Guardian Newspaper Reports Clinton to Accept Sec. of State Post
 Printer-friendly
|
 Email article |
Related subjects: In the Loop, Media, U.S. Politics, Vote 2008 Comments Off
Rumors have been swirling for a little under a week that Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-NY) has been offered the position of Secretary of State by her former rival, the US president-elect Barack Obama. Now, the Guardian newspaper is reporting, even as msot media continue to focus on the vetting of former Pres. Bill Clinton’s financial dealings, that “Hillary Clinton plans to accept the job of secretary of state offered by Barack Obama“.
The bestselling Lincoln biography by Doris Kearns Goodwin, Team of Rivals, known to be a favorite tome of the president-elect, has given rise to the most recent pundits’ parlor-game, the speculation about how Obama will fill a cabinet with competing voices, strong personalities, and even heated political rivalries. Known for his demand of discipline and emotional equilibrium, Obama’s attempt to fashion a potent ‘team of rivals’ that operates with the same focus and organization as his campaign will be a fascinating test of political skill.
At the moment, there is no clear indication that Obama has officially offered the position to Clinton or that Clinton has affirmatively accepted the post. It appears that some difficult accomodations may have to be made by her husband, before she could be officially brought into the Obama cabinet, namely curbing his very aggressive charity work with the Clinton Global Initiative, which some people describe as a shadow UN for humanitarian and development work.
[ad#cafsen-intext]
As the Guadian reports:
As part of the coalition-building, Obama yesterday also reached out to his defeated Republican rival, John McCain, to discuss how they could work together to roll back some of the most controversial policies of the Bush years. Putting aside the bitter words thrown about with abandon by both sides during the election campaign, McCain flew to meet Obama at his headquarters in the Kluczynski Federal Building, in downtown Chicago.
Obama has shown himself to be committed to the idea of reaching out to those who differ with him, and plans to build on his track-record of “reaching across the aisle” to bring Republicans to the table and craft significant bipartisan initiatives, as with death-penalty reform and measures to curb predatory lending in Illinois, and ethics reform and nuclear non-proliferation in the US Senate.
Former Republican senator Chuck Hagel is often mentioned as a likely Republican for an Obama cabinet post, and there has been much speculation about the potential political capital to be gained if Obama makes such a gesture. With Henry Kissinger and Texas senator Jon Kyl calling Clinton an excellent choice for Secretary of State, Obama has been encourage across the media to view Clinton as a potential asset to his administration, while others see senatorial electoral and procedural math as key.
The Guardian story suggests the offer has been made and is in the works, that Clinton will accept and be named the first high-level appointee for Obama’s administration. She may officially accept sometime today or tomorrow, but details are sketchy, and Café Sentido has not been able to confirm or refute the Guardian report. The work of vetting the vetting and reporting the unreported now falls to the journalists swarming around the president-elect and his team.
| Printer-friendly
|
Email article |
CafeSentido Partner Sites: