10/26/2006

Can We Just Cut the Crap on this Whole We Need the Seniority Thing?

by Matt Singer on 10:00 am.

Honestly, I feel like we’re having a discussion where people are taking some sort of supposed “long view” and weighing the pros and cons of having a crook who can bring back money, but aren’t really thinking any more into the future than one or two plays.

Here’s the reality of Montana’s seniority status after this election and for the next decade or so:

1. Burns Gets Reelected, Gets Indicted, Resigns: In this scenario, we’re in the absolute worst case we could be. Whoever gets appointed to finish Burns’ term doesn’t go in tied with his or her fellow newly elected Senators for seniority, they’re always a step behind. That will matter. And there’s no promise from caucus leadership for a seat on approps, so kiss that committee behind, if it’s truly a big deal to you.
2. Burns Gets Reelected, Serves One More Term, Finally Leaves D.C.: In this scenario, it makes a bit more sense to keep Burns, for the short-term. Both Burns and Baucus have about one more term in each of them. So we can send them both back (and if pork is what you want, it appears Max is your man more than Conrad is), lose Burns in six, Baucus in eight, and start from complete scratch. Again, if seniority is what you’re after, that just strikes me as a silly way to handle this situation.
3. Elect Tester, Get a Seat on Approps, and Start Building Some Seniority: Start building seniority with a new Senator now, so that when Max leaves, we’re not left with no seniority and no seats on powerful committees, but rather have a man who is by all accounts an able and honest legislator well into his second-term on Approps.

Here’s the final thing. Pork isn’t really my bag. If it was, I might at one point have been mildly conflicted in this race. But the seniority question is really one of short-term v. long-term thinking. We can horde seniority for about six more years or we can be smart and shift some new leadership in who can stay a while.

Personally, I think Jon is honest enough to end up in D.C. for three terms and not lose his mind. I could be proven wrong in 18 years. If I am, I like to think I’ll be calling for his ouster no matter how much pork he’s bringing home.

But if seniority is your bag, the smart move is to vote for Tester. We won’t have more seniority next year. But in 2014, it will mean we won’t have two folks with a combined two years in the Senate.

Yeah, and these are talking points for those water cooler conversations with your co-workers hemming and hawing about pork. Ask ‘em where Montana will get its share in a decade if we have no seniority at all.

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Categories: '06, Conrad Burns, Front Page, elections

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