Q&A with Ted Kaufman

Senator Ted Kaufman, D-Del., was selected to replace Senator Joe Biden after his election to the vice presidency. Kaufman said the people he has been able to interact with as a U.S. senator have been "incredible."
Senator Ted Kaufman, D-Del., was selected to replace Senator Joe Biden after his election to the vice presidency. Kaufman said the people he has been able to interact with as a U.S. senator have been "incredible."

Sen.Ted Kaufman, D-Del., was sworn into the Senate Jan. 16, 2009 after being selected to replace Vice President Joe Biden after he was elected. Kaufman, Engineering ’ 60, served as Biden’s chief of staff for 19 years and was the co-chair of Biden’s transition team after his election. Kaufman was serving as a senior lecturing fellow in the School of Law before succeeding Biden. The Chronicle’s Rohan Taneja recently caught up with Sen. Kaufman about his experiences in the Senate.

The Chronicle: What do you remember about your time at Duke, and how did the University help shape you?

Ted Kaufman: I’m an engineer—I received my engineering degree from Duke. What I learned through my engineering education has certainly affected the way I do two things: problem solving and decision-making. As issues [in the Senate] have gotten more and more technical, my background in engineering has been especially helpful. However, many of the most important lessons I learned at Duke didn’t come from inside the classroom. I went to Duke during a time period where many students did not stray far from home. Duke allowed me to engage with brilliant young minds from all over the country. But the single best thing about Duke was that I met my wife, Lynne, and some of our best friends to this day are couples from Duke. I’ve also had the pleasure to teach Duke students in Washington about Congress for the past 20 years. I very much enjoy spending time with Duke students and hope to have the chance to return to the classroom.

TC: How did you react to the news that you had been selected to replace Biden?

TK: It was definitely a huge surprise for me.... Even after 22 years [as a Senate staffer], I never once dreamed about being a Senator.... I was very happy with what I was doing, found it very rewarding and felt like I was making a difference. The thing is, I knew in my mind that I would never run for office.  I gave the offer a lot of thought and consulted with my family and loved ones. But in the end we decided to go for it.

TC: What are your most memorable moments from your term as a senator, and what are you most proud of?

TK: There have been many memorable moments. But the first was definitely the day I was sworn in—going down to the floor of the Senate with Senator Biden and Senator Carper. Then going to the swearing-in celebration with my family and friends who were so pleased that I decided to do this. Other memorable moments include having a bill signed by the president—I’ll never forget going to the White House last spring and watching the president sign a bill that I worked on into law. Participating in the [Justice] Sotomayor hearings. I’ve chaired a number of different hearings with just incredible people: former presidents, secretaries of state, secretaries of defense. All the people I’ve been able to interact with has just been incredible. The ability to go to the Senate floor every week and highlight the work of a federal employee. The work I’ve been able to do in the area of financial reform—specifically in the areas of short selling, addressing “too big to fail” banks and high frequency trading. The chance to play a role in what we’re doing in Pakistan, Afghanistan and Iraq. I have taken three trips to these countries, as well two other trips throughout the Middle East, visiting Israel, Syria and Turkey. Being able to meet with leaders in the Middle East, and trying to work toward solutions to help operations in the region work better, has been extremely rewarding. And a lot of the memorable moments are family-related. Getting to take my oldest granddaughter to the first joint session of Congress where President Obama spoke.

TC: As a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, you had the opportunity to participate in Sotomayor’s confirmation hearing. Could you describe that experience?

TK: I was part of 10 confirmation hearings—almost all of the sitting Justices—during my time with then-Senator Biden. For most of the years I worked for him, he was either Chairman or Ranking Member of the Judiciary Committee. During the Sotomayor hearings, I had the unique opportunity to chair the final panel. This meant I “gaveled out” the confirmation hearing for Justice Sotomayor. I’ve always said that outside of a vote to send troops into harm’s way, the most important vote a senator can cast is for a Supreme Court justice. 

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