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Subscribe to RSSJoe Kennedy III, grandson of Robert Kennedy, announced today that he is leaving his job at the Middlesex District Attorney's office to start an exploratory committee for a possible run for Rep. Barney Frank's Massachusetts Congressional seat.
Frank announced his intention to retire in November after he finishes his 16th term in the seat, citing redistricting as the reason.
Here's Kennedy's full statement:
I am announcing today my intention to explore a candidacy for the United States Congress in the Fourth District of Massachusetts.
I look forward to reaching out to the residents of the Fourth District over the coming weeks, and I will look back on my work as an Assistant District Attorney in Middlesex County - and before then, in Barnstable County - with great appreciation for the dedication of my colleagues and their commitment to equal justice under law. I loved my work in the courts and will remember its lessons as I seek the counsel of the citizens of the Fourth District.
One lesson that will stick with me from my time in the courts is how hard police, prosecutors and judges work together to achieve fairness. Fairness, the foundation of America's social compact, seems to be in short supply these days. We wage war, pass skewed tax breaks, and expand benefits by spendthrift borrowing, saddling the next generation of Americans with unsustainable debt.
Then when it comes time to restoring fiscal sanity to our budget, we see the middle class and the poor take the hit while the wealthy get more tax breaks.
The lack of common sense and fairness in Washington is a byproduct of the partisan gridlock that has turned obstruction into victory. Americans are better than that. Each and every day, we work with people of different backgrounds and political views to achieve a common purpose. Washington can and should do the same.
My decision to look seriously at elected office is grounded in a deep commitment to public service and my experience - both my own and that of my family -- in finding just, practical, and bipartisan solutions to difficult challenges. It is a commitment instilled in me at a young age and one that inspired me to join the Peace Corps after college and to become a prosecutor after law school.
I have given my notice of resignation to the Middlesex District Attorney's office, and my work will wind down over the course of the next two weeks. I will then begin to reach out to the people of the Fourth District in order to hear directly from them about the challenges they are facing and their ideas on how we can restore fairness to our system. I will make a final decision about entering the race in the weeks thereafter.
I look forward to this new challenge, and to meeting people across the district in the weeks ahead.
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Everyone think reducing the military is a good idea but I think they all need to rethink their strategy again. The President idea may be a good idea only if he plans to reduce or remove the military presence from overseas only and continue to strengthen up the military here at home, and continue to work on updating the existing military hardware infrastructure, invest on new innovations for guns and nuclear power, also continue to recruit and train new members so that they can be ready for when one of these warlords attack us because USA has many competitors around the world waiting to take us down and claim to be the super power while they forget that without the influence USA, they are all will be the third world country they were. This is the reason why they hate us American everywhere. USA shouldn’t trust anyone of these so called allies because the very ones which claim to be the USA friends are comparing themselves with the USA every day. All Americans have to do to check on that is read and watch foreign news online and they will see for themselves. We are doom if we don’t pay attention to details.
AB, what the hell does anything you said have to do with who may run for a congressional seat in Massachusetts? (As for paying attention to details, you apparently didn't pay any attention to what Panetta said.)
This is like going from the Pan into the fire. Mass. needs another Scott Brown miracle!
I wonder if he's a democrat?
This is great news.
how can this be great news,cutting spending because you are broke is not as smart as it is a no choice thing to do.
Sounds like one low life piece of scum with be replaced by another low life piece of scum.
you just know that if there was money obama would spend it,the savings will be used to keep his most faithful happy.now that the military has taken a hit ,whose sacret cow is now to be cut?
Hey MSNBC, some of these posts belong somewhere else.
I am sure one of Barney's boyfriends at Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac will have s firm offer (wink, wink) for Barney.
Can i get an AMEN????
Barney has f*cked the country enough now he is going to retire so we can pay him for all the the crap he was involved in.
Is he straight?
ob if you ever need crack cocaine just come to Lynn Massachusetts. There's four different conveniece stores that you can go to with your EBT (welfare debit card) card.
^ Actually the crack epidemic begin in the 80's during the Reagan administration and reached it's peak at that time. Murder rate, violence, drug wars and death in the streets all raging during that decade.
Supply side economics at it's finest is what it was, and the senile old fool in the white house at the time was responsible.
Please do!!!!
I love how the pubs think a kennedy dynasty is wrong, but a Bush one is great.
anyding beter den da fary! may bes da lil joe git r dun. membr; big ljoe was da wiskey baron of da depreson he kreatd. bng joe was dfa tresury sec during da depreson? yea!rite! read on student... i mis da tedyber, he was a swtch hiter all da tyme he in da kungrezz. so be da chunky chumer,nys,and hit cigarcan lil gilly brnd. so brng on da stratguy,spelchkdunwurk, da prez asama snds.
another Kennedy aspires to be a lifetime politician...hahaha
Elizabeth Warren and Joe Kennedy III. It doesn't get any worse than that. But wait! If this 30 year old punk wants to be a representative in the US congress then I guess he automatically gets the seat. Right? Well, the Kennedy seat didn't work for whatsherface and Scott Brown was elected and Obama lost his 60 member majority in the senate. Let's hope we're on a role here and Joe Kennedy III has to find a real paying job.
Headline says "A Kennedy explores run for Barney Frank's seat."
LOL!
Elected office maybe? Deliberately subtle? Ha!
The country needs a kennedy as bad as the pope needs a dose of clap
I think I would stay away from Barney Frank's "seat".
You don't know where it's been.
I tell you we need public servants in govt. We don't need people who are mainly puppets for the wealthy running the country. We don't need a president who blows up the wtc and flies a plane into the pentagon to invade iraq for oil. No. We need people who work for the country.
We don't need people who think a president "blew up" the WTC either.
There are places for those kind of people.
They call them asylums.
I think it will take a new generation of thinking people to break the gridlock in the Congress. I hope that Joe Kennedy can be one of the people to do this. The supposed patriarchs need to get out of DC and tolerant, inclusive, understanding people need to help President Obama get something done. Barney Frank is such an important voice that we really can't afford to lose. I hope that the good people of Massachusetts elect another visionary.
JSC??
Another visionary?? Like who?? John Kerry?? LOL
They're ba-a-a-ck.