Question of the Day | 08/20/2008 1:00 am
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ShareWhat do you think is in store for Caroline Kennedy's political future?
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She’ll work on reforming education system, emphasizing literacy.
Wesley Clark will be VP.
So sayeth my crystal ball.
Emcye, Obama camp has said no to Wesley Clark (according to a piece on HuffPo) and that he isn’t even coming to the convention…maybe a ruse? And Ralph Nader says his money is on HRC. I think you’re right re CK’s strong commitment to education/literacy.
It’s Caroline Kennedy now. She has dropped her married name, for it would be foolish to not ride on the Kennedy dynasty’s coach. Perhaps earlier she had no thought of politics . . . but now? I am guessing that behind the scenes the pressures - or maybe better said - the encouragement is stronger.
She accepted the assignment to be one of the heads of Obama’s hunt for vice-president. She didn’t have to. But this has allowed her to test the waters, meet or speak to a great number of those polilticians she did not know but who would prove helpful in providing some inside information on the “long list”. From what I hear, she is “herself” in these situations, charming those that she speaks to, taking her time, taking this difficult job seriously.
When Joan Ganz Cooney rightly says she has her doubts that she has the traits that are needed for a move into the political world, I might agree. But
she is not a novice exactly. Even in the sidelines as a Kennedy, one absorbs and learns. The confidence gained by being co-chairman of the
VP search, the honing of her skills, the positive responses from those she has interviewed for their views, tell me that it has been a trial by fire in the nicest sense of the word.
Caroline Kennedy does not have to make a decision to enter politics now.
It would be wise to sit back, wait to see the later response of the politicians to the work she has done. Are they impressed? We are not yet to know.
Does she even have the drive to go that route — as it is a tortuous one?
What she will have are choices. For her diligent duties performed well - or so we think - there no doubt will be different appointive posts offered to her.
Again, it will come down to where Caroline is in life — for if she is content
with home and family and functions she presides over occasionally, she should be cautious about shaking that up. . as her life will never be the same.
I think we will all be watching this one play out closely. . in all its facets!
Joan, I think you’ve hit it head on. She has choices. She is an extremely intelligent woman with the closest thing we have to a royal name - why not sit back, use this experience on the Obama campaign to test the waters, and challenge *someone* for a Senate seat? She is a native New Yorker.
I agree with Joan Ganz Cooney, I can’t imagine CK running for office and think that writing her books and all her other roles with the Kennedy Library, Profile in Courage and Kennedy Center awards, the ballet, etc. plus running many households is enough for any woman to do. She cherishes her privacy and time alone, although she honors the Kennedy legacy, and is very close and influence by her cousin Maria, so those fators might drive her to at least accept an appointed position like Ambassador to France, which has precedence in her family.
Her uncle Sargent Shriver was selected one of the five most popular people in France when he was U.S. Ambassador there. Her paternal grandfather was Ambassador to England, and her paternal aunt was Ambassador to Ireland.
I can see her continuing as a James Baker type advisor to Obama. They are fellow lawyers and seem to have developed a brother-sister kind of bond that benefits them both. Wouldn’t we all faint if she were the VP!!
Ralph Nader thinks it will be HRC. Obama and his VP will appear together in his home state in front of the Abe Lincoln statue this Saturday, where he announced his run for president. HRC is from Illinois too and she’s more than proven her chops as a street-fighter, which Obama needs in a VP. Plus he’s a pragmatist and 25% of HRC people haven’t gotten on board with the convention a week away.
I was against her as VP…but now I see the wisdom in that choice. But about the food taster’s food taster. Ha.
Why doesn’t Wow.com interview her, put that question to her? Caroline: what direction do you see your life going? Do you have any political ambitions?
James - That is a very sensible suggestion. There are enough reporters at wOw headquarters - surely one of them could pose the question.
Exactly, Bon. I’ve even offered to be a reporter for WOW. It certainly needs it, rather than just gossip and speculation. Some future-looking articles and investigations into biotechnical advances as far as women’s health-care, how having a depressed, unemployed husband at home during the depressed economy…things like this that could/should be explored.
An interview would be great. But - as she must do and most of us would do at her age - is carefully couch her words in her answers.
It is far better to not close any door at this point. Never say “absolutely not” as those words can come back to haunt her perhaps later.
The offers, the suggestions, the push from Uncle Ted, are all in the mix for her. Her present experiences is a heady one, but I believe she has a solid head on her shoulders and a mind that can separate the wheat from the shaff. What may not be the right timing now if she weighs family responsibilites may be right in a few years. In the meantime, she can take as many speaking engagements as she wants, hone those important skills. I think these years coming up for her are going to be very good years . . so let’s watch and see.
Joan, James, Bonnie—-I did hear her speak in person. She was pleasant and down to Earth and extremely likable. She understands that strangers know everything about her. Her references were declaratory, not explanatory: “I took Rose to see Uncle Teddy’s office.” Of course we know that’s her daughter and where Uncle Teddy’s office is!
Re speaking: All she needs is a friend to tell her to quit saying “umm.” Michelle Obama does too. It’s a verbal tic a lot of us use until someone reminds us of it.
Here’s a 2:30 minute clip from Charlie Rose. Just what I saw in person. A nice, down to Earth, savvy, pragmatic lady worth hundreds of millions who gives the impressions she’d rather be riding her bike at the beach but knows she has a legacy and civil responsibilities, as all citizens do. Liked what she said about the school kids in NYC, a commitment that Jackie, JFK, Jr, and Caroline shared for decades.
Ease at public speaking comes with experience. There are what I call “tricks” in becoming a good speaker - one who catches the audience - and often they do not come naturally. For the biggies, lots of professional help is involved behind the scenes. “Mmmm’s” are often a fact of life as we try to get our thoughts together - particularly with a question out of the blue. But again, once we have been told that we do that far too often, we learn that a pause has its own impact. I now use it to my own advantage, letting the Mmmms that may sound like indecision go by the wayside. Pauses denote thought — or we hope the audience thinks that!!!
Any faults are addressed quite rapidly in your rise in public office. You begin to look better, dress better for the type of crowd you are trying to reach, and your speeches begin to be given with the tricks and the confidence added to make the end result a WOW!
Caroline is going to have no problem, I believe, if she cares to make that giant leap. But a decision like that is huge — and the effect on your private life (what private life?) should be weighed heavily. Maybe it comes down to this: do you want to achieve fame or happiness?
They are not necessily compatible. . and she has seen that in her own family more than most of us have. But the woman is smart, and I have the feeling that her choice will be the right thing for HER.
I believe that if she wants to maintain the degree privacy that she presently has in her life, she will bow out of any political overtures that come her way. History and wisdom should prevail in her life decisions. I think she is doing just fine with the projects she currently devotes her time to.
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