A 51-49 majority in the Senate is awfully fragile — especially when the other side has the VP to break a 50-50 tie.
Which makes the possible incapacitation of Sen. Tim Johnson (D-SoDak) a possible political blockbuster. South Dakota state law lets the Governor — a Republican — appoint a successor of his own choosing, meaning he could choose a fellow Republican, turning things into a 50-50 “tie” again.
I like to think that, were the shoe on the other foot, I’d be urging a Democratic Governor to replace a GOP Senator with another Republican. Regardless, this could be huge.
21 view(s)
Imagine if he chose another Democrat, explaining that the voters had chosen a Democrat and he wanted to honor their choice. It would go a long way toward breaking the partisan logjam and in the long run, work out well for the Republicans (and everybody).
What if cooperation and higher purpose broke out on the Senate floor?
Bite your tongue!
No, I have a sense that it would be the right thing to do (a few states actually mandate the party of the successor), but very difficult to do politically, given all that hangs in the balance.
I can actually hear the rationale.
1. SoDak elected Johnson (a Dem) most recently in 2002 (he would be up for election in 2008). They more recently elected a Republican to the Senate (Thune, in 2004). So the most recent Senatorial direction from the folks of SoDak is toward the GOP.
2. The founders, legislators, and people of SoDak have constitutionally provided to allow their elected GOP governor (entered office in 2002) make the decision about who the best person should be for that office, should their elected senator be unable to serve. They did not (despite precedent in other states) dictate the political party of that senator, leaving that decision up to the governor to make.
It’s certainly legal, and I think it’s ethically defensible (even if it’s not what I want).
Honestly speaking, were I the governor in such a circumstance, and with all that was at stake in terms of governmental policy direction based on this decision, I’d be hard-pressed not to select someone from my own party.