MA State Senate Gives Governor Appointment
Narrow Vote Allows Governor Patrick to Temporarily Fill Senate Seat
By a vote of 24-16, the Massachusetts State Senate voted to give Governor Deval Patrick the authority to make an interim appointment to fill the seat left vacant by the death of Senator Edward Kennedy.
The pressure to pass the bill has been intense. Several senators have said the White House has called to urge them to vote for the bill. This is after President Obama said that the issue was, "a matter left to the State of Massachusetts."
11 Democrats resisted the White House arm twisting and crossed party lines to vote against the measure. Those 11 Senators all said they were more concerned about a backlash in their home districts.
One Senator Resisted the Pressure
Even with the political pressure from both sides, the author of the 2004 legislation that stripped Republican Governor Mitt Romney of his interim appointment authority, Democratic State Senator Bryan Joyce, offered his personal reason to be against the bill, “Perhaps more importantly, it’s wrong to change the rules depending upon which party is in power.”
“We shouldn’t change the rules on how we govern our state depending on who the governor is,” Senator Joyce said.
One of the major objections to the bill is its reversal of the previously mentioned 2004 law that was passed when the overwhelmingly Democratic Massachusetts Legislature believed that Massachusetts Democratic Senator John Kerry might win the White House.
Critics of House Resolution 4246 said the measure was purely partisan and openly political. That's a charge to which a supportive Democratic Senator Steven Tollman willingly admitted, “It’s politics. Or course it’s politics. We’re in the politics business.”
The Bill May Need a Two-Thirds Vote
Even though the bill passed the Senate today, Republican State Senator Richard Tisei says the bill shouldn’t take effect. He cites the emergency clause provision in the bill, “Under the law you need a two-thirds vote for this to go into effect immediately and there wasn’t a two-thirds vote.”
“Without that vote, the bill takes effect in 90 days," Mr. Tisei said.
If that technicality comes into play, the appointment will have to wait until mid-December, which would be after the December 8th primary and only 30 days before the special election.
Senate President Therese Murray said the legislation can still take effect, even without the two-thirds vote, “The bill can take effect immediately because under Article 48 of the Constitution, the governor can send a letter to the Secretary of State requesting that the appointment be made immediately.”
Even with the procedural considerations, the bill still has to go back to the House and faces yet another vote in the Senate before it can be signed by Governor Patrick.
If the measure clears the legal hurdles, Governor Patrick is likely to make an appointment by the end of the week. The leading candidates for the appointment are former Massachusetts Governor Michael Dukakis and former Democratic Committee Chairman and Kennedy staffer Paul Kirk.
State Senator Richard Tisei.
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