Q&A #4: The Post-Terry Murray Senate


“Jordanne” asks via email:

The rumor is that Terry Murray is leaving in December, and that Rosenberg will assume the senate presidency. What happens to the old Guard Murray leadership team vs the new progressives who just stormed the castle? What will be the fallout for the old Guard and who will replace who?

Just to be clear, you can pretty much pick a month and expect rumors that the Senate president will retire then. As far as I know, she’d like to have her next gig lined up before she goes, and I haven’t heard anything solid about that next gig. So, who knows.

Anyway, yes, Stan Rosenberg will take over and install a new leadership team. Not clear to me how that’s going to look, but as I have previously suggested, I think there’s a decent chance that Anthony Petruccelli gets the highly coveted Ways & Means Chair currently held by Stephen Brewer. There’s a rumor going around that current president pro tem Richard Moore will not even run for re-election, but I am assured he will return and try to make good with the new regime. Karen Spilka is another one from current leadership who will probably need to accept demotion and try to make the best of it. I think her poor showing in the congressional primary rules out the statewide run she was apparently interested in.

I really don’t know much more than that at this point. My guess is that—assuming Murray leaves in the next few months rather than serving out her term—Rosenberg does a two-phase shake-up: some rearranging at the top immediately for the second half of the session, and then a more thorough reassigning of positions and committees at the start of 2015. That will allow some of the older guard time to show that they’ll be team players before that second wave.

 

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