As candidate, Kennedy eloquent but elusive

Caroline Kennedy said she has no doubt she's the right one to replace Hillary Clinton as the next New York senator. (Stephen Chernin/ Associated Press)

NEW YORK - Caroline Kennedy, the woman who would be New York's next senator, is sure of one thing. Among those seeking to succeed Senator Hillary Clinton, she would be the best.

"I wouldn't be here if I didn't think I would be the best," Kennedy said, sitting in the back room of an Upper East Side diner around the corner from her home.

After weeks of criticism that she had not opened up to the public or the press, Kennedy has embarked on a series of print and television interviews. But in an extensive sit-down discussion yesterday morning with The New York Times, she still seemed less like a candidate than an idea of one: eloquent but vague, largely undefined and seemingly determined to remain that way.

Facing a somewhat delicate task, where she is not running for office but seeking an appointment, she avoided questions about the other possible contenders, saying she did not want to criticize them. She praised Hillary Clinton, but said it was too soon to say how she could improve on Clinton's performance as a senator. She said she had been personally affected by the economic crisis but sidestepped questions about her wealth, declining to say how much money she lived on each year.

Kennedy has had only a few weeks to think through a platform and a message. Still, she provided only the broadest of rationales for her candidacy for one of the most storied Senate seats in the country, saying her experience as a mother, author and school fund-raiser, her commitment to public service and her deep political connections had prepared her for the job.

Kennedy has already taken positions on issues like same-sex marriage, which she supports, and school vouchers, which she opposes. But in the interview yesterday, she said she hoped to be a consensus-builder, and declined to describe her positions on some other pressing public issues - even in an area like education, where she has been personally active. Kennedy would not say, for example, whether she supported proposals to abolish tenure for teachers and offer them merit pay instead.

The interview underscored the aura of mystery that still surrounds Kennedy nearly a month after she told Governor David A. Paterson that she was interested in filling Clinton's seat.

New Yorkers appear to have a favorable view of Kennedy and fond memories of her family. But they know little about her positions or what has driven her to seek office after years spent mostly avoiding the spotlight.

And with several weeks to go before Paterson makes his decision, she is doling out glimpses of her political beliefs and private life. But when asked yesterday morning to describe the moment she decided to seek the Senate seat, Kennedy seemed irritated by the question and said she couldn't recall. "You guys ever think about writing for a woman's magazine?" she asked the reporters. "I thought you were the crack political team."

On an appearance Friday night on NY1, Kennedy was more lighthearted, and also more personal. She talked about what she had learned from her family, and how she misses her brother and her mother.

Others whose names have been mentioned for the job include Attorney General Andrew M. Cuomo and members of the state's congressional delegation.