John Kerry's major priorities as Secretary of State

...tomorrow:
http://www.state.gov/r/pa/prs/ps/2013/02/203700.htm

And the economy

to focus on citizens? It's foreign affairs. Besides a high percentage of US foreign aid is used to increase American exports

The trouble with being in this administration is that it's like being a fire department in a town full of arsonists. There's so much catching-up to be done, quite apart from developing crises.

I wonder what Kerry's style will be as he heads to Foggy Bottom. One thing's for sure: He does have a rare knowledge of the big picture.

He's been on the Senate Foreign Relations Committe for years beeen its chairman.

And just people giving him a chance to do things his way without expecting him to do things like Hillary. Obama has chosen him for a reason.

To the degree that he has latitude for independent initiatives Africa will be a major one. As I understand it AFRICOM was a Bush-Cheney initiative, and apparently we're involved now in well over a dozen African countries, along with our NATO partners, in many cases covertly, stirring up various kinds of trouble. It's all got to be sorted out and set on a less aggressively colonial course or simply shut down. That won't sit will with our partners or the Pentagon so he's got his hands full every which way, no doubt about it, starting Monday with that bombing in Ankara. It's going to be a bumpy four years no matter what he does but I expect he'll do very well.

In addition to all of the above.