Young Joe Kennedy III won't run for Congress

Posted on Saturday, February 27, 2010 at 06:37 PM

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Despite earlier reports that he was ready and set to go, Joseph P. Kennedy III will not seek election to Rep. William Delahunt’s seat, the Barnstable County, Massachusetts, assistant district attorney said.

"Where I’m at right now is I’ve got a job that I love and a place that I enjoy," he said.

Delahunt has said he is considering retiring from Congress when his term ends this year. Kennedy, 29, said he will not run no matter what Delahunt decides.

Although the Kennedy family is often considered the king-making political power in the state, the young Kennedy said the decision was his.

“My family in particular knows the decision to run for office is a very personal one,” he said. “They’ve been very supportive as I’ve been trying to think about it. It was my decision alone.”

Kennedy, a former Peace Corps member, has been very active in state Democratic circles since first coming on the scene in 2006 when he and his twin brother, Matt, co-chaired the late Sen. Edward Kennedy’s last Senate campaign. At times, he has been with Delahunt at 10th District events, fueling rumors that he was interested in running.

Democratic political consultant Michael O'Shea said Kennedy would have been the natural front-runner.

"Any time a Kennedy gets into a race, everybody better think twice," he told the Boston Globe.

"You are running against history, against a legacy, while at the same time you are trying to tell people who you are. The Kennedy name has immediate cachet with Democrats."

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clonmel21 | Mar 02, 2010, 09:26 AM EST

Go away kennedys

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PatrickLee | Mar 01, 2010, 09:17 PM EST

Good -- No Caroline, No Joe. woo woo

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willieboy | Mar 01, 2010, 07:34 PM EST

Oh Well one less Kennedy at the trough.

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FastEddy | Mar 01, 2010, 12:28 PM EST

Another Taxsucking Kennedy bites it.

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chesapeake | Mar 01, 2010, 09:19 AM EST

And another one bites the dust, The public is starting to realize that the name alone does not qualify for holdsing public office - especially when you know that they are all rubber-stamp liberals.

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Monsoonman | Feb 28, 2010, 07:39 PM EST

A good decision for the lad and the country. We need a respite from the kennedys for a generation or two...We just can't afford another kennedy.

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rcrdskpr@aol.com | Feb 28, 2010, 05:15 PM EST

dont the kennedys believe in working for a living.

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Temerity | Feb 28, 2010, 05:04 PM EST

Well I don't know about that Madeleine but I was about to pass when I saw his picture and thought hey he looks good.Mnnn.and did a double take. Then he turned out to be a Kennedy and well accomplished at that and that is the Kennedy Heritage! just as JFK had "It".The whole family is part of it even in bits and pieces it melds into the nearest thing to America's "Royal Family". Trust me a Kennedy IS a force to be reckoned with in American politics.It will be interesting,anyway.

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Monsoonman | Feb 28, 2010, 01:12 PM EST

There is an entrenched political machine in the northeast, aided and abetted by tax payer funded groups that have innocuous names like ACORN, New York Communities for Change, Alliance of Californians for Community Empowerment,etc., that right now are determining how many votes young kennedy will win by.

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Madeleine | Feb 27, 2010, 11:41 PM EST

This is not a Monarchy, this is not a legacy, this is not something they are entitled to because there name is Kennedy. As far as I know the Kennedy legacy is not that great with the exception of JFK.

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