Newman named to replace Gregg

[MaineDem]

Source: Boston Globe

New Hampshire Governor John Lynch officially announced this afternoon that Republican J. Bonnie Newman will replace Judd Gregg in the US Senate if Gregg is confirmed as commerce secretary.

The agreement by Lynch, a Democrat, to appoint a Republican to serve out Gregg's term, which ends in 2010, freed Gregg to accept President Obama's offer to take the helm at Commerce since Gregg insisted he would not leave the Senate if that would change the balance of power.

"I think it is great for the country and for New Hampshire," Lynch said of Gregg's nomination, adding that bipartisan cooperation is needed at a time of economic crisis.

Newman, 63, who has not previously held elected office, was an assistant commerce secretary under President Reagan and also worked in President George H.W. Bush's White House. She also worked for Gregg when he was a US representative and supported Lynch for governor.

Read more: http://www.boston.com/news/politics/politicalintelligence/2009/02/newman_named_to.html

---

Damn.

[Autumn]

1. Well that sucks

big time.

[Tempest]

3. Not really

Newman will be easier to beat in 2010 than Gregg.

[MaineDem]

6. She said she's not running in '10

So I guess that does give us a good shot at that seat then. Maybe this is a live-with-it-for-two-years thing. I'm not happy that deals were made though.

[ClassWarrior]

15. I understand that she's moderate compared to Gregg, so maybe that two years won't be terrible.

NGU.

[mikeargo]

39. From the comments...

on the NH Union Leader website, the hardcore pubbies are absolutely shitting themselves over Bonnie Newman. They would have preferred that Lynch had nominated John E. Sununu.

[Tempest]

16. I'm not happy with the deal-making either

And Gregg had the audacity to say something about ending partisanship.

The asshole used partisanship in order to get the deal.

[No Elephants]

51. What if she changes her mind?

[Autumn]

23. But will she hold to her word

and not run do you think or is she just a lousy pick? I must admit I haven't paid too much attention to Gregg's appointment.

[No Elephants]

54. If she doesn't hold to her word, there's not a damn thing anyone

can do about it. The enforcible parts of this deal are that Pub Gregg gets Commerce and Pub Newman gets Gregg's Senate seat. The part that SUPPOSEDLY makes this okay for Dems is the only part that is not enforcible.

[MADem]

2. Grrrrrrrr ............... NEWMAN! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Sorry, couldn't resist.

[Dinger]

4. Yup Everybody, Bend Over And Take It In The Ass Like Good

little Democrats. Fuck that shit.

[WorseBeforeBetter]

31. Pass the lube.

My post-inauguration high has definitely worn off.

[ORDagnabbit]

5. stop for one second and think..can you actually believe a republican governor would nominate a

democrat for senator.

no,.


dems are done.. .they have no spine... next election cycle the repugs will come in and mop the floor.

[xchrom]

13. i believe the governor is a dem.

although i believe he did say he would appoint a republican if gregg was chosen

[Tempest]

17. He didn't say he would appoint a Repug

Until after the deal had gone down.

[Tesha]

44. The governor claims he's a Democrat.

His actions, though, frequently suggest otherwise.

Tesha

[Number23]

37. What is all of that damn negativity about?

dems are done.. .they have no spine... next election cycle the repugs will come in and mop the floor.

What in the world are you talking about? What "repugs" will wipe the floor with the Dems in 2010?

Bonnie Newman is a Repub, but she openly endorsed the DEMOCRATIC governor of New Hampshire who just so happens to be the one appointing her to the Senate. She is by every account a moderate who has pledged to step down in 2010.

It is entirely conceivable that she could be an ally to the Dem majority in the Senate. And if she isn't she step down in 20 months anyway. I have no idea why you feel the need to be so pessimistic.

[No Elephants]

52. Can you imagine a Pub President nominating a Dem to the

Secretariat of the Department of Commerce (a) ever or (b) at a time when the biggest problem facing the nation is the economy AND agreeing to ensuring that a Pub Governor appoints another Dem to fill the vacated Senate seat? And, to top it all off the Secretary appointed voted to eliminate the Department of Commerce?

No. It's mind-boggling.

No matter what the Dem rank and file does for a candidate, we will get our butts handed to us for no good reason. BY OUR OWN. And the rest of OUR OWN will be fine with it and making excuses.

That's the reason for the negativity.

[Number23]

61. I understand concern, but I don't see how anyone can make such grim prophecies

of getting "their asses handed to them in 2010" so early in Obama's term. He has only just gotten started.

[JerseygirlCT]

40. Democratic governor.

But I still thinks this leaves us a good shot at that seat in 2 years. This person doesn't want to continue in office - she's a placeholder. So that's essentially an open seat next go-round. And NH is turning blue.

[high density]

7. I hear senate seats are fucking valuable things

Why is this "agreement" is any better than Blago's?

[Cronopio]

32. Or the agreement the Dems made in 2006 about the "nuclear option".

I don't care how people around here spin it or rationalize it, the fact is Obama is giving real power to a rabid right-winger.

There is no "quid pro quo" that can justify it.

The only answer is my old mantra about the DLC: Complicity not cowardice. It's the only thing that can possibly explain it.

[No Elephants]

53. EXCELLENT POINT! The differences are that Blago hoped to profit from

his deal while Obama and the Gov. of NH hope only to get screwn by his deal. And, a Republican D of J is not going to prosecute for getting a Republican appointed to the Senate. Those are the only two things that set this apart.

[John Kerry VonErich]

8. Blackmail wins!

nt

[Zorra]

9. I'm a lifetime Yellowdog Dem that's getting closer every day to joining the Green Party.

I've fought the goddamn republican fascists tooth and nail all my life, I finally get a major Dem landslide, and my "Dem" President turns out to be a fascist appeaser.

Fuck. Just fuck.

Looks like Karl Rove got the last laugh after all.

[Oregone]

14. Thats just throwing your vote away

Spend it on Democrats who wont do what you like or appoint Republicans.

[Tempest]

18. For now

Eventually the Green (or another third party) will hit critical mass and become a force.

[TroglodyteScholar]

22. LOL

Did you ever consider a career as a comedian?

[Tempest]

26. No, but I voted for the local Green party member in my district

And he came close to winning.

Discount it if you want, but I'll be laughing last.

[TroglodyteScholar]

36. Greens are WAY more viable at the local level than nationally...

...and your local candidate only came close.

Before you laugh too hard, you may try www.greenunderground.com. Oh yea, no such thing.

[Zorra]

24. Especially if the leader of the Democratic party continues to appoint our enemies

to the highest political posts in the nation. Republicans have proven to be more dangerous enemies of the American People than al Qaeda could ever dream of being, yet Obama rewards them for all but destroying our country.

WTF. I am just so totally pissed off right now.

Something is very, very wrong with this picture.

[Political Heretic]

29. You need to pay more fucking attention and rant less.

Obama Administration has already:

- appointed an AG who declared waterboarding to be torture
- ended the global gag rule
- put a halt to all the pending regulations and orders the Bush admin tried to sneak through at the 11th hour
- ordered the closure of Gitmo. ordered the initiation of troop withdraw from Iraq on a 16 month timetable (he gave the order)
- Passed executive order giving major victories to organized labor - not only reversing some Bush policy but adding new labor policy that is dramatic. While doing this he also made some of the most pro-labor remarks I've heard any president give in my lifetime.
- worked through a stimulus bill which, in its current form, contains enough money to for education to TRIPLE federal spending

Those are just the things I've written about or can remember off the top of my head.

There are problems too. Some of his appointments have had ties to lobbying conflicts after he passed new rules that were supposed to make that a thing of the past. His whole Daschle thing was a mess stemming from Good-ol-boy politics where he was trying to scratch backs rather than appoint the right people.

All in all, Obama gets more kudos than criticism for his first couple weeks. Nothing is ever black and white. If you are only going to be happy when you have a party, president or representative that does EVERYTHING the way YOU think it should be done 100% of the time you will be nothing but perpetually disappointed. But I think you're missing some pretty important "wins" that certainly make me comfortable with my choice to vote for this guy.

[Doctor_J]

35. Here are some other things that have happened

He cut a deal to not prosecute all of the * criminals - IOW, made Holder agree to not uphold the law

He gave a cabinet seat to a hyper-partisan right-winger without getting a Senate seat in return

He gutted his stimulus package of womens' health provisions while leaving in the GOP's boner medicine pork.

Whether you like it or not, these kind of concessions to the Repukes are going to cost him votes and the country a recovery.

[stillcool]

38. There was no deal about prosecutions..

That is a lie. I don't know who the hyper-partisan right-winger is, or the Senate Seat that was promised. It is debatable whether Women's Health provisions belong in a 'stimulus' package. You don't like him, fine, but why don't you just say that, instead of throwing out bogus BS.
http://www.prospect.org/csnc/blogs/ezraklein_archive?month=02&year=2009&base_name=the_senate_stimulus_bill

[Tesha]

45. The "hyper-partisan right winger" is Judd Gregg and that's an entirely-accurate assessment of him.

Trust me; this disgrace has been my senator for far too long for
me to have any remaining doubts about him.

> "Thank you for your letter, Tesha, but let me explain why my
> party's position is correct and you're wrong..."

I have a collection of several dozen versions of that basic letter
from Judd the Dudd.

Tesha

[Political Heretic]

42. Oh bullshit.

"He cut a deal to not prosecute all of the * criminals - IOW, made Holder agree to not uphold the law"

Pure speculation.

"He gave a cabinet seat to a hyper-partisan right-winger without getting a Senate seat in return"

Who now works for Obama, must carry out Obama's mandate and can be fired by Obama - in return, he got a far more moderate Senate replacement who agrees NOT TO RUN IN 2010. That's a great fucking trade. Getting that guy OUT of the Senate was a decent move.

"He gutted his stimulus package of womens' health provisions while leaving in the GOP's boner medicine pork."

A small price to pay for what is included, and its already been stated that there are definite plans to reintroduce the women's health provisions in a separate bill where it will most surely pass. Oh and by the way, while you weren't looking, we overturned Bush's veto of SCHIP funds this week and passed it.

If all you want to do is look for every negative thing you can find and bitch about it, you'll always be able to do that with ANYONE who ever sat in the oval office. Anyone. The less utterly stupid approach is to evaluate what's being accomplished vs. what's not and see if we're making progress.

We're not only making progress currently, we're making surprising progress - more than I expected as a NON-Obama-drooling-cultist.

[No Elephants]

56. Let's see.

"If all you want to do is look for every negative thing you can find and bitch about it, you'll always be able to do that with ANYONE who ever sat in the oval office. Anyone."

Yes, please God, we will always be able to do that with ANYONE who ever sits in the Oval Office.

"The less utterly stupid approach is to evaluate what's being accomplished vs. what's not and see if we're making progress."

Maybe, maybe not. But the least stupid approach is to praise what is praiseworthy and to criticize what is worthy of criticism.

[No Elephants]

55. I can think of other objectionable things Obama has done between Election Day and

now, but what is your point? That we can never criticize Obama unless we come to the conclusion that we would have been better off voting for McPain-Failin? What kind of logic is that? Sorry, criticizing stuff like this is not only our privilege but our responsibility.

[jzodda]

10. Barf

n/t

[Oregone]

11. This makes me so happy!!!!

Gregg's party and economic philosophy did wonders the last few decades!

Hrmph.

[xchrom]

12. quelle surpise. nt

[VP505]

19. Sorry, but IMO this just wrong all the way around.

I know President Obama said during his campaign that he might appoint some republickers in the interest of bipartisanship but....... Why accept his appointee dictating the standards for his replacement to a Democratic Govenor no less, what exactly does Judd bring or maybe the better question is what do they gain that's so necessary for the Govenor and President to compromise like that?

[w4rma]

20. I'll wait and see what Newman does in the Senate before deciding. She's not running in '10. (nt)

[Think82]

21. This is the best Obama could have done. Very smart....

If the gov had appointed a dem, Republicans would have gone apeshit and pointed finger at obama for "playiing politics" and deviousness. This way, they can't use that as fodder for obstructionism, meanwhile, an incumbent repub senator will not be running again in 2010, freeing up the possibility for a Dem Senate victory that would be elected by the people of New Hampshire.

[Zorra]

25. The thing is, though, who cares what republicans think anymore?

They have no ideas, they may have already destroyed our country, and they lost the election, big time. They have no power unless Dems give it to them.

And giving republicans power is about as wise as giving a loaded gun to a three year old.

[No Elephants]

57. No. When Gregg tried to cut a deal about his appointment, Dems

should have screamed about GREGG's putting party before country and GREGG's hubris appointed someone else. It is not as though Republicans are going to praise anything that a Democrat does, besides bending over. The second Democrats start worrying about what Republicans are going to say about them, Democrats are so screwn.

This is a very big country with a huge, well-educated population. Richardson and Gregg cannot possibly be the only two Americans qualified to fill that seat. And even that assumes that Gregg is qualified to fill the seat, which I doubt.

[nookiemonster]

27. I guess Democratic majorities are just not that important.

How much longer is it gonna be before these assholes realize that we have the MAJORITY??!!

Republicans just keep laughing in our face. Unbelievable.

:mad:

[chelsea0011]

28. Excellent! A RW fraud in the administration and a RW hack gets a plum deal.

[Faygo Kid]

30. Can you imagine any GOP governor appointing a Dem?

Neither can I.

Rush would not allow it.

[josh paleo]

41. Would never happen

Republicans are probably laughing their asses off right now.

[Doctor_J]

33. Once again, one-way bipartisanship.

I am prepared to lose the Senate and the House in 10. Our party stands for nothing except being the Repukes' bitches.

[Political Heretic]

43. Yeah..... um, no. This guy is right, you are wrong:

http://www.gregpalast.com/obama-is-a-two-faced-liar-aw-right/

[Doctor_J]

34. Why wasn't Coleman's concession made a part of this "deal"? What did the Dems get out of this?

NOT A FUCKING THING

[SoCalDem]

47. They did get something out if it..

a sign on their backs that says "kick me"..

[No Elephants]

58. Not even that. Obviously, they owned that sign before this deal.

[SoCalDem]

46. and on her first day, all the senators will grimace and say "Newwwww-man

..watch her decide to run in '10 as the incumbent..

[BrightKnight]

48. he, he yessss!

[ima_sinnic]

49. what is this Gregg BS to begin with? THAT is the very best pick for Commerce

out of millions of Americans? Despite the rationalizations on this thread for appointing this pig, I am very unhappy with this and see no value in it whatsoever. I wish Obama had chosen the best person for the job rather than some republikkklan slimeball dinosaur for the sake of "bipartisanship," which is a CONcept that is a total waste of time and energy. Obama can honestly say there was NOT ONE Democrat who would be better in that position? Someone who would work for We The People instead of for his fatcat repuke friends who don't want to pay taxes and have no ideas whatsoever? pffft.

I'm with poster above in planning to change my voter registration SOON to Independent or Green.

Democrats don't want people voting third party? Then stop bending over for the stinking republican ASSHOLES.

[No Elephants]

59. His biggest qualifications for the job are apparent.ly that he espouses the

policies that got us into this mess and that he voted to eliminate the very Department he has been named to lead. Oh, wait, either of those things should have kept him out of this position.

This deal is unbelievable.

[No Elephants]

50. If bi-partisanship is needed in a time of crisis, how come Gregg's response to

Obama was totally partisan--only if another Pub takes my seat? Why is no one focusing on that?

[Pryderi]

60. I think it was posturing for the party. She may be our 60th vote over the next 2 years.

[Blaze Diem]

62. Where's Senator Al Franken?????

Minnesota is not being represented and Coleman is doing what he's doing just to hold open a voting seat in the senate.
Bush Repukes are still playing by Bush politics.