Kennedy succession focus of Mass. public hearing

[September 09, 2009]  BOSTON (AP) -- Supporters of the late Sen. Edward Kennedy are vowing to pack a public hearing at the Massachusetts Statehouse to press lawmakers to allow Gov. Deval Patrick to name an interim replacement to the vacant Senate seat.

Critics say they won't let the proposal go unchallenged. They call it a political power grab by Democrats to ensure there are enough Senate votes to pass President Barack Obama's health care overhaul plan.

Sen. John Kerry, who served with Kennedy for 25 years, planned to attend Wednesday's hearing and urge lawmakers to quickly pass the bill, which would let the Democratic governor name a temporary replacement ahead of a special election.

Before his death from brain cancer last month, Kennedy wrote to state leaders asking them to allow an interim appointment. His proposal was about more than just the mechanics of succession. Health care was Kennedy's core issue for decades.

Kerry backs the Jan. 19 special election but also has said the state needs two senators in the meantime to guarantee Democrats have the 60 Senate votes needed to pass a health care bill.

Patrick, who also supports the change, is recovering from hip replacement surgery and won't be able to attend the hearing. Lt. Gov. Timothy Murray will represent the administration.

The governor has said he would ask any appointee to promise not to run in the special election, although he's acknowledged there's no constitutional way to guarantee that.

Several declared and likely candidates for Kennedy's seat have already emerged.

Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley was the first Democrat to declare candidacy for the seat. U.S. Reps. Michael Capuano, Stephen Lynch, Edward J. Markey and John Tierney also have said they're considering running.

On the Republican side, Bob Burr, a selectman from suburban Canton, has declared he will seek his party's nomination. Christy Mihos said he might abandon his 2010 campaign for governor in favor of a Senate campaign. State Sen. Scott Brown, R-Wrentham, is spending up to $5,000 to assess a candidacy under a "testing the waters" provision of federal election law.

Republicans, vastly outnumbered in heavily Democratic Massachusetts, are leading the opposition to an interim replacement.

They point out that just five years ago, when Kerry was the Democratic nominee for president, the Democrat-controlled state House and Senate changed the law to block then-Gov. Mitt Romney from naming a fellow Republican to fill Kerry's seat if he became president.

Previously, the governor had been allowed to appoint a replacement until the next general election. As part of the 2004 change, Democratic lawmakers also blocked the possibility of Romney naming an interim senator.

The GOP sent out e-mails urging "all Republican activists, concerned citizens, and defenders of democracy" to attend the hearing and voice their opposition.

The GOP also has started an online petition and listed on the party's Web site the names and telephone numbers of mostly conservative radio talk show hosts in the Boston area.

"The Democrats must be stopped from changing the election laws in Massachusetts every time it suits their needs," the party said on its Web site. "Washington Democrats are trying to force an unpopular health care reform bill down the throats of the American people and they need 60 Democrats in the Senate to succeed."

Supporters of the change have set up their own online petition, organized by MassVOTE, a voting rights organization that includes senior and immigrant groups and labor unions including the Massachusetts AFL-CIO, SEIU Massachusetts and the United Food and Commercial Workers Union.

Charlotte Golar Richie, executive director of Patrick's political committee, also sent out an e-mail urging the governor's supporters to attend the hearing.

Rep. Michael Moran, D-Boston, House chairman of the Committee on Election Laws, said he expected a packed hearing.

"There's a lot of interest in it," he said. "I'm expecting a full house."

Neither Senate President Therese Murray or House Speaker Robert DeLeo -- both Democrats -- have said whether they support the change. But Moran said he expects the committee to recommend whether the bill should pass. That recommendation isn't expected Wednesday, he said.

The hearing is scheduled for 1 p.m. at the Statehouse.

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On the Net:

Massachusetts Republican Party: http://www.massgop.com/

MassVOTE's Online Petition: http://weneedtwo.org/

[Associated Press; By STEVE LEBLANC]

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