Kerry to be named chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee

Bryan Bender
Boston Globe
Thursday, Nov 20, 2008

More than three decades after he first appeared before the panel as a 27-year-old Vietnam veteran-turned-antiwar protester, Senator John F. Kerry will be named chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, giving him enormous influence over President-elect Barack Obama’s foreign policy, according to congressional officials.

Kerry, who was elected to a fifth term from Massachusetts earlier this month, will be handed the gavel when the new Congress convenes in January, replacing Vice President-elect Joe Biden, the officials said.

Aides to Kerry said he is already laying out a broad agenda for the committee, beginning with new legislation to strengthen the United States’ hand against terrorists in Afghanistan and Pakistan; provide oversight of efforts to end the war in Iraq; and seize what he sees as a new opportunity to curtail the spread of nuclear, chemical, and biological weapons.

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Kerry, 64, is still considered by some political observers to be a possible pick for Obama’s secretary of state, but Senator Hillary Clinton of New York and former New Mexico governor Bill Richardson, each of whom met separately with Obama at his Chicago transition office last week, are considered far more likely selections for the position of top diplomat.

Still, from his new perch on the Foreign Relations Committee, Kerry would play an “enormous gatekeeping role,” said Ralph G. Carter, a professor at Texas Christian University and coauthor of the upcoming book, “Choosing to Lead: Understanding Congressional Foreign Policy Entrepreneurs.”

“The role of Senate Foreign Relations Committee chair is enormously influential,” Carter said. “It gives the person who holds it an incredible position to shape policy.”

Along with the Judiciary and Finance committees, the Foreign Relations Committee was among the first three Senate panels established, in 1816.

Full article here

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5 Responses to “Kerry to be named chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee”

blindboy Says:
November 20th, 2008 at 12:15 pm
Gee, it’s just one big happy family again. Get the Wesson oil and plastic sheets.
trying2awaken Says:
November 20th, 2008 at 2:12 pm
lol. skull and bones back on the throne . what great change
ME Says:
November 20th, 2008 at 5:22 pm
It’s beyond me why that lame douche bag keeps on winning elections.
ME Says:
November 20th, 2008 at 5:24 pm
He wouldn’t even stand up for himself never mind anyone else. Typical useless politician.
johnny Says:
November 20th, 2008 at 9:16 pm
The man who promotes himself as a Viet Nam war hero actually is no hero at all,his tour of duty in Nam was four months. He received two purple hearts ,one self inflicted the other a non combat injury.An officer can elect reassignment from a combat zone if awarded two purple hearts.Kerry took his two purple hearts and left country neither of the two were valid.Kerry is a loyal member of skull and bones which he refuses to discuss.Kerry along with MCcane stopped the investigation of missing P.O.W.’s in Korea and Viet Nam.Kerry claims to be Irish Catholic but the fact of the matter he is as much Irish Catholic as Molly Goldberg MR. Kerry is a Jew.
I am not saying a person’s religion should be held against a person ,but why give false information to your background unless you are seeking to run for office in a state that favors Irish Catholics. Kerry’s real name is Kohn.If you look at kerry’s background you will see he is as phony as the rest of his colickes