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Payne's Pick: Michael Dukakis
A proposal to let Gov. Deval Patrick name a temporary replacement to Edward M. Kennedy's vacant Senate seat drew hundreds to the State House in Boston on Wednesday, where legislators opened a public hearing on the bill.
Should lawmakers grant that power to the governor, a number of names have emerged as possible interim successors: Vicki Kennedy, the late senator’s wife; Michael Dukakis, the former Massachusetts governor; and Peter Meade, who leads the Kennedy Institute for the U.S. Senate at UMass Boston; among others.
Democratic political analyst Dan Payne has narrowed his list to just one: Mike Dukakis, "by many lengths," Payne tells WBUR.org.
The pros:
- He's 75 and will be happy to serve a five month-stint
- He has respect and name recognition in DC
The cons:
- He'll take Amtrak to Washington and not get there until January
- When confronted with votes on health care reform, he'll ask: "How come we're not doing single-payer?"
This program aired on September 9, 2009. The audio for this program is not available.