Wednesday, November 14, 2007

UPDATE: As noted in his comment, Matt makes the useful point that Reed named some of the other Dems without specifically including Obama. 

. . .

US Senator Jack Reed, who has previously ruled out the prospect of his becoming secretary of defense in a Democratic White House, remains publicly uncommitted in the Democratic presidential race.

This was one of the more interesting tidbits to emerge from last weekend's special broadcast from DC of 10 News Conference. In contrast to his Senate colleague Sheldon Whitehouse -- who, like much of the Democratic establishment in RI and elsewhere, is backing Hillary Clinton -- Reed talked up the entire Democratic field and says he is anticipating the primary season with interest.

Reed, of course, has worked in the with many of the Democratic candidates (he said he's less familiar with Mike Gravel, the former senator from Alaska) in the Senate, one of the more collegial of legislative bodies, and he's also facing reelection next year. This combination, along with the senator's somewhat cautious approach, likely explain his decision to avoid an endorsement for now.