The Massachusetts Republican Party has gone to court in an attempt to stop the appointment of Paul Kirk to the late Ted Kennedy’s Senate seat.
The issue here, the GOP claims, is that Gov. Deval Patrick did not have the constitutional authority to declare the bill empowering him to make an appointment to be an emergency law, thus having it take effect immediately. (For more background on this issue, check out this interview I did a few days ago with a GOP state Senator.)
It’s not clear how much chance of success they have. As the Boston Herald points out, Kirk is scheduled to be sworn in tomorrow. The state GOP’s filing was made this morning, and so far the courts have not responded. But if the courts do end up taking the case, it could have the effect of delaying the appointment, or perhaps even stopping it altogether.
