It’s official. The U.S. Senate seniority rankings are out. And who has the lowest seniority of all 100 U.S. Senators? Pete Ricketts of Nebraska. Seniority is important. This is because it is a key factor in determining committee assignments and committee chairmanships.
Nebraska’s position on the U.S. Senate seniority list could have moved higher had Pete Ricketts and Ben Sasse put the good of the Cornhusker State ahead of their own personal interests and schedules.
Had they put Nebraska first, Sen. Ben Sasse could have resigned as U.S. Senator and Pete Ricketts as Nebraska Governor anytime before January 3rd.
Had they put Nebraska first, Sen. Ben Sasse could have resigned as U.S. Senator and Pete Ricketts as Nebraska Governor anytime before January 3rd. Mike Foley (who would have thereupon become Governor) could then have appointed Pete Ricketts as Nebraska’s new Senator before all the other states’ new Senators took office on January 3rd.
The result: Pete Ricketts would have been 93rd in Senate seniority instead of 100th, thus putting him ahead of the new senators from Pennsylvania, Ohio, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Missouri, Vermont and Alabama.
This is another sad example of elected officials tending to their own interests rather than those of Nebraska and its citizens.
