< Back to Front Page Text size – +

New Senate sworn in

Posted by Foon Rhee, deputy national political editor January 6, 2009 12:17 PM

kerryswearingin.jpg
(US Senate)

Senator John F. Kerry takes the oath of office from Vice President Dick Cheney.

While most attention is on the two US Senate seats that remain vacant, it's a big day for the 98 senators who are there.

Nine new senators are taking the oath of office today, including Jeanne Shaheen, the former New Hampshire governor who ousted Republican incumbent John Sununu Jr. in November.

John F. Kerry is starting his fifth term as the junior senator from Massachusetts. Much of his attention will be on the opportunities and challenges abroad as he takes the gavel as chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

UPDATE: “I am excited about the work ahead in this new Congress," Kerry said in a statement after his swearing-in. "We’ve got a partner for Massachusetts with Barack Obama in the White House and Teddy and I now get to serve with larger Democratic majorities in Congress, which means we’ll have the votes to create jobs, get better health care, end the war in Iraq and give veterans what they deserve. I’m especially honored to serve as Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. I know that we can do a lot of good on the committee to strengthen America’s hand in Afghanistan and Pakistan, work towards global climate change solutions, and make America stronger and safer in the world. I’m eager to get started.”

The senior senator from the Bay State, Edward M. Kennedy, is in the middle of his eighth term. Battling brain cancer, Kennedy's focus will be on healthcare, in particular moving toward universal coverage that would bring in the estimated 47 million Americans without insurance.

  • CommentComment
  • EmailEmail
» Back to Front Page
.

My God continue to bless you Senator Kennedy

Posted by MeMe January 6, 09 04:21 PM
add your comment *(If you put a URL in your comment, it must be relevant )
Required
Required (will not be published)

This blogger might want to review your comment before posting it.

About Political Intelligence

Reports from Boston Globe reporters and editors about the transition to the new administration and other national political happenings.

Send your comments to masspolitics@globe.com

see all Globe blogs

News from the Washington Bureau

Democrats, Obama disagree on F-22 spending

WASHINGTON - From the economic recovery plan to healthcare reform and creating clean-energy jobs, Representative Paul Hodes has been among President Obama’s staunchest supporters in Congress. (Globe Staff, 12 a.m.)

Mass. health overhaul offers lessons for US program

WASHINGTON - A fear that employers will drop private coverage and dump their workers onto federally subsidized health plans is a major concern among lawmakers crafting healthcare legislation on Capitol Hill, leading House Democrats to propose stiff financial penalties for businesses that don’t contribute to employee premiums. (Globe Staff, 7/10/09)

Liberian’s war-crimes testimony may shed light on Plymouth jailbreak

WASHINGTON - It has been a mystery for more than two decades how Charles G. Taylor, Liberia’s former president, broke out of Plymouth County Correctional Facility in 1985, starting a journey that ultimately made him one of Africa’s most notorious strongmen. (Globe Staff, 7/10/09)

In health bill, billions for parks, paths

WASHINGTON - Sweeping healthcare legislation working its way through Congress is more than an effort to provide insurance to millions of Americans without coverage. Tucked within is a provision that could provide billions of dollars for walking paths, streetlights, jungle gyms, and even farmers’ markets. (Globe Staff, 7/9/09)
Reporter's notebook

To a young reporter, McNamara was a plain-spoken observer of US affairs

WASHINGTON - To a reporter fresh out of college hired to cover the Pentagon for a little-known newsletter, Robert S. McNamara was nearly a mythical figure. (Globe Staff, 7/7/09)

More female veterans are winding up homeless

WASHINGTON - The number of female service members who have become homeless after leaving the military has jumped dramatically in recent years, according to new government estimates, presenting the Veterans Administration with a challenge as it struggles to accommodate the hundreds of thousands of returning veterans from Iraq and Afghanistan. (Globe Staff, 7/5/09)

Healthcare overhaul could limit tax breaks on benefits

WASHINGTON - For the secretaries and environmental engineers, game wardens and van drivers who work for the state of New Hampshire, surgery is free, even at Boston’s top teaching hospitals if it’s necessary. So are MRIs, CT scans, and X-rays. (Globe Staff, 7/4/09)

Obama confronts skeptics on healthcare, pledges action

ANNANDALE, Va. - President Obama, pledging to overhaul healthcare this year despite divisions in Congress and the public, took on his skeptics directly yesterday, seeking to assure patients that their costs would not increase and that they would not be victims of a “government takeover.’’ (Globe Staff, 7/2/09)

Consumers likely to face increased bank costs

WASHINGTON - An array of government-created insurance agencies - which have long charged bargain-rate premiums to banks, credit unions, and brokerages - are seeking to make up for massive shortfalls in their insurance funds by raising fees and premiums, many of which are likely to be passed on to consumers. (Globe Staff, 7/2/09)

Supreme Court rules in favor of Conn. firefighters

WASHINGTON - A sharply divided US Supreme Court ruled yesterday in favor of a group of white firefighters who accused the city of New Haven of racial discrimination, potentially making it much harder for employers to bring racial balance to the workplace, while handing ammunition to critics of high court nominee Sonia Sotomayor on the eve of her confirmation hearings. (Globe Staff, 6/30/09)
archives