Kirsten Gillibrand to Replace Hillary Clinton on Capitol Hill: ABC

Talk about strange things happening on Capitol Hill. First, Roland Burris' appointment by the disgraceful Rod Blagojevich is approved. And now an obscure woman named Kirsten Gillibrand, a liberal advocate of the NRA has been named to replace Secretary of State Hillary Clinton after Caroline Kennedy dropped out of consideration citing unspecified personal reasons. Talk about a political circus.

The title of this ABC News article published on January 23, 2009 is simply "NY Governor Names Clinton's Senate Successor" which sounds innocent and legitimate enough. The reasoning behind his choice, however, is certainly questionable.

So who is Kirsten Hillibrand and what do people think about her? More importantly, how does she see herself and does she believe that she can win again in 2010, when it really counts?

Introducing Hillibrand, "New York Gov. David Paterson said that "I believe (that) I have found the best candidate to become the next US SDenator from New York. She is dynamic. She is articulate. She is perceptive. She is courageous. She is outspoken". OK, Mr. Governor this is what you have to say for Ms. Hillibrand. Let's see what she has to say for herself.

Here's how Gillibrand introduced herself: "I realize that for many New Yorkers, this is the first time you have heard my name and you don't know much about me", adding that she "will represent the many diverse views and voices of the entire state as your senator". The last part of her pitch is OK, but the opening part of her statement is far from convincing (I realize that for many New Yorkers, this is the first time you have heard my name and you don't know much about me?) Gillibrand has a lot of work to do if she wants to have any credibility in 2010 because that's going to be the time that it really counts.

Gillibrand also was outspoken in her praise of Clinton: "I cannot tell you how many times she has inspired me to action". Furthermore, Gillibrand called Clinton "a clarion call to so many like me who now hope to make a difference in the lives of others" What does this mean? Does this mean what it appears to mean (i.e. if Gillibrand wasn't chosen to replace Clinton, she would not have been inspired to make a difference in the lives of others?) Gillibrand's praise of Clinton seems to be cliched and not genuine.

According to New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg, "She has actively opposed the efforts of New York City and cities around the state and the nation to enact common-sense measures to keep illegal guns out of the hands of criminals". OK, so Bloomberg is the first to react with shock, surprise and even disappointment at Paterson's vetting of Gillibrand and in all likelihood, he won't be the last one.

In response, Gillibrand said that she hoped to find ways to "reduce gun violence and protect our children and keep guns out of the hands of criminals, but also protect hunters' rights". According to Wikipedia, Gillibrand received a 100% positive rating from the NRA and this has led to a wave of protests from gun control advocates. Also keeping guns out of the hands of criminals while protecting hunters' rights requires a very delicate balancing act. Is Gillibrand capable of this?

Gillibrand also talked about the economic downturn: "In upstate (New York), years of manufacturing decline have made the new economic downturn even harder to bear for our families. Downstate, the sudden collapse of our financial industry last fall has echoed throughout our state's economy". Again, we've heard all this before.

The bottom line on Kirsten Gillebrand is that she has very few innovative/creative/original ideas and she is a gun advocate, which makes Gov. Paterson's decision to appoint her as Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's successor on Capitol Hill a questionable (and highly controversial) one.