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America's royal family might be stepping aside, said Julian Zelizer in _The Daily Beast_. Caroline Kennedy, citing personal reasons, has withdrawn her name from contention to succeed
Hillary Clinton, now secretary of state, in the Senate. It was looking like Kennedy's name would be enough to win Gov. David Paterson's appointment, but, judging from the protests
of many New Yorkers, perhaps "picking a politician based on a dynasty" isn't the best way to go. The Kennedy family's place in American politics is secure, said Glenn
Thrush and Ben Smith in _Politico_. But the state of New York is on thin ice. Kennedy—whom Barack Obama wanted in the Senate—might have withdrawn because Paterson was going to pick someone
else. "The slow, humiliating, public road to that rebuff" could hurt the state's standing with the Obama White House just when states are clamoring for billions in federal
aid. So maybe that's where Kennedy can get involved, said Michael Daly in the New York _Daily News_. Caroline made her first real foray into politics because she saw in now-President
Barack Obama "her father's spirit," and she must feel even more eager to help after her uncle Ted collapsed on inauguration day. She can still serve by acting as her needy
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