[Johns:] Quite a house it is too. Welcome back to the Most Politics in the Morning. Now, just 18 days until inauguration day, the Obamas are back on the mainland in the U.S. this morning after their Hawaii vacation. They will be in Washington this weekend, a very early arrival for an incoming president. Rahm Emanuel plans to resign his congressional seat today. He'll officially become Barack Obama's White House chief of staff in 18 days. Illinois's fifth congressional district will have a special election to replace him. Could Bill Clinton be a Senate seat warmer? The former president is one of the big names being circulated as a replacement for his wife Hillary in New York. CNN's Deb Feyerick has the tale of the tape for all the contenders.
[Deborah Feyerick, Cnn Correspondent:] Kiran, Joe, imagine it. Senator Bill Clinton, why not? So many qualified people want to be appointed to the Senate seat Hillary Clinton will leave when she's likely confirmed secretary of state. The question becomes why not put in a placeholder, a seat warmer, someone with the political clout let's say of Bill Clinton. This way the public can vote in two years who should hold the seat for the long run.
[Feyerick:] They are big named New Yorkers. Caroline Kennedy, Andrew Cuomo, Carolyn Maloney and others, all jockeying to fill the state's soon to be empty seat and the stakes are high.
[Stu Rothenberg, The Rothenberg Political Report:] There usually is a lot of turnover. Yes, particularly in New York where there are so many visible personalities or so much media coverage, I don't think it's a surprise.
[Feyerick:] Which could be why Democratic Party advisers cited by the "Associated Press" suggest New York's governor, David Paterson, consider a seat warmer. Someone to level the playing field among so many qualified people and, instead, fill the Senate seat for two years while the others face each other in a special election. In Delaware, the governor made just that choice, appointing a longtime Joe Biden adviser.
[Gov. Ruth Ann Minner , Delaware:] In 2010, it should be the voters of the state without impact from anyone who decides who Delaware's U.S. senator will be.
[Feyerick:] In New York, names bandied about as possible Senate seat warmers include former President Bill Clinton who has said categorically he's not interested. Or former New York Governor Mario Cuomo, whose son, state Attorney General Andrew Cuomo is a contender. Governor Paterson Thursday denied he's considering an interim senator.
[Gov. David Paterson , New York:] I'm actually opposed to that. It would cause New York to lose seniority. And in the United States Senate, the most effective senators are the ones that have seniority.
[Feyerick:] Political observer Charlton McIlwain says any pick the governor makes is likely to be controversial.
[Charlton Mcilwain, Prof. Of Communications, New York University:] The idea is if these people could get in there and make a good start, in two years run again. And if they are re-elected could really build on something that they have already started rather than simply having someone to sit there and just sort of fill time for two years.
[Feyerick:] Don't forget, anyone not appointed to the Senate could run for governor against Paterson, something he has to consider. As for Delaware, some political insiders suggest the two year placeholder will enable Joe Biden's Beau Biden to run for Senate after he returns from duty in Iraq next September Kiran, Joe.
[Chetry:] All right. Deb Feyerick for us. Thanks. Well, "Vanity Fair" taking an inside look at the Bush presidency through an oral history of many who were there. What went right, what went wrong. Some straight answers right from the White House. It's 23 minutes after the hour.
[Johns:] A new year's celebration ruined.
[Unidentified Female:] It was a really good party and then this tragic thing happened.
[Johns:] A cruise ship employee reported overboard. The search and rescue mission underway in the Atlantic Ocean. You're watching the Most News in the Morning.