Republican Judd Gregg To Be Commerce Secretary
By Justin Gardner | Related entries in Barack, Business, Money, Republicans, Senate
Looks like the Republican senator will be attempting to join the Obama administration since a press conference is set for tomorrow morning. And my guess is that he’ll get confirmed immediately.
Now, there had been speculation that Obama’s team was picking Gregg to swing the senate to 60 Dem votes, but that was quickly put to rest as the senator was assured his successor would be a Republican.
Politico has some background on the relatively unknown senator:
To a remarkable degree, Gregg has served as a trusted, behind-the scenes consigliore for every leader since the mid-‘90s, from Mississippi’s Trent Lott to Bill Frist of Tennessee and now Kentucky’s Mitch McConnell. He is that Washington rarity: someone who thinks—often out loud— about issues but can also operate privately in giving advice and respecting the discretion of leaders.“When everyone had said their piece, I would always turn to Judd and say, ‘Give us the contrarian view,’ and he would,†Lott told Politico. “He was loyal to his friends and not to have him, the Senate will be a lesser place. There’s that old joke when a House member goes to the Senate, the intellect of both bodies goes up. Well when Judd Gregg leaves, the Senate’s intellect will go down.â€
Gregg’s record—in the House, as New Hampshire’s governor, and for 16 years in the Senate—has always been that of a fiscal conservative, albeit with more independence with time. Obama’s historic election and the immense economic dangers now facing the nation have clearly influenced his outlook, just as they have been two recurring themes in recent interviews.
“His election confirms our creed…His Inauguration is a renewal event,†Gregg said of the new president in December. More recently, he was impressed by Obama’s analysis of the economic crisis before a Senate Republican luncheon last week.
“His presentation was a tour de force. It was surely impressive and it was comprehensive,†Gregg said later. “I felt much better he had such a comprehensive understanding of what I see as the issue. He’s clearly moving forward aggressively on all the different fronts.â€
No doubt Obama will need Gregg to help uneasy moderate senators be okay with how the stimulus plan will be spent in the public and private sectors.
So maybe Richardson stepping out of contention for the job was a blessing in disguise?
More as it develops…
This entry was posted on Monday, February 2nd, 2009 and is filed under Barack, Business, Money, Republicans, Senate. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
February 3rd, 2009 at 4:34 am
[...] PointsRepublican Judd Gregg To Be Commerce Secretary at donklephant.com by Justin [...]
February 3rd, 2009 at 9:53 am
I wish the governor would hold a special election instead of simply appointing a Republican. There’s no guarantee that that’s what the state needs or wants.
February 3rd, 2009 at 12:07 pm
Does the GOP have anyone to win Gregg’s seat next time it comes up? Not anyone of the same stature, that’s for sure.
I’m surprised no one has bothered to make a stink about the deal for the NH gov to appoint a GOP sub, wondering how different it is from Blagoish wheeler-dealerism. Strike that. I’m sure there’s someone somewhere insisting that Gregg should be accepting such an offer without strings attached, and encouraging the NH gov to doublecross him.
February 13th, 2009 at 2:39 pm
Listen, if it gets down to it, I’LL be Commerce Secretary. I haven’t eluded the IRS and the amount of money I’ve made in the past 4 years isn’t even close to the amount of money hidden by these politicians. Can we find someone who’s not a crook or crazy? Maybe not…
http://politic.ology.com/2009/02/12/you-there-ill-give-you-five-bucks-to-be-commerce-secretary/
-Jared J. H. Catapano (ology.com)
June 13th, 2009 at 9:32 pm
[...] After being let down by New Mexico Gov. and former presidential candidate Bill Richardson, President Obama now wants Sen. Judd Gregg (R-NH) to join his administration as Commerce Secretary. Gregg is a fairly low-profile Senator, but evidently is a well-trusted Republican politician. [...]