The Hiller Instinct: Brown overwhelmed?

How could he not be overwhelmed?

He is the nation's newest senator, and newest celebrity.

He's only been in Washington two weeks, but that's long enough for him to be surprised.

“Who have you met that impressed you more than you thought?” Hiller asked.

“Senator Kerry,” Sen. Brown said. “I usually have a pretty good sixth sense and I know we won't always agree on things, but I think there will be an unusual respect that people won't expect.”

Brown has also been in Washington long enough to be attacked by Democrats.

First, Patrick Kennedy called his candidacy “a joke.”

“It's unfortunate that he says that. I think he regrets it,” Sen. Brown said.

Then, the vice president questioned his knowledge of how the military treats terrorists.

“He's wrong. I know military law; I'm a military attorney. I've been in the military thirty years,” Sen. Brown said.

“Are democrats trying to type cast you as in over your head or, even worse, as not being smart enough for the job?” Hiller asked.

“I'm a target. I’m always going to be a target. I'm a Republican in Massachusetts. I'm kind of used to it,” Sen. Brown responded.

Brown is also getting used to being a target on national TV. A recent Saturday Night Live skit poked fun of his past as a Cosmopolitan centerfold. “I had to watch it four or five times because I couldn't stop laughing, Sen. Brown said. “I was actually swimming underwater a few days later. I almost drowned, I was laughing so hard.”

“You have to have a sense of humor in politics, as you know.”

Scott Brown relishes his role as a potential game-changer in Washington—so much, that he may like his new job even more than his truck.

Well, maybe not that much. But, still, a lot.

I’m Andy Hiller, and that’s my instinct.

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