The new Junior Senator from the Bay State
Well, Well, Well. It appears Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick has made the appointment of a brotha to fill the Senate seat being vacated by Senator, now, Seceratary of State, John F. Kerry. From Crooks and Liars via the Boston Globe:
Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick has picked William “Mo” Cowan, his former chief of staff, to serve as the state’s interim US senator until the successor to John F. Kerry is chosen by the voters in a June 25 special election.
“He has been a valued ally to me and our work on behalf of the people of the Commonwealth,” Patrick said at a news conference. “In every step, he has brought preparation, perspective, wisdom, sound judgment, and clarity of purpose.”
Cowan said he was “honored and humbled” to get the temporary post, which will make him the first African-American to represent Massachusetts in the Senate since Edward Brooke held the seat as a Republican from 1966 to 1978.
Here’s a little tidbit about the new Senator:
“Mo has been a tremendous asset to the Commonwealth, and we are more than confidant he will continue to serve the people well as interim U.S. Senator,” said Lieutenant Governor Timothy Murray.
From 1997 to 2009, Cowan practiced civil litigation as an associate and later a partner in the Boston office of Mintz, Levin, Cohn, Ferris, Glovsky and Popeo, PC and as a Special Assistant District Attorney in the Office of the Middlesex County District Attorney.
Cowan is a graduate of Duke University and Northeastern University School of Law, and lives in Stoughton, Massachusetts with his wife, Stacy, and their two young sons.
It was rumored and shown that former Rep. Barney Frank wanted the job, but for some reason, Patrick chose to go with Cowan, and he’ll only be there until June 25, when there will be a special election held to fill the seat permanently. This does keep the Senate with its slim majority of seats, but what Democratic leadership does with it, and with Mr. Cowan, remains to be seen.
Congratulations, Mr. Cowan. At least there are now two African-Americans in the Senate. And, yes, that caption reads correctly. With Kerry’s departure, the newly sworn in Elizabeth Warren becomes the Senior Senator from Massachusetts and we hope, Mitch McConnell’s worst nightmare.
Updated
Vice President Joe Biden re-enacts administering the Senate oath to Sen. William “Mo” Cowan, D-Mass. Thursday, Feb. 7, 2013, on Capitol Hill in Washington. Joining him, from left are. Secretary of State John Kerry, who he is replacing, Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., his sons Miles, 8, and Grant 4, and his wife Stacey. (AP Photo/Kevin Wolf)
Vice President Joe Biden re-enacts administering the Senate oath to Sen. William “Mo” Cowan, D-Mass. Thursday, Feb. 7, 2013, on Capitol Hill in Washington. Joining him, from left are. Secretary of State John Kerry, who he is replacing, Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., his sons Miles, 8, and Grant 4, and his wife Stacey. (AP Photo/Kevin Wolf)
Y’all cracking me up with the comments – especially about Governor Patrick picking one of his own. It’s not like he’s up for re-election so he’s going to do whatever the hell he wants.
And it’s looking real good in terms of one brotha looking out for another! Major daps. LOL
Meet the New Senator From Massachusetts: William Cowan
http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/politics/2013/01/meet-the-new-senator-from-massachusetts-william-cowan/
Cowan’s appointment is historically significant in Massachusetts and nationwide. When Cowan takes office, it will be the first time in U.S. history that two black senators will be serving simultaneously in the Senate (South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott is the other.) Cowan will be the eighth ever African-American senator.
Oh the times they are a changin.’
Massachusetts Has a New Senator
by BooMan
Wed Jan 30th, 2013 at 11:34:14 AM EST
I suppose that Lawrence O’Donnell will be disappointed, and I admit that I, too, liked the idea of Barney Frank as a senator. But Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick chose to appoint his former legal counsel and chief of staff, William ‘Mo’ Cowan to serve as an interim replacement for John Kerry. This is the first I have ever heard of Mr. Cowan. The most newsworthy aspect of the appointment is that Cowan is an African-American, and the Senate will now have two black senators for the first time in its history. The Boston Globe has some good biographical information on Mr. Cowan.
Cowan, 43, was first hired by Patrick as his legal counsel in 2009 and was then promoted to chief of staff in 2010. Last November, Cowan stepped down from the $144,000 a year job.
Cowan is a North Carolina native and Duke University graduate who came to Boston to attend Northeastern University Law School in the early 1990s – and never left the region. One of the city’s leading African-American lawyers, Cowan is a former partner in the politically connected law firm of Mintz Levin…
…Cowan is a native of Yadkinville, N.C., a town of 2,200 about 25 miles west of Winston-Salem, where he grew up on a street full of family. Cowan’s father died when he was 16 years old, leaving his mother to raise him and his two sisters on little more than a minimum wage.
He was the first from his high school, Forbush High School, to attend Duke, one of the nation’s premier colleges.
It certainly is a feel-good story. I wish Mr. Cowan luck. He will serve until Massachusetts elects a permanent replacement in June. On the Democratic side, it looks like there will be a primary between Stephen Lynch and Ed Markey. Scott Brown says he is leaning towards running again, and polls currently give him encouragement. It will be a tremendous shame if anyone other than Markey wins the seat.
http://www.boomantribune.com/story/2013/1/30/113414/311
The Toast @TheToast2013
I see people whining for Barney Frank not being appointed Sen. from MA. If Barney Frank wants the job, he can run for it like errybody else.
DAPS! Run BArney run.
That tweet had me LMAO….
Dannie Owens @DAOWENS44
how dare this negro choose another negro!! you think patrick was the governor or something lol
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I’m loving this so much!
Devel Patrick sent a BIG eff you to the folks trying to tell him what to do. It was his pick to make and he did it. Case closed!
Nice Family. I’m glad Governor Patrick did it his OWN way.
Do ya’ll think Scott “PLAYGIRL” Brown will run again?
Scott Brown needs to keep his clothes on, go somewhere and sit his ass down. I don’t think the Teahadists are going to forgive him for voting in favor of Obamacare, or anything else he did that made him look less than full-blown wingnut.
I’m not familiar with Stephen Lynch, and either Markey gets it or get challenged in a primary by Barney Frank. Somehow, that scenario might not go down between Markey and Frank because it would further fraction the Democrats nationally, as well as the Massachusetts Democractic party. Who knows, anything could happen after June 25th. Cowan might decide he likes being a Senator and make a run himself. Right now, it’s looking like he’s there to caretake the Seat like the brotha who held the Seat when POTUS got elected back in ’08.
Loving the pick by Governor Patrick. Congratulations, William “Mo Cowan!
I was NOT down with Lawrence O and nem trying to bully Gov. into picking Barney Frank.
Here’s Gov. Patrick’s announcement: http://www.c-spanvideo.org/program/81982-1
Cowan’s sons – just like the Wee Michelles, only they’re the Wee Mos’?????? (LOL)
Those boys are handsome. LOL i like The Wee ‘Mos.” Beautiful wife & family.