Cindy McCain, with Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey, who could appoint her to serve the remainder
of her late husband's Senate term. (Ross D. Franklin / AP)
Following the death of Senator John McCain on Saturday August 25th, 2018, their was speculation that the governor of Arizona, Doug Ducey would appoint McCain's wife: Cindy McCain, to the vacant Senate seat. This has been seen as controversial because Cindy McCain does not share some of John's views on important topics such as gay marriage and abortion. Current governor Ducey called out his far right opposition for governor, Ken Bennet, for tweeting "I promise I will not appoint Cindy McCain to US Senate as Gov of AZ" on May 31st, before McCain had passed. It was reported that Ducey will announce the appointment following John McCain's funeral on Sunday.
Per law, Ducey's Senate appointment will serve until 2020 when another Senator can be elected. This elected Senator will finish McCain's term which ends in 2024. With lots of important legislation coming up in the senate, who ever Ducey appoints has potential to heavily influence the Senate since the current Republican to Democrat count is 50 - 49 right now. As of now, the Republicans do not have a majority.
Discussion Questions:
- Do you think that Ducey should appoint Cindy McCain or a politician whose political views are closer in line with John McCain's?
- What effects do you think the Republican's lack of a majority in the senate will have on the public policy in the week leading up to the new appointment?
Ducey should appoint a politician whose political views are closer in line with John McCain in order to more likely secure a Democratic senator in 2020. If Ducey were to appoint Cindy McCain, he would receive backlash from Ken Bennet and the Arizona constituency, possibly eliminating the chance of a Democratic senator from taking office in 2020. The Republican's lack of a majority in the senate will have little to no effect in the week leading up to the new government. For decisions other than an insignificant nuclear option, senators from both parties need to agree in order for any change to occur.
ReplyDeleteI think that the Republicans lack of majority will hurt the GOP in making many decisions, especially regarding the person that they will elect to take John McCain's spot. As for who they should elect (if they elect anyone), I think Cindy McCain would be a good choice, since she and her husband probably shared political views. This would result in basically no drastic change in the political atmosphere, which is great since someone radical shouldn't instantly get a bunch of power.
ReplyDeleteAppointing a politician with views that are similar to John McCain, because whoever is appointed is still considered a replacement. And with Cindy McCain and John McCain having different political views, it might not be lined to what former senator McCain would to come to. I think that the lack of Republican majority will hurt them, because even though the difference is not as big one vote could change any decision making.
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ReplyDeleteI agree with Noah that Cindy McCain would be a good choice to fill John McCain's Senate seat. Although she does not have the same political experience as Senator McCain, Cindy McCain is a business woman, successfully running the Hensley Beverage Company, and a co-chair of two human-trafficking councils. As a member of the Senate, she would be able to appropriately represent her husband's legacy and also continue to pursue her own advocacy agenda against human trafficking. I think that the Republican's lack of a majority in the Senate will worry members of the GOP to a small degree; McCain was considered a less reliable Republican vote than most other members of his party, so while the imbalance may cause concern, I believe that it will not be too significant.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Rithik in the sense that someone with closer views to John McCain should be chosen to fill his spot. Cindy McCain is, however, still a great choice as she is politically aware and may still have some of the same opinions about certain policies as her husband. Moreover, even if the Republicans lose the majority after Cindy McCain is appointed, it will not result in major changes in public policy as there is going to have to be one Republican voting with the Democrats in order for it to happen. Nonetheless, after the Cindy McCain appointment, the Republicans may be hurt more as Cindy may agree with the Democratic side more often than John McCain may have leading to the DNC having the majority only some of the time. On the other hand, if someone who had closer views to John McCain was appointed, the Senate may be filled over and over with filibusters which would lead to less change in public policy. In the grand scheme of things, appointing Cindy McCain would lead to the Republicans eventually wanting to elect someone with stronger GOP views when they can. Thus, she may be replaced, in the end, anyway. However, her views may sway either way which means she could possibly be reelected when the time comes. Ultimately, she is basically like a swing vote, in my opinion, as she could sway either way on any public policy decision, but no matter the case, I agree with Mayuko and Noah in the sense that it wouldn’t lead to much change at all.
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