Just Another Pretty Face?

She's being described as a 'centrist' Democrat by some. Kirsten Gillibrand, that is, a member of the Blue Dogs and New York Gov Patterson's pick to replace Caroline Kennedy and Hillary Clinton (must be a quota seat). She has a 100 percent rating from the NRA and has come out against drivers licenses for illegal aliens.

But a quick perusal of her background suggests some fairly strong liberal beliefs. She worked at HUD during the Clinton administration. She was strongly against the surge, which can be verified on video. Forward all the way to the last few seconds and you can hear her say, "it was Thomas Jefferson who once said that dissent is the highest form of patriism (sic)."

Oh, and almost forgot the matriarch aspect:

Jonathan Gillibrand, husband of U.S. Rep. Kirsten Gillibrand, finds that odd.

"So it does seem strange that people would be interested in the fact we're going to have a baby," he said. "Which, you know, is great news, and that's what life's all about -- right? But that is a little strange."

The Democratic congresswoman from Greenport announced recently that she and her husband are expecting a child in May, their second.

Mr. Gillibrand, a wealthy venture capitalist, shares at least some of Todd Palin's responsibilities, it would seem.

OK, she seems like an accomplished mom who has strong opinions and a lot of energy and ambition. So let the Sarah Palin treatment begin, right Dems?!

MORE 1/24/09

Here's a roundup from the Times, which includes this scuttlebutt:

Gillibrand . . . won her congressional seat in 2006 due in large part to the Democratic wave and a last-minute news report alleging that the wife of her Republican opponent (the incumbent Rep. John Sweeney) had called police to complain that he was “knocking her around.”

They go on to speculate about the special election to fill her seat being a test for Obama and the Dems, which oddly points out the disparity between filling open House and Senate seats. But the bottom line is that looks and charm go a long way in this world and always have, and always will.