Proposed naming of Oprah Winfrey to Barack Obama's senate seat

In January 2009 then-Governor of Illinois Rod Blagojevich revealed that he had considered naming talk show host Oprah Winfrey as his first choice to fill the United States Senate seat previously occupied by President Barack Obama. His reasons for considering Winfrey were that he viewed her as the person most instrumental in electing Obama as president, and that he viewed her as having more influence than all 100 senators combined which would make her especially formidable in advancing Obama’s agenda. However, when Blagojevich became embroiled in a controversy, he was reluctant to contact Winfrey about his idea out of fear she would turn him down and out of fear that she would perceive his offer as a gimmick and instead decided to appoint former Illinois Attorney General Roland Burris to the seat. When Winfrey learned she was a candidate after the fact, she reacted with amusement, noting that while she was absolutely not interested, she did feel she could be a senator.

Interviews

Good Morning America

On January 26, 2009, Blagojevich first revealed that he had considered appointing Oprah Winfrey to the United States Senate on ABC-TV's Good Morning America. "She seemed to be someone who had helped Barack Obama in a significant way to become president," Blagojevich explained, adding that "she had a much broader bully pulpit than a lot of senators." He was concerned however that "she probably wouldn't take it, and then if you offered it to her, how would you do it in a way it wasn't a gimmick to embarrass her." Blagojevich explained that his consideration of Winfrey was derailed on December 9, 2008, the day he was arrested by the FBI.

Winfrey’s reaction

Winfrey noted that she missed Blagojevich’s Good Morning America appearance because she slept late. "If I had been watching from the treadmill where I'm usually watching, I would have fallen off the treadmill," Winfrey told her friend Gayle King during the Sirius XM radio show Oprah and Friends. Winfrey said she was "pretty amused" by Blagojevich's disclosure, adding, "I think I could be a senator, but I'm not interested”.

Gayle King's reaction

King said it was "so shocking" to hear that Winfrey had a been considered for the Senate seat but added that it was kind of flattering that people felt Winfrey could be a senator.

The View

Also on January 26, 2009, Blagojevich appeared on ABC-TV's The View where he was asked again about his consideration of Winfrey. He explained that Winfrey was appealing because she was "an African-American woman who probably by herself has more influence than 100 senators." One concern he had was "Would she take the call of the governor of Illinois because Oprah is Oprah and I'm only the governor of Illinois."

TMZ

Also on the morning of January 26, TMZ.com posted a video of Blagojevich in New York explaining to one of their reporters why he had considered Winfrey. In this video Blagojevich called Winfrey a "larger than life figure" and a figure so significant that she may not even take the call of the governor of Illinois.

Geraldo Rivera

When Blagojevich was in the parking lot of The View, which he taped that same day, Geraldo Rivera was able to also ask him about his consideration of Winfrey. The clip was played on the Neil Cavuto show, and Blagojevich said Winfrey was “an African-American woman who had been more instrumental in electing Obama president than anybody, and her influence and her bully pulpit probably matching 100 senators combined, I think she would have been a great voice for the Obama agenda, as well as for the American people”.

Larry King Live

Also on January 26, 2009, Blagojevich appeared on Larry King Live where he once again explained details about his interest in giving Obama’s senate seat to Winfrey. He said that the idea originally came from a friend and that he discussed it with senior staff and political advisers. Elaborating further he said:

Blagojevich also explained the difficulty of offering the seat to Winfrey, saying:

On the Record

Also on January 26 2009 Blagojevich appeared on the Fox News program On the Record where he confirmed once again that Winfrey’s name came up in discussions and he took it seriously and discussed ways of approaching her such that the offer wouldn’t appear like a gimmick. Blagojevich once again noted Winfrey’s influence saying “Oprah by herself is worth more than 100 senators, so -- because of her bully pulpit and her -- her following, and -- and so she was talked about in a rather serious way.”

Glenn Beck

On January 29, 2009, Blagojevich was interviewed by Glenn Beck and summarized his reasons for considering Winfrey for the seat:

Reaction

Political commentary

Political analyst Chris Matthews praised Blagojevich's idea of making Winfrey a senator suggesting that in one move it would diversify the Senate and raise its collective IQ. Elaborating further, he said:

Lynn Sweet of the Chicago Sun Times agreed with Mathews, claiming Winfrey would be “terrific” and an “enormously popular pick.”

Pop cultural commentary

Shortly after Blagojevich asserted that Winfrey was more powerful than the entire U.S. Senate, A.J. Hammer, co-host of the HLN (formerly known as CNN Headline News) program Showbiz Tonight, decided to hold a panel discussion (which aired January 27), debating that very assertion. His panelists were anchor Ashleigh Banfield and model Roshumba Williams. Banfield argued that the senate had military and law making powers that Winfrey lacked, but that Winfrey was powerful enough to elect to Barack Obama. Williams added: “But the fact that she personally single-handedly got us to vote for Barack Obama and he is the first African-American president of the United States, that is huge.”

Reaction from Senator Roland Burris

On the Neil Cavuto show, Senator Roland Burris was asked how he felt about the news that Winfrey was perhaps the first choice for the senate seat he occupied. Burris said the following: