Hillary Clinton, Secretary of State?
Huffington Post reports that President-Elect Obama offered Hillary Clinton the Secretary of State job. Jake Tapper at Political Punch captures the Clinton-for-Sec. buzz as well.
I'm not so sure this is a good idea. Yeah, I know Team of Rivals. But it's Hillary. And it's Hillary and Bill all over again. Slate thinks Richard Holbrooke would be the better choice. Do we really need a diva in the State Department? Wouldn't Hillary try to overshadow Obama? Or is this some stroke of genius? I don't think this has anything to do with Obama attempting to placate Hillary primary voters.
Huffpo writes:
The offer shows that the Obama team is, in fact, serious about bringing all types of political officials -- former foes included -- into its governing tent. During the Democratic primary, Clinton was often accused by aides to Obama of inflating or over-dramatizing her foreign policy experience.
As for Clinton, the Secretary of State post offers her tremendous responsibilities as well as a national platform from which, theoretically, she could launch a second White House run. But it also takes her away from the domestic issues, like health care reform, that she seemed poised to tackle as one of the Senate's leading Democrats.
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7:30 pm
Hillary Clinton, Secretary of State?
Huffington Post, Magic Oracle of the Future?
Washington City Paper, Pulitzer Prize?
10:23 pm
Washington City Paper, flush with cash?
9:01 pm
Barack Obama’s decision to offer Hillary Clinton the Secretary of State post could well turn out to be his first major blunder, for these obvious reasons:
First, there’s the inseparable bond with her husband Bill. Given the duo’s unquenchable thirst for power, they would not be content to play second fiddle. From day one they would be scheming to usurp control of the White House. Once they get a foothold, Obama would be hard-pressed to rein them in.
Then, there’s the Clintons’ long history of corruption, deception and sleaze—Whitewatergate, Pardongate, Cattle-futuresgate, Chinagate, Filegate, Fellatiogate, the impeachment and near conviction, the punitive IRS audits, the violent deaths of potentially incriminating witness. This alone would provide Obama’s enemies with all the grime they needed to smear his presidency.
Consider further that unlike a Condoleezza Rice or a Madelaine Albright—not to mention bona fide statesmen like Henry Kissinger, Dean Rusk and John Foster Dulles--Hillary Clinton lacks the educational and cultural gravitas to represent our nation abroad. Her lawyering in Arkansas and stint in Congress doesn’t quite cut it. She did get 18 million votes in the Democratic primaries, probably more than Obama, but a large proportion of those votes were cast by diehard feminists and the less educated, hardly the constituency whose support lends credibility to a Secretary of State.
Barack Obama should recall the reasons why he didn’t choose Hillary as his VP running mate. For his and the nation’s sake, let us hope that she doesn’t accept his Secretary of State offer.