Russ??!!!

Here are the top Democrats, by seniority, on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee:

1. Biden
2. Dodd
3. Kerry
4. Feingold

Biden is, you know, going to be the VP; Dodd has said he's remaining chair of the Banking Committee; and that leaves Kerry, who is trying to get himself to be Secretary of State or maybe UN ambassador (Al Kamen says today that it is "looking increasingly like" Kerry may get State). Last week, The Hill suggested that if Kerry leaves the Senate, the Dems could potentially skip over Feingold for the chairmanship, but John Nichols counters today that "Feingold's relations with Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nevada, and other key players in the Senate and on the committee are good. The Wisconsinite actually has better relations with many of the Republicans on the committee than other Democrats."

So will Kerry get Secretary of State? It could also be Hagel, Lugar, Clinton, Richardson or someone else entirely. Please, someone other than Richard Holbrooke.