President Barack Obama reached across the aisle on Feb. 3 and announced U.S. Sen. Judd Gregg (R-N.H.) as his selection for Commerce Secretary. N.H. Gov. John Lynch, a Democrat, wasted no time in appointing Republican Bonnie Newman as Gregg’s Senate replacement that same day.

When Obama first requested that Gregg join his administration, the senior senator said he would not resign his seat if it changed the balance of the Senate. Lynch agreed to appoint a Republican to replace him. If Gregg is confirmed as Commerce Secretary, Newman will fill his Senate seat until the term expires in 2010.

Although Newman has never before held an elected office, she is a familiar face in New Hampshire and Washington, D.C. She was a congressional staff member to then Congressman Gregg in the early 1980s, and later served as assistant secretary of commerce for economic development, associate director of the Office of White House Personnel, and assistant to the president for management and administration.

Newman is also a former president of the New Hampshire Business and Industry Association. She was executive director of New Hampshire’s Forum on the Future and, more recently, served as interim president of the University of New Hampshire.

In a press release, Lynch said he was confident that Newman would serve in a bipartisan manner on behalf of the people of New Hampshire. “I have full confidence that as a member of the U.S. Senate, Bonnie’s decisions will be thoughtful and reasoned, governed not by partisanship but by what she believes is in the best interests of New Hampshire and the nation,” he said.

Newman said she will not run for U.S. Senate in 2010, nor will she endorse any other candidate. But she vowed to work with members of both parties over the next two years. “For me, this assignment is not about politics and business as usual. It is about governing,” she said. “And I believe that seldom in the history of our nation has the task of governing been more important or more challenging.”

Gregg applauded Newman’s appointment and expressed appreciation to Lynch for enabling him to accept Obama’s request. U.S. Rep. Carol Shea-Porter, a Democrat from Rochester, also applauded the selection of Newman to the Senate and Gregg to the presidential administration.
During an announcement ceremony in Washington, D.C., on Feb. 3, Obama praised Gregg for his fiscal discipline and his willingness to work with both parties. As Commerce Secretary, the president said, Gregg will be responsible for helping the nation take urgent action to correct a crippling financial and economic crisis.

Gregg said he would be committed to creating jobs by promoting industry, economic activity and excellence in science. “This is not a time for partisanship. This is not a time when we should stand in our ideological corners and shout at each other. This is a time to govern and govern well,” Gregg said at the announcement.

U.S. Rep. Paul Hodes, a Democrat representing the state’s second Congressional District, has reportedly shown interest in running for U.S. Senate in 2010.