November 03, 2020 10:00 AM UTC

Bennet Taps Brakes On Cabinet Speculation

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• by: Colorado Pols

As the Denver Post’s Justin Wingerter reports:

U.S. Sen. Michael Bennet said Monday that he doesn’t want to be education secretary — a job he was considered for under the last Democratic president — if Joe Biden is elected president this week.

In an interview, the Denver Democrat and former superintendent of Denver Public Schools said “no” when asked if he was interested in the job, which former President Barack Obama considered nominating him for after the 2008 election…

“My plan is to run for reelection to the Senate, and that’s what I’m going to do,” Bennet said.

We took note in October that Sen. Bernie Sanders was floating interest in serving as Labor Secretary in a Joe Biden White House, which naturally provoked a round of speculation about the suitability of Colorado lawmakers like Sen. Michael Bennet to be called up for administration jobs. There’s a bench full of qualified Democrats ready to take over in the event Bennet or other local officials do get the call, but we can also understand Bennet wanting to remain in the U.S. Senate for a longer period than he would likely serve in the Cabinet by seeking what should be comfortable re-election in 2022.

With that said, like soon-to-be Sen. John Hickenlooper can tell you, people change their minds. After a decade in the Senate, Education Secretary isn’t the only job Bennet would be qualified to fill.