THE OBAMA "TEAM" EVOLVING
Yes, I am concerned about the selection of Hilary Clinton as Secretary of State. Yes, her sometimes despicable husband can be a problem. Yes, she differs in perspective from Obama on some key issues. Yes, she can be annoyingly cold.
However no one can deny her stature among world leaders. No one can deny that she brings some unique gifts and experiences to the position. And no one can question the strength of leadership that Barack Obama possesses. He will lead a strong team. I personally await New Mexico Governor Richardson to be appointed to the cabinet.
Bill Gates presents a different problem. Only because of my admiration for the intelligence and strong leadership that Obama thus far projects can I allow for Gates continuing on in the Pentagon. Frankly, I suspect that Obama will do an overhaul of the mercenary troops and immense profiteering that now exists in Iraq, Afghanistan, and elsewhere. George W. Bush truly gave away the store in no-compete contracts to his corporate buddies. We have far more mercenaries in Iraq than we do American military. And nobody in the budget bureaus or Congress has any idea which companies got what hand-outs. The stench from the Bush administration is so strong that perhaps Obama thought it best to continue Gates who knows where some of this corporate corruption is located. Call in the fumigators!
Much of the old-line choices that Obama has made depend on the strength and wisdom of his own make-up. Change, so definitely wanted by Americans, is tied up in the very persona of Barack Obama. Let us hope that he is up to the task at hand. So far he appears to have the ingredients to handle it. But he better keep a tight rein on the advisers lest they go off in their own, old-line direction. Americans have a right to expect real change to be at hand come January, 2009.
