Clearly I have exhausted my interest in politics and political news, for a while at least. I know Obama is busy choosing his cabinet and making lots of appointments, but I’ve paid more attention to the economy, the situation in Mumbai, the holidays, Christmas shopping, and the Black Friday trampling death at Wal-Mart and shooting deaths at Toys R Us. A world gone nuts; so what else is new?
Obama made it official this morning: Hillary Clinton will be his Secretary of State. Offhand I can’t think of anyone better, although I certainly have reservations about the decision, the biggest one being Bill Clinton. It’s difficult to imagine he’ll keep his fingers out of the pie. It’s equally difficult to imagine he’ll sever connections with his worldwide political and charitable activities. Every dollar that flows into his coffers now has the potential to buy influence with the new U.S. Secretary of State.
Hillary, of course, will have her own problems acceding to Obama’s presidential authority. If she can do that, all the while avoiding those pesky snipers in Kosovo, she might make a decent Secretary of State. As a former First Lady, she already knows how to drink tea and make small talk with foreign leaders. Let’s hope she can also get tough and negotiate with them.
And joy of joys, Sarah Palin is back in the Lower 48 campaigning for Saxby Chambliss in Georgia. Ugh. If I never hear her name again, it will be too soon. I don’t want to hear one more fractured sentence from her, or see one more cutsey wink. It’s not that I hate her. I simply find her emotionally and intellectually exhausting. Scary stupid, if you will.
And along those same lines, what’s lame duck Prez George Bush up to these days? I’ve tripped over snippets of news here and there, none of them pleasant or reassuring. It sounds like he is busy pardoning some good ol’ boys in Texas and overruling environmental protections wherever there is a buck to be made by some other good ol’ boys. He’s trying to lock down some agreements in Iraq, which may or may not be what Obama would want, but if they turn out well, you can bet he (Bush) will be taking credit for them.
As for the rest of the world, I don’t have time to address that right now. It’s Cyber Monday and I have some shopping to do.
Oh, that rotten lame-duck. Why can’t we just swear Obama in already?
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I wish we’d sworn him in the day after he was elected. Or at least locked Bush out. This waiting around is agonizing and dangerous.
Please do remember that she is running for president in 2012. 🙂
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You big meanie. You’re just trying to ruin my evening!
I believe this is the best decision that Obama has made thus far. The most important qualification for secretary of state is credibility. You can’t perform diplomacy without credibility; Hillary Clinton certainly has credibility. She knows all the big players in the world and these people have enormous respect for her. Furthermore, her inner circle includes many experienced and able people in the foreign policy area such Albright and Holbrooke. Foggy Bottom will be in good hand.
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It’s an intriguing choice and I have high hopes.