, where Republicans have vowed to block it.

The state House voted 95-58 to give allow an interim appointment to the seat in the months before the special election, a request Kennedy made in his final days.

The power of the governor to make such appointments was taken away in 2004, when state Democrats passed an amendment to keep then-Gov. Mitt Romney from appointing a Republican for the seat of Sen. John Kerry (D-MA), who eventually lost the presidential election and remained in the U.S. Senate.

Massachusetts House Minority Leader Bradley Jones after the vote wrote a scathing entry on his blog calling the Democratic effort "a disgrace and further confirmation of their abuse of power that has become so prevalent."

"John Adams, who crafted our state's constitution, is rolling over in his grave tonight because of the blatant hypocrisy and Machiavellian tactics being used," he added. "Democrats made the decision to change a law retroactively at the expense of good government in order to benefit their party."

In the state Senate, the GOP caucus was no less critical, posting footage of floor debate in 2004 when the law had first been amended.

"We thought we'd go back in the time machine to 2004 to hear what Senate Minority Leader Richard R. Tisei had to say during the debate that took place five years ago," the caucus said in its blog. "Senator Tisei had it right when he predicted the Democrats' move to strip the Governor of his appointing power in 2004 could come back to haunt them."

Kennedy died on Aug. 25 after more than a year of battling brain cancer. His passing left Democrats in the U.S. Senate one vote vote short of the 60 to overcome Republican filibusters at a crucial time when the majority party is making its final push to pass a healthcare reform bill this year.

The special election for his seat is on Jan. 19.

The governor, a Democrat, has made clear he "wholly support the special election and the Democratic process to fill the remaining two years of Sen. Kennedy's term. But he also warned that the state will not be fully represented in the Senate in the five months before the special election.

"The issues before the nation are historic: from healthcare reform to jobs bills to climate change and education," Patrick had said last month."The Congress is debating some of the most historic and significant legislation in decades, bound to affect all of us for decades... I will continue to work with the legislature on legislation authorizing an interim appointment."

Calling Kennedy's request a "modest change" in state law, the Governor had also said, "The proposal to me seems reasonable and wise. I hope the members of the legislature, regardless of their party affiliation, will see that too and consider utmost the interests of our citizens and being represented in Washington continuously."

U.S. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) has expressed support for the request of Kennedy.

Former Gov. Michael Dukakis, the 1988 Democratic presidential nominee, has been mentioned as an ideal interim replacement. The widow of Kennedy, Vicki Kennedy, early on had expressed no interest in running or being appointed in the interim.