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Since the Seventeenth Amendment to the Constitution was ratified nearly 100 years ago, Americans have directly elected the two U.S. senators from their home state by popular vote.
Except when they haven't.
At this moment, residents of five states – well over 50 million Americans – are partly represented in the Senate by a lawmaker who has never won a Senate election. At 2:15pm ET today, when Carte Goodwin is sworn in as the next senator from the state of West Virginia, that number will increase by another 1.8 million citizens.
Each of the current unelected senators was appointed by his or her states’ governor to fill a vacancy in the wake of a senator’s departure due to death, early retirement, or departure for another job in government. Goodwin of West Virginia will join Sens. Roland Burris of Illinois, Kirsten Gillibrand of New York, Michael Bennet of Colorado, Ted Kaufman of Delaware, and George LeMieux of Florida on the list of this year’s appointees. Former Sen. Paul Kirk, D-Mass., served for less than four months before being replaced by Sen. Scott Brown, who won a January special election to replace the late Sen. Ted Kennedy.
Appointments are not unusual. According to Senate Historian Don Ritchie, there have been 188 appointments to the Senate since 1913. The current Congress’s seven appointments isn’t even close to the record: During the 79th Congress, between 1945-47, a total of 14 senators were appointed.
Many one-time appointees went on to famed careers in the Senate. Sen. Sam Ervin of North Carolina, appointed in 1954, chaired the Senate committee that investigated the Watergate scandal that toppled Richard Nixon’s presidency. Sen. Ted Stevens of Alaska, appointed in 1968, exited Congress as one of of the longest-serving senators in history when he was defeated for re-election 40 years later.
Still, some observers and lawmakers are raising alarms about several recent appointments, which have bred political squabbling and – in the case of the appointment of a new Illinois senator by former Gov. Rod Blagojevich – criminal allegations. Blagojevich is accused of attempting to sell the Senate seat vacated by President Barack Obama to the highest bidder.
“The way some of these situations were handled was alarmingly undemocratic and included behind-the-scenes deal-making that left voters out in the cold,” Sen. Russ Feingold, D-Wisc., said bluntly last year.
Less extreme than Blagojevich’s high-profile corruption case, but still troubling to reform-minded lawmakers like Feingold, is the perception that appointees are merely keeping the seats warm for future candidates.
Over the last 100 years, over 60 percent of appointed senators have chosen to run for a full term in that seat. (Their success rate isn’t stellar, however. Only half of those candidates won their bids, compared to the three-quarters of all Senate incumbents who won re-election over the same period of time.)
But of the seven senators appointed in this session of Congress, only two are expected to even try to keep their jobs.
Goodwin is not one of them. Soon to be the newest U.S. senator, Goodwin was tapped by West Virginia Gov. Joe Manchin to fill the seat left empty when Democrat Robert Byrd died earlier this year. The 36-year-old former Manchin aide has said he won't run for the seat, and his onetime boss announced today that he will himself seek it this fall.
Republican George LeMieux of Florida was similarly chosen by a former employer now angling for a run at his job. Gov. Charlie Crist is now running as an independent for the same seat he gave LeMieux, his former chief of staff, in August 2009.
It’s worth noting that so-dubbed “seat warming” is also not a new phenomenon. Sen. Ted Kennedy was too young to step into his brother’s Senate seat when John F. Kennedy won the presidency in 1960, so family friend Benjamin Smith II took over the seat for two years until the young Kennedy was eligible to run in the special election.
Appointing the widow of a male senator who has died in office has also been a fairly common practice.
Feingold, whose home state of Wisconsin is one of a handful that does not allow gubernatorial appointments, hopes to one day overhaul the appointment system, which he says “undermines representative government.”
He has proposed a constitutional amendment that would mandate special elections in the wake of Senate vacancies.
The amendment has bipartisan support, with co-sponsorship fromRepublican Sen. John McCain of Arizona and Democrat Sen. Mark Begich of Alaska, but it has been stalled in the Senate Judiciary Committee since last year. And passing a constitutional amendment is a very heavy lift; it would require the approval of two-thirds of both houses of Congress as well as three-fourths of state legislatures.
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"In 1962, McCormack ran against Ted Kennedy in the Democratic primary to fill John F. Kennedy's vacated seat for the Senate. McCormack's slogan was "I back Jack, but Teddy ain't ready". During the "Teddy and Eddy" debate, McCormack attacked Ted by saying "Teddy, if your name was Edward Moore instead of Edward Moore Kennedy, your candidacy would be a joke." McCormack was largely seen as the underdog going up against the fame and fortune of the Kennedy family. His campaign could afford few radio and newspaper ads, nor a paid staff, and being forced to handle many of the campaign details caused him to lose seven pounds by the end of the contest. Ted Kennedy easily defeated McCormack with 65% of the vote and went on to win the general election against George C. Lodge."
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I believe Eddie McCormack was related to the McCormack who was Speaker of the House during JFK's and LBJ's presidency. John McCormack I think his name was. He was an older man. I grew up hearing stories that some unions and Irish never liked Ted Kennedy because of the stunt he pulled to get elected. Also a fair number of Democratic leaders from the 1970's in this area were back then in the 1960's, McCormack supporters, and they in turn never did much to help Ted win re-elections over the years.
A certain Attorney General comes to mind.
If I recall correctly, Massachusetts voters felt McCormack's personal attacks on Kennedy were over the top and moved toward Kennedy. Today, those were mild and would not even qualify as a negative attack.
From what i've read & heard about Goodwin, he'll make sure the seat stays Hot until WV's special election takes place. His wife is about to have a baby & will take leave from Sen. Jay Rockefellors staff.
Gov. Joe Manchin has announced he'll be running for this seat. His Dad James Manchin served as Sec.of State, some years ago(TRR, correct me if i'm wrong with Gov. Caperton).
Rep. Shelly Moore Capato may decide to run also. WV's legislature, in a special session, agreed to let her run for this Senate seat(if she decides to) & her Rep. seat at the same time. Unusual, but in these times, nothing Surprises me!
Feisty, can you send me a couple them Fireing Nueron's, as when i wokeup this morning, Miss Daisy was sitting in my chair(in front of the puter), so I calmly pulled the remote control from my Pocket & ejected her into the Soggybottom!
Dang Ky T that sounds a little harsh. Hope it hasn't dried up so she had soft landing or you and old Lucky will be eating out of the same dish for a day or three. Seriously I think Manchin and Rockefeller would make a good combination and serve my friends on the other side of the hill well for a long time.
I learned that I did'nt have enough Powder in the fireing Pin to Launch Miss Daisy into the SoggyBottom, only enough to put her smackdab in the center of the Vynil Pond. She kinda Enjoyed the Carny Ride.
The voter's of WV are Liberal Conservative's(RickSpere), not like the Voter's of KY, which are Conservative Liberals(also RickSpere) & will most likely Elect Gov. Manchin to this Senate seat in November.
Sounds like a good outcome and a good time was had by all. Glad old Lucky ain't going to have to share his dinner he might get a little testy over it. I do know that Manchin is pretty well thought of over here around the Panhandle.
Rick,KY
You are correct about his father.
Gov. Manchin will win the senate seat in November.
Yes, IR they will make a good combination and both of them are very devoted to West Virginia.
Rick,KY
Sorry, I meant to say James Manchin was his uncle.
Nothin, but nothing, beats my own state for shenanigans:
when Robert "the torch" Torricelli was running for re-election, his illegal dealings and power madness became too much for our state newspaper to ignore. A series of articles ran, and polls showed that his own mother would not be voting forhim.
AFTER the deadline for a new candidate to enter the race had passed, the Torch pulled out-it looked like New Jersey would, once more,have a Republican senator.
Not so fast. In violation of the clearly stated state law governing candidates, deadlines, and elections, the Democrat inserted Frank Lautenberg into the process. Knowing that they had the state constitution to back them up, the Republicans went straight to the state Supreme Court to block them.
And lost.
See, the Justices on our state's Supreme Court care little or nothing for the constitution. The law is whatever they say it is; they, therefore, decided that the Dems needed a candidate, despite the fact that Torricelli could have pulled out prior to the deadline.
It goes along with the finding that the state MUST provide pre-school education-despite the state constitution clearly stating that the state is responsible for educating those aged 5 to 16, or K to 12, whichever comes last. Don't get me started on their interjection into housing issues.
I don't care how bad things were in Illinois-New Jersey has it beat, hands down, when it comes to defiance of the law.
And yet you continue to live in NJ. One would think that if it is so bad, as you claim, you would move somewhere else. I think there is room in S. Carolina or Alabama. Those states seem more in tune with your political idealogy.
Seems like NJNBNJ is one of many trying to make NJ a better state. The citizens of that state made a nice start at it by electing Chris Christie governor. Lots more work to do, but NJ is off to a great start.
Illinois though, not doing so well. Did Blagojevich take the stand yet? You'd think someone in the White House would be closely monitoring that testimony, Blago is likely to say anything, about anybody.
Say it Ain't so no bo no joe no job! I almost fainted seeing you diss New Jersey for having more corrupt politicians than Chicago. I hope you enjoy your new corrupt governor who will ensure that you pay higher taxes while giving away tax cut welfare to the rich and greedy in your state who already don't pay enough in state taxes. Plus I pity the poor children in your state as they have their education system destroyed by Criminal Christie. Yep no rich brat left behind as your state makes sure the pre-school children of the poor and middle class fall far behind the rich brats when starting traditional schooling.
As always JoAnna Smith can't help but speak cluelessly. Must be Simpleton Sarah Palin's stunt dummy.
No Joe, I have to agree that NJ is worse than Illinois. I remember when the Blago mess hit the news but it was followed by widespread arrests in NJ of a good number of politicians.
you are right about the timing, Jody-but now we have a governor who is known to be totally intolerant of any criminal activities, and the word spreads, believe me.
The one way in which we are much better off than Illinois is this: New Jersey pays its bills. Illinois stopped doing that little thing months ago, with very little mention in the media outside of Chicago. Their vendors have cut them off for such non-essential items as ammunition for state correctional officers.
Makes you wonder. . .
I would say it was pretty close to being a tie. Don't forget, the governor Blagojevich beat is currently in jail for corruption. Roland Burris has a history of being tied to corruption. Add in a few of our Reps in the last 15 years; Bobby Rush (sexual assault), Mel Reynolds (sexual assaut), Dan Rostenkoski (mail fraud), and those are just the ones that have been caught.
Add in Jesse Jackson and Jesse Jackson Jr., Rahm Emanuel and Barack Obama and you have a cast of criminals.
And Eric...I'm so glad you're in California. You are a fitting subject of your queen Nancy Pelosi.
JoAnna Smith....good post and good catch on what NJ is doing as a state to improve it's past situation.
no joe: This Republican is running for Rep. Delahunt's (D) seat - And we intend to work our tail off to see he doesn't win -
From the Boston Globe:
But as Joseph D. Malone, the former state treasurer, prepares to jump back into the political arena and run for the seat now held by Democrat William D. Delahunt in the 10th Congressional District, members of his own party are raising concerns that he may not be the best choice, because of a decade-old scandal that damaged his reputation as a reformer and convinced most political insiders that his public career was dead.
Within weeks of Malone’s departure from office in 1999, it was discovered that several of his top aides and associates had manipulated systems within the office of the state treasurer for seven years, stealing $9.4 million through various schemes. It is the biggest theft of state funds in Massachusetts history and muddied Malone’s image as a champion of clean politics and good government, which had helped sweep him into the treasurer’s office in 1990.
Sen. Feingold, add term limits to that amendment. That would be the end of professional politicians, and, probably, some bloggers on this site.
Well, Pat-if what you post is true, and not conjecture, then it appears that the candidate was not involved in the theft. Unfortunately, if they were HIS hires, what does that say about his managerial competence?
Better to have a replacement Senator than only one Senator to represent that state before an election can be held to elect a new Senator. My favorite replacement Senator is Sam Ervin as he was the one responsible for forcing Tricky Dick Nixon to resign in dishonor and Felon Spiggy Agnew got prison time for his fiscal malfunctions. With only two Senators per state it is more imporant to get a replacement Senator quickly than in the House.
Even though Russ Feingold is a fellow Democrat I do not support his idiotic new Constitutional Amendment to disallow gubernatorial appointments while forcing states to wait for a special election that will take too long and cost a state proper Senate representation. I would favor allowing governors to appoint a caretaker Senator quickly while waiting for a special election that should happen in a timely manner. I'm still peeved at Russ Feingold for working with Crash Dummy McCain on screwing up campaign finance reforms that only benefitted the dopes of nope, Smooth Move Russ - Not!
I agree. There must be some form of temporary replacement so that states have their full representation until elections can be held. I like Feingold but his plan is bit of a knee-jerk reaction.
Its very simple. Let the governor appoint a temporary senator that holds the seat until a special election is held within 6 months, or at the next general election for that seat, which ever is sooner.
Here you go TRR - David Liss. I loved, loved, loved this book. Historical fiction is the way to go. The way the story comes together around the middle of the book is fascinating. The author uses the English language beautifully. Sorry to put this post here, but I have lost where your post is.
http://www.amazon.com/Whiskey-Rebels-Novel-David-Liss/dp/1400064201
Also, I found an author, Philip Kerr - my oh my what a fascinating mystery/WWII/Berlin/crime/spy writer he is. Perhaps the best of them all. The detective he writes about in about 6 novels is smart yet full of faults; and the way he describes Berlin the city and its citizens both before and after the War is captivating. Very realistic. And all too human.
Berlin Noir. Three books in one. All utterly spellbounding.
Pat, Boston, MA
Thank you so much now I will go out and purchase the books or get them from my local library.
I'm always up to discovering new authors.
Thanks again.
Well, I'm heading home from work and I want everyone to have a nice evening.
Voters should get to choose their elected officials. I'm not a big fan of appointments but realistically, special elections take time and I believe states should have full representation during the interim. Governors should appoint placeholders from the same party as the deceased/resigned until an election is held. Such elections must be within a reasonable time frame to coincide with other local or state elections to avoid additional costs.
Jody - There you go being all practical and reasonable again! Short and sweet. Good post.
To add to my thought, I think it is very important to include a rule that says regardless of the Governor's party affiliation, the temporary placeholder must be from the party of the person being replaced. That is one way to eliminate the finagling surrounding the selection of appointees to federal positions. Both parties have been guilty of this tactic.
Absolutely - it's the only fair thing for the voters who elected the first person.
Also, anyone who finds the current number of appointed Senators "alarming" must not have been around in the 70's when we managed to survive having both an unelected President and Vice-President at the same time.
Wait, did I say that was alarming? Any process (short of military overthrow or assassination) that would have relieved us of Nixon and Agnew back then was okay in my book...... :)
Don't know anything about Goodwin or Manchin so can't comment. But as to the previous thread announcing Graham's postiion on Kagan, oh boy. Now that announcment brought the wingers out of the woodwork. Reminded me of those on the far left who tore Liebermann a good one for initially siding with the Republcians on the HCR issue. In both cases, and on both sides, the term traitor was and is being used quite freely I would think. My only question would be traitor to what? Has anyone conducted numerous polls over time that have pretty well validated that the majority of SC people were against Kagan's appointment? I'm sure Graham heard from some constituents, and talked to many others. At least I am assuming that is what Senators are supposed to do. But was there evidence enough among the people of SC to expect Graham to vote against this appointment? It seems that some will shout out kudos to Graham for being his own man and voting his own conscience rather than following the party line that has been identified as obstructionist as of late. But what if the tables were turned and it were a lone Dem voting for a Republican appointed Supreme Court Judge. Would those now shouting out kudos to Graham be calling the lone Dem under the same circumstances a traitor? Again, the question is traitor to what? And what do we expect from our Senators? To act like a sectionist and vote strictly according to the desires of those who reside in their particular State, or to balance their votes and positions so that while representing the people of their State that they also take into consideration what is right and what is best for the country as a whole?
Just some thoughts.
It sure did. Whew, I had to leave that thread. Didn't recognize half the names but I recognized the common link of disconnected logic.
The unemployment benefits extension just passed the Senate 60-40. Two Republicans voted "Aye." Kudos to them! Thank goodness! There are many, many people who are breathing a sigh of relief right now. Maybe they can hold on to their homes for another few months...and hopefully find work soon.