Not So Sweet on Caroline
by Claudine ZapJan 2, 2009
She may have the Kennedy name, the Kennedy money, and the desire to serve the public. But for someone pursuing a plum U.S. Senate seat, this will only get you so far. Caroline Kennedy, daughter of the late President John F. Kennedy, is having a rough start in her quest to be appointed to Hillary Clinton's vacant Senate seat.
First, Kennedy was criticized for not talking. Then she opened her mouth, and critics complained she was too vague on policy — and not New York enough. She's even been critiqued for certain unfortunate verbal crutches. In an interview with the New York Times, she responded to a question about her rival to the seat, Attorney General Andrew Cuomo, this way: "I'm, you know, actually, Andrew Cuomo is someone I've known for many, many years, and we've talked, you know, throughout this process, so, you know, we have a really good relationship and I admire the work he's doing now and what he's done."
The Times helpfully pointed out she peppered her answer with three "you knows." Not exactly the stuff of "ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country."
In fact, since her public debut, critics have gone from comparing Kennedy to Hillary Clinton to linking her to the failed vice presidential candidacy of Sarah Palin.
Salon.com's Joan Walsh wrote of Kennedy's media interviews: "Overall, she was slippery, and regrettably, because I admire her, I came away with the feeling that she views her single best credential for the Senate seat as her celebrity, and, secondarily, her wealth."
Yahoo.com quoted a New York Daily News columnist as gleefully reporting, "the wheels of the bandwagon are coming off."
To be fair, plenty of pols mangle the English language (the current outgoing president comes to mind), are purposely vague on prescriptions to fix what ails the country, and come from family dynasties. Maybe Caroline Kennedy is simply experiencing the typical come-down from pedestal to the political. And it ain't pretty.
Of course, as Time.com pointed out, "being a Kennedy has not exactly proved to be an obstacle to success over the past century of American life."
Despite her bumpy introduction under the glare of national media scrutiny, support for Kennedy's candidacy is growing with the one person who may matter most: New York Gov. Paterson is reportedly still considering her as a top candidate to replace Clinton.
