Thanks for Wasting our Time, Ms. Kennedy

I don’t know what the full story is, and we’ll perhaps never know, but Caroline Kennedy has withdrawn from consideration to replace Hillary Clinton as a New York Senator.  My money is on the idea that once Caroline Kennedy found out that she wasn’t Gov. Patterson’s choice for NY Senator, she took her ball and went home. Regardless, this ends a media circus that taxed my faith in my fellow NYers who thought she’d be a great choice.

Appointing Caroline Kennedy as Senator would be extremely demoralizing to most New Yorkers. She would not have earned it save for her accident of birth, and it would be contrary to the spirit of upward mobility that the current administration seeks to champion. Simply put, nepotism sucks. Yes You Can unless there is a Kennedy who wants it. Sorry.

Enormous deficit aside, my faith in Albany was on the upswing before this spectacle. The Empire State Hypocrite was out of office in disgrace, replaced by a man who appears to be down to earth, honest, and pragmatic. He is visually impaired and a minority. Yes He Can.

But my favorite thing about Governor Paterson is that he signed the Commission Escrow Act, something George Pataki vetoed in spite of the huge legislative (and popular) support of the bill. This was a long time coming, and I am hoping that it is the first of many things that are positive coming out of Albany instead of the partisan gridlock we all put up with.

Frankly, I am disappointed that Ms. Kennedy wasn’t dismissed earlier. From my vantage point this was ego driven, and she got a rush from all the attention, at least while it was positive. If her name were Caroline Faranda she’s have gotten as much ink as a possible Senator as my dog. Her appointment would have rendered the Commission Escrow Act more of an anomaly than a trend.

Here’s to a trend of progress, and not slipping back into politics as usual. I wish Caroline Kennedy well and appreciate her philanthropy, but the delusion that she was qualified to be a Senator would have undermined us all. I hope the new Senator is the best choice for New York and the country and not the best political choice. I also hope that it continues what appears to be a movement to restore New York as the Empire State and not the Red Tape State.