Kerry insisted that anyone chosen to fill the seat would be held to a commitment not to participate in the special election. If that individual broke their promise Kerry said he would "do anything in his power to campaign against them."
BOSTON. Political ploy or fulfillment of a dying friend’s wish?
Sen. John Kerry lent a powerful voice yesterday in support of a House bill that would allow Governor Deval Patrick to install an interim replacement for the late Sen. Ted Kennedy’s seat until January’s special election, satisfying one of Kennedy's last requests.
Republicans, however, questioned Kerry’s intent in a contentious hearing at the State House, citing a 2004 effort led by Democrats which stripped then-Gov. Mitt Romney of the power to fill Kerry’s seat if the Senator was elected president.
“Why now?” Republican State Sen. Scott Brown, who is rumored to have interest in Kennedy’s seat, asked Kerry. “Why not in 2004?”
Kerry, who acknowledged he "stayed far from the issue" in 2004 and admitted mistakes made by Democratic legislators, said the state needs its two senatorial votes.
“This is no time for Massachusetts to not be represented in Washington,” Kerry said, referencing a dozen appropriation bills in the coming months.
Republicans have eyed the proposal as an effort to maintain a Democratic majority in the Senate to support President Barack Obama's health care plan.
Many in the Gardner Auditorium capacity crowd sported pro-Kerry stickers, yet applause erupted when Republican Rep. Paul Frost asked Kerry if he would be advocating for the bill if a Republican such as Kerry Healey was governor.
“Would you be here so passionately?” Frost inquired to an ovation.
Kerry drew similar applause in reference to Kennedy’s request, saying “If Ted Kennedy wrote the letter he wrote I don’t care who was here. I’d be advocating.”
BOSTON. Crystal Evans not only suffers from a disabling energy metabolism disorder — mitochondria disease — that has caused serious health problems, but her apartment’s electrical problems have wreaked havoc on her wheelchair and other medical equipment.
The 28-year-old Somerville resident said she was working with the late Sen. Edward Kennedy’s office before his death to help her get new housing. Now, with Sen. John Kerry’s office flooded with new constituent requests for help, she said she doesn’t know where to turn.
“I know I’m not alone on this,” Evans said yesterday during a rally outside the State House urging legislators to allow the governor to appoint a temporary replacement to the seat.
Roughly 30 advocates echoed those calls prior to a heated hearing on the issue, with some holding signs reading “Every vote counts” and “It’s 2 important not to be represented.”
“We need to be at full strength in Washington,” said Massachusetts AFL-CIO President Robert Haynes.