WASHINGTON — The Senate confirmed President Obama’s nomination of Senator John F. Kerry to be secretary of state on Tuesday, handing the Massachusetts Democrat a redemptive career victory that ensconces him in an elite echelon of national leadership nine years after his failed bid for the presidency.
The 94-to-3 vote was the final hurdle for Kerry, whose nomination roared through the Senate after Obama’s first choice of UN Ambassador Susan Rice encountered stiff GOP opposition and never got off the ground.
Comments
Dear Boston Globe,
Not that I don't like John Kerry (although, let's be clear: he's no Ted Kennedy), but please try to read between the lines here. The Senate has rejected many a thoroughly qualified nominee for top secretarial positions. Kerry was approved in a landslide not because Republicans so love him (they don't--most of the current Republicans in the Senate barely know the guy), but because they expect that Republican Scott Brown has a pretty healthy chance of replacing him. The fact that so many articles have been written on Kerry's nomination with barely a mention of this fact does not speak well of the press's ability to provide a thorough background analysis of the facts on the ground.
at least 3 Senators knew he was a joke
I'm a staunch Democrat, and I've voted for John Kerry whenever he's been up for election. I know about his background, but nothing that I've seen about his constitution tells me that he'll make a great Secretary of State. Sometimes, I wonder if the GOP let him go through because they think he'll prove to be an embarrassment for Obama.
I'd love to be proven wrong, but I fear I won't be.