Apparently, Sen. Gregg had some conditions that needed to be met before he accepted this role within President Obama's administration. Sen. Gregg didn't want New Hampshire Governor John Lynch, a Democrat, to appoint a Democrat to the U.S. Senate. If Lynch would have, Gregg would not have taken the position.
Gov. John Lynch (D-NH) indicated today he'll appoint a Republican to replace Sen. Judd Gregg if Obama nominates the New Hampshire senator to be Secretary of Commerce. In a statement, Lynch said that Gregg made it clear that he would not resign the seat if it would tip the balance in the Senate, and that Lynch believes that the president ought to have the advisers he wants.
"I have had conversations with Senator Gregg, the White House and U.S. Senate leadership. Senator Gregg has said he would not resign his seat in the U.S. Senate if it changed the balance in the Senate. Based on my discussions, it is clear the White House and Senate leadership understand this as well," Lynch said.
"If President Obama does nominate Senator Gregg to serve as Commerce Secretary, I will name a replacement who will put the people of New Hampshire first and represent New Hampshire effectively in the U.S. Senate," he said.
I found this all very interesting because once I heard Gregg's name being mentioned in media reports, I thought we were looking at one more Democratic senator in the U.S. Senate. Unfortunately, Gregg's deal (and Lynch's going along with the deal) prevents that from happening.
Nevertheless, it is good to see some bipartisanship in the Cabinet. President Obama wanted this so that he would have people in place to keep him in check. I have no problem with it and hope that if we ever get another Republican president, they follow the lead and do the same thing.
All across punditry and blog-land lips and fingers are moving and the same questions are being asked...
What happened last night?
How did she "come back" to win?
Various theories are being offered up. Some based on facts and others *** cough *** Chris *** cough *** Matthews *** cough *** cough *** based on bullshit.
The fun thing about numbers is that they can tell multiple stories depending on which ones you look at, in what combinations and with what weights you view them. Multiple conclusions can be drawn from them that are not all necessarily wrong or even in conflict with each other.
The fun thing about bullshit is that it starts as bullshit, comes across as bullshit, remains bullshit and produces nothing other than more bullshit.
1.) Barack Obama
2.) Hillary Clinton
3.) John Edwards
4.) Bill Richardson
Republican Primary:
1.) John McCain
2.) Mitt Romney
3.) Mike Huckabee
4.) Ron Paul
I say Ron Paul because I want to see him beat Giuliani.
After Iowa, I don't think these predictions are too bold. In fact, I think this is what everyone should expect. But I don't know about Clinton. There's a lot of negative news coming out of her campaign. I don't know if it's enough for Edwards to squeak out a 2nd place finish, but it could be trouble for her in Nevada and South Carolina.
WMUR is reporting that two hostages, both described as Clinton campaign staffers, have been released. It has been reported that there were only two hostages to begin with.
An armed man has taken people hostage at the Hillary Clinton campaign office in Rochester, police said.
It was not clear how many hostages there were or what weapons the man has. Police have set up a command post near the office on 28 North Main St.
Witness Lettie Tzizik said that she spoke to a woman shortly after she was released from the office by the hostage-taker.
"A young woman with a 6-month or 8-mont-old infant came rushing into the store just in tears, and she said, 'You need to call 911. A man has just walked into the Clinton office, opened his coat and showed us a bomb strapped to his chest with duct tape."
Police are confirming an ongoing incident Friday at the presidential campaign office of Sen. Hillary Clinton in Rochester, New Hampshire.
WCVB-TV in Boston is reporting a hostage situation that began at about 1 p.m. at the headquarters. The station said it is unclear how many people were being held.
Clinton was in the Washington area at the time of the incident.
CNN New Hampshire affiliate WMUR-TV also confirms the report, saying an "armed man" has taken people hostage."
An armed man took at least two workers hostage Friday at a Hillary Clinton presidential campaign office in New Hampshire, police said.
The incident happened at about 1 p.m. Friday at 28 Main St. in Rochester. Officials said that a man is holding people hostage at the office, but it is unclear how many people are being held.
...
There are several police officers positioned across the street from the office, crouched down behind cruisers with guns drawn, according to a reported at the scene.
"There are sharp shooters on the roof, and police are negotiating with someone in the building," said another witness, who did not want to be identified. "The police are notifying all the business owners on the street to evacuate. There are fire trucks behind the Hillary Clinton office.
"I walked out and I immediately started running, and I saw that the road was blocked off. They told me run and keep going," said Cassandra Hamilton, who works in an office adjacent to the building.
Nearby businesses have been evacuated, and the St. Elizabeth Seaton School has been locked down.
Clinton, who is not in New Hampshire, is attending a National Democratic Committee meeting in Virginia. Presidential candidate Barack Obama also has an office in Rochester, and it has been evacuated. There were no reports of any injuries.
In front of the inn, two well-dressed men wore masks and held up signs meant to embarrass Giuliani for his close connection to Bernie Kerik, former New York City police commissioner. Kerik was indicted earlier this month on 16 felony counts including fraud, tax evasion and making false statements when applying for Homeland Security secretary. President Bush nominated Kerik on Giuliani's advice, only to withdraw the nomination a week later when Kerik's troubles began to come to light. Kerik could face up to 142 years in prison if convicted of the charges.
A man wearing a Giuliani mask has shown up to several Giuliani events in the state holding a sign that reads, "Free Bernie." Today, he held a "Best Friends Forever" sign and stood next to a man in an improvised mask that resembled Kerik's face.
Rudy is finally on the air in New Hampshire. His new spot decribes how he took a cold, grey New York City filled with out of focus minorities and turned it into shiny Palm Springs filled with white people tourists. Oy...
WMUR is reporting that two hostages, both described as Clinton campaign staffers, have been released. It has been reported that there were only two hostages to begin with.
