THE POLITICAL ANIMAL

As everyone knows, Caroline Kennedy, the daughter of President John F. Kennedy and Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, is making a bid for Hillary Clinton’s probably-soon-to-be-vacant seat in the U.S. Senate. While Kennedy’s interest in the Senate appointment has drawn a considerable amount of derision from people who say she feels entitled to the seat because of her famous last name, fairness dictates that the former First Girl should, in the words of New York Governor David Paterson, be given a chance to “demonstrate her qualifications” for the position she’s seeking.

There’s just one little problem. Kennedy doesn’t appear to be offering much, if anything, along these lines.

For starters, the candidate has not been clear on where she stands on a wide range of important issues. According to the New York Times’ Nicholas Confessore, “Ms. Kennedy has not yet given a substantial interview to any publication and at recent appearances has declined to answer more than a few questions from reporters.”

Although Confessore concedes that her spokesman provided written answers to 15 questions the NYT posed to the candidate, he reports that “Most of the answers were brief, and some did not fully address the questions.”

Then there’s the issue of financial disclosures. David M. Halbfinger, also from The New York Times, writes that Ms. Kennedy “is declining to provide a variety of basic data, including companies she has a stake in and whether she has ever been charged with a crime.” According to her spokesman, no one will see that information “unless and until she becomes a senator.”

Although Kennedy is not required to make these disclosures since she is merely a potential appointee to the Senate and not a candidate running in an election, ethics experts, and good-government (an oxymoron, if I ever saw one) scholars and advocates are encouraging the woman to hand over her financial information, at least for the sake of appearances if for no other reason.

Now to the issue of party loyalty. Despite the fact that Ms. Kennedy comes from the Democratic Party’s most famous (and booze-ridden) dynasty, she refuses to personally say whether she will support the Democratic candidate in next year’s mayoral election in New York City. Many believe that this refusal stems from Kennedy’s ties to Independent Mayor Michael Bloomberg, who enthusiastically backs her candidacy for the vacant Senate seat and has dropped not-so-subtle hints to Gov. Paterson that he should appoint Kennedy ASAP.

It’s also been revealed that Kennedy hasn’t voted in many elections since she registered in New York City 20 years ago. According to Erin Einhorn and David Saltonstall of the New York Daily News, “Records show Kennedy did not pull the lever for any of her fellow Democrats in city primary races for mayor in 1989, 1993 and 1997 and 2005, which Republicans went on to win three out of four times in the general election.”

And last, but not least, we come to Ms. Kennedy’s qualifications for the position. This part of the article is going to be the shortest because Kennedy has none. Her professional experience consists of a stint as a co-chair on Barack Obama’s Vice Presidential Search Committee and a position on the boards of several nonprofit organizations. That’s it. Oh, and she’s also an honorary chair of the American Ballet Theater.

Simply put, Kennedy’s resume makes the resumes of Obama and Sarah Palin look impressive.

I don’t know if Caroline Kennedy and her aides really think she’s entitled to the Senate seat, but they’re sure acting as though they do. If Kennedy feels she should be in the world’s most deliberative body, she needs to tell the voters of New York where she stands on the issues and what she would do for them if appointed. And disclosing those finances might also help. Since Kennedy appears unwilling to do any of this, I don’t see any reason why she should get the seat.

Mind you, I have nothing against Ms. Kennedy personally. I’m sure she’s a decent person, but that’s no reason to appoint someone to high office. There are many other decent Democrats in New York who are more qualified for the job. Gov. Paterson should pick one of them. Let’s hope he does.

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