And on the state side of things...
State Republicans are again criticizing their Democratic counterparts for making a second attempt to take away the powers of the governor - in particular, one Republican Gov. M. Jodi Rell. The latest attempt is a proposed bill that would strip the governor of her authority to fill a vacancy in the U.S. Senate - if a vacancy should suddenly crop up.
It was an issue first raised six years ago when U.S. Sen. Joseph Lieberman was tagged to be Al Gore's running mate in the 2000 presidential election. Lieberman declined to step aside from his Senate re-election bid, setting up the possibility that he could win re-election to the Senate and election as vice president - meaning he would resign as a senator and then Gov. John Rowland, a Republican as well, could appoint his replacement.
Nothing much was done about it after the 2000 campaign. But now, with U.S. Sen. Christopher J. Dodd looking at a 2008 run, Democrats back here apparently want to cover their bases.
Democrats currently hold a slim 51-49 majority in the U.s. Senate. If Dodd were to win the presidency in 2008, and Rell were to replace him to fill out the remainder of his term, that would shift the balance of power in the Senate to Republicans (provided, of course, that both sides held to the current balance of power in that 2008 campaign where 36 senators will be running for re-election.)
It was an issue first raised six years ago when U.S. Sen. Joseph Lieberman was tagged to be Al Gore's running mate in the 2000 presidential election. Lieberman declined to step aside from his Senate re-election bid, setting up the possibility that he could win re-election to the Senate and election as vice president - meaning he would resign as a senator and then Gov. John Rowland, a Republican as well, could appoint his replacement.
Nothing much was done about it after the 2000 campaign. But now, with U.S. Sen. Christopher J. Dodd looking at a 2008 run, Democrats back here apparently want to cover their bases.
Democrats currently hold a slim 51-49 majority in the U.s. Senate. If Dodd were to win the presidency in 2008, and Rell were to replace him to fill out the remainder of his term, that would shift the balance of power in the Senate to Republicans (provided, of course, that both sides held to the current balance of power in that 2008 campaign where 36 senators will be running for re-election.)
posted by Ray Hackett at 3:05 PM
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