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New US administration tilts towards hawks
By Ed Luce in Washington
Published: December 1 2008 20:17 | Last updated: December 1 2008 21:00
Barack Obama put the finishing touches on Monday on the senior echelons of his forthcoming administration, with Hillary Clinton, his former rival, topping the roll call of announcements.
The flurry of appointments, which included the former first lady as secretary of state and Robert Gates to stay as Pentagon chief, filled in a picture of an administration that will look strong on experience and will tilt towards the hawkish wing of the Democratic party.
Describing his team as representing the “very best of the American example”, Mr Obama, who will take the oath of office next month, said they all shared a similar governing philosophy.
“They share my pragmatism about the use of power, and my sense of purpose about America’s role as a leader in the world,” he said.
At a press conference in Chicago on Monday, a smiling president-elect conceded that the media were likely “to have a lot of fun” with comments that he and Mrs Clinton had made about each other during the campaign.
Of these, perhaps the most amusing in hindsight were the attacks Mr Obama made on the foreign policy credentials of the woman he has chosen to be his country’s face to the world.
With some relish, the Obama campaign poured cold water on Mrs Clinton’s claim to have played an important role in helping to solve the conflicts in Northern Ireland and Bosnia and her assertion that her travels to more than 80 countries as first lady amounted to foreign policy experience.
With even greater relish, Mr Obama dismissed Mrs Clinton’s resumé as amounting to little more than having had tea with a lot of leaders at various ambassadorial residences.
“When your entire campaign is based upon a claim of experience, it is important that you have evidence to support that claim,” Mr Obama said at the time. “Hillary Clinton’s argument . . . is simply not supported by her record.”
Proving that politics is one thing and governing another, Mr Obama made it clear on Monday that Mrs Clinton was his first choice to be the senior US diplomat. “I have always believed that she is tough and smart and disciplined,” he said.
The relaxed body language between the two former rivals reinforced the impression that, on this occasion, Mr Obama meant what he said. Having spoken at dozens of rallies on behalf of Mr Obama during the general election – far beyond what was expected – Mrs Clinton proved she was a “trooper” in the often-repeated description of Obama officials.
The question now is whether the former first lady can work effectively for Mr Obama on a day-to-day basis.
Insisting she has a stellar track record of working with former adversaries, Mrs Clinton’s supporters point to her close working relationship with Lindsey Graham, the Republican lawmaker who spearheaded efforts to impeach her husband in 1999 over the Monica Lewinsky scandal.
“She is a very pragmatic person who went out of her way in the Senate not only to befriend former enemies but to work closely with them and, if necessary, play second fiddle,” said a close friend of Mrs Clinton.
David Rothkopf, a former official in the Clinton administration, said: “Hillary is a consummate team player – she has a strong track record of this. She does her homework better than anybody and she proved in the Senate that she was a work horse not a show horse.”
Ultimately, though, it will be up to Mr Obama to ensure that his highly experienced team will be able to work together. In 2000, commentators were bowled over by the impressive resumés George W. Bush had brought together on the national security front. But Mr Bush’s team was rapidly consumed by in-fighting.
Mrs Clinton will have to develop a strong relationship with Jim Jones, the retired general, who will be Mr Obama’s national security adviser. Condoleezza Rice, who was Mr Bush’s first national security adviser, was ultimately too weak to hold the ring between Donald Rumsfeld and Colin Powell, the secretaries of defence and state respectively.
Equally, Mrs Clinton will need to build a good rapport with Mr Gates and Joe Biden, the vice-president-elect who, as the former chairman of the Senate foreign relations committee, will have strong views on diplomacy.
Mr Obama also appointed Susan Rice, his senior foreign policy adviser during the election campaign, as ambassador to the United Nations.
Given the overlap between the global economic crisis and restoring US leadership in the world, Mrs Clinton will also be working unusually closely with Tim Geithner and Larry Summers, Mr Obama’s senior economic appointees.
“This is going to be a very complex orchestra for President Obama to conduct,” said Mr Rothkopf.
“How well your team works together is really determined by the direction you set as president.”
FT.com / World - New US administration tilts towards hawks
Barack Obama has appointed Susan Rice. She is an ambassador to the United Nations.
Soo, my question is : Do you think Obama's appointees who will work for him at the White House after Obama sworn-in on Jan. 20th -- will create " Global Government " since the U.S. is processin' to collapse due to many crises ?
By Ed Luce in Washington
Published: December 1 2008 20:17 | Last updated: December 1 2008 21:00
Barack Obama put the finishing touches on Monday on the senior echelons of his forthcoming administration, with Hillary Clinton, his former rival, topping the roll call of announcements.
The flurry of appointments, which included the former first lady as secretary of state and Robert Gates to stay as Pentagon chief, filled in a picture of an administration that will look strong on experience and will tilt towards the hawkish wing of the Democratic party.
Describing his team as representing the “very best of the American example”, Mr Obama, who will take the oath of office next month, said they all shared a similar governing philosophy.
“They share my pragmatism about the use of power, and my sense of purpose about America’s role as a leader in the world,” he said.
At a press conference in Chicago on Monday, a smiling president-elect conceded that the media were likely “to have a lot of fun” with comments that he and Mrs Clinton had made about each other during the campaign.
Of these, perhaps the most amusing in hindsight were the attacks Mr Obama made on the foreign policy credentials of the woman he has chosen to be his country’s face to the world.
With some relish, the Obama campaign poured cold water on Mrs Clinton’s claim to have played an important role in helping to solve the conflicts in Northern Ireland and Bosnia and her assertion that her travels to more than 80 countries as first lady amounted to foreign policy experience.
With even greater relish, Mr Obama dismissed Mrs Clinton’s resumé as amounting to little more than having had tea with a lot of leaders at various ambassadorial residences.
“When your entire campaign is based upon a claim of experience, it is important that you have evidence to support that claim,” Mr Obama said at the time. “Hillary Clinton’s argument . . . is simply not supported by her record.”
Proving that politics is one thing and governing another, Mr Obama made it clear on Monday that Mrs Clinton was his first choice to be the senior US diplomat. “I have always believed that she is tough and smart and disciplined,” he said.
The relaxed body language between the two former rivals reinforced the impression that, on this occasion, Mr Obama meant what he said. Having spoken at dozens of rallies on behalf of Mr Obama during the general election – far beyond what was expected – Mrs Clinton proved she was a “trooper” in the often-repeated description of Obama officials.
The question now is whether the former first lady can work effectively for Mr Obama on a day-to-day basis.
Insisting she has a stellar track record of working with former adversaries, Mrs Clinton’s supporters point to her close working relationship with Lindsey Graham, the Republican lawmaker who spearheaded efforts to impeach her husband in 1999 over the Monica Lewinsky scandal.
“She is a very pragmatic person who went out of her way in the Senate not only to befriend former enemies but to work closely with them and, if necessary, play second fiddle,” said a close friend of Mrs Clinton.
David Rothkopf, a former official in the Clinton administration, said: “Hillary is a consummate team player – she has a strong track record of this. She does her homework better than anybody and she proved in the Senate that she was a work horse not a show horse.”
Ultimately, though, it will be up to Mr Obama to ensure that his highly experienced team will be able to work together. In 2000, commentators were bowled over by the impressive resumés George W. Bush had brought together on the national security front. But Mr Bush’s team was rapidly consumed by in-fighting.
Mrs Clinton will have to develop a strong relationship with Jim Jones, the retired general, who will be Mr Obama’s national security adviser. Condoleezza Rice, who was Mr Bush’s first national security adviser, was ultimately too weak to hold the ring between Donald Rumsfeld and Colin Powell, the secretaries of defence and state respectively.
Equally, Mrs Clinton will need to build a good rapport with Mr Gates and Joe Biden, the vice-president-elect who, as the former chairman of the Senate foreign relations committee, will have strong views on diplomacy.
Mr Obama also appointed Susan Rice, his senior foreign policy adviser during the election campaign, as ambassador to the United Nations.
Given the overlap between the global economic crisis and restoring US leadership in the world, Mrs Clinton will also be working unusually closely with Tim Geithner and Larry Summers, Mr Obama’s senior economic appointees.
“This is going to be a very complex orchestra for President Obama to conduct,” said Mr Rothkopf.
“How well your team works together is really determined by the direction you set as president.”
FT.com / World - New US administration tilts towards hawks
Barack Obama has appointed Susan Rice. She is an ambassador to the United Nations.
Soo, my question is : Do you think Obama's appointees who will work for him at the White House after Obama sworn-in on Jan. 20th -- will create " Global Government " since the U.S. is processin' to collapse due to many crises ?
