With Obama's election sure, Illinois Dems line up for his Senate seat

Our LATimes.com colleague Johanna Neuman, who's chronicling the dwindling days of the Bush administration over on the booming Countdown to Crawford blog, was listening in today on a Democratic conference call of congressional leaders.

You won't be surprised to learn they were bashing President Bush about the economy and jobs. At one point House majority leader Steny Hoyer referred to his Democratic House colleague Rahm Emanuel as "Sen. Emanuel, I mean, Congressman Emanuel."

Hmmm.

Illinois, of course, already has two Democratic senators not named Emanuel. But one of them is Barack Obama. If he's successful in his White House bid Nov. 4, Illinois' Democratic Gov. Rod Blagojevich will be naming an interim senator. The Ticket is prepared to bet one million online electrons the interim senator will be a Democrat.

As is tradition in the Illinois -- that is to say, Chicago -- Democratic machine, several worthies are already lining up.

Emanuel is something of a rising star, having been a key component in engineering the Democrats' takeover of the House in 2006, though presently denying interest in the Senate, which is a real good idea with his House reelection bid coming in three months.

Previously, Emanuel was finance chairman for Bill Clinton's campaign and before that, way back in the 1980s, he was cadging free lunches from Chicago political reporters in exchange for gossip and info on the colorful characters and the drones in rumpled suits populating the Windy City's Democratic monolithic machine.

Our blogging buddy Mark Silva over at the Swamp notes in a recent item that the son of the Rev. Jesse Jackson, who is Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr., has generously offered his services as a senator if invited. "I wouldn't say no if asked," says the 43-year-old House member. But he's still the junior Jackson. That appointment would keep at least one African American in the Senate.

There are several other possible candidates, however, and Mark has the full list and background here.

-- Andrew Malcolm

Photo credit: U.S. House of Representatives

Comments

[VJ Machiavelli]

Come Jan 20th 2009 Obama will be standing and watching John McCain be sworn in as POTUS. So I guess the others will be planning primary for Obama when his term is up.

VJ Machiavelli
http://www.vjmachiavelli.blogspot.com

[dave]

both obama and mccain fail to meet even the legal minimum qualifactions for the presidential office.
that the corporate media fail to do their job and continue to sponsor, patronize and support two fraudulent candidates, while censoring, intimidating and threatening legal ones in a criminal fashion, does not change the fact. millions of people know it, and will act accordingly.