Kirsten Gillibrand

ALBANY, NEW YORK - JANUARY 23: U.S. Rep. Kirs...Image by Getty Images via DaylifeSo we have a new senator here in NY, replacing Hillary Clinton. Her name is Kirsten Gillibrand and honestly, I've never heard of her before the announcement yesterday. Fortunately, The NY Times did a long piece on her today and I learned quite a bit about our new senator.

She's a "centrist democrat" (good) from a largely republican district (also good). I don't agree with everything she's for (she gets a 100% approval rating from the NRA), but I agree with her on most stuff.

But when I read this, I knew I am going to like her:

In Washington, Ms. Gillibrand has made a calling card of transparency,
posting a “Sunlight Report” on her Congressional Web site that lists
her meetings with lobbyists as well as the names of those seeking
government grants known as earmarks. Some senior colleagues, in a club
where such names are often considered state secrets, complain that this
tended to make them look bad.

I sure hope the "sunlight report" survives her move from the House to the Senate. Making her colleagues look bad is the first step to making them copy her.

We need people in government who aren't afraid to be transparent and tell everyone who cares what they think, who is lobbying them, and why.

I think I'm going to like our new senator. I hope I get a chance to meet her soon.

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Comments (Archived):

  1. awilensky

    she is from Saratoga Springs, that’s all I need to know. People from that upstate area are all honest to a fault.

  2. Alex R

    Hi Fred,It sounds like Obama and Gillibrand are cut from the same “transparent” cloth… Maybe she’ll have a blog and feed, just like Whitehouse.gov!

  3. Dave

    Thank goodness Ms. Kennedy didn’t take the seat. Nothing against her personally, but every politician who gains power merely on the basis of their name and relationships weakens our democracy. Think of how many examples we have: GW Bush, Hillary Clinton, (to some extent) Mitt Romney and even Gov Patterson. Enough is enough.

  4. fredwilson

    Good idea

  5. sean

    I agree, Transparency is definitely key moving forward. Actually, I have an idea to promote workplace transparency that I’m going to try to organize this year:a national -Take Your Customer to Work DayMaybe I should try to get Kirsten on board.

  6. pauljacobson

    Transparency becomes the new political buzzword

  7. jer979

    This is a win in more ways than one. Had Kennedy received the post based on name/money/pedigree, it would have sent a very wrong message.

  8. Chris

    Gillibrand is under pressure from Schumer to make her conservative ‘core” values more palatable to urban areas. In doing so, she will lose the people who got her to Washington in the first place. Then, if she wants to stay there , she will need Schumer’s voter base. If She resists, Schumer will back her opponent in a primary.

  9. Michael C. Wales

    please reafrm HR 3423

  10. kaytim

    don’t let the nra endorsment scare you. it shows she knows that most so called gun control only makes it easier for criminals to have guns. & leave lawabiding citizens in harms way

  11. shawn

    its about time we have a senator in new york that represents more than just the city!