Hillary Clinton: I said no, at first, to secretary of state job

[tj2001]

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- When then-President-elect Barack Obama first asked Hillary Clinton to be his top diplomat, she turned him down and recommended others for the job, the secretary of state said in an interview broadcast Sunday. Speaking to ABC's "This Week," Clinton also said the president has answered the central question she raised about him when she was his chief rival for the Democratic nomination last year. In her famous "3 a.m." ad, she questioned whether Obama was the right candidate to handle a middle-of-the-night international crisis.

"Has the president answered it for you?" host George Stephanopoulos asked. "Absolutely," Clinton replied. "And, you know, the president, in his public actions and demeanor, and certainly in private with me and with the national security team, has been strong, thoughtful, decisive, I think he is doing a terrific job. And it's an honor to serve with him."

The former senator from New York and former first lady revealed details of how she came to accept the role. "I never had any dream, let alone inkling, that I would end up in President Obama's cabinet," she said. "When I left the presidential race after getting some sleep and taking some deep breaths, I immediately went to work for him in the general election. ... And I was looking forward to going back to the Senate and, frankly, going back to my life and representing New York, which I love. And I had no idea that he had a different plan in mind." When her name was mentioned in the media as a possible member of Obama's cabinet, Clinton said, she found the idea "absurd."

"And then when he called and asked me to come see him, and we had our first conversation, I said, 'You know, I really don't think I'm the person to do this, I want to go back to my life. I really feel like I owe it to the people of New York.' And I gave him a bunch of other names of people who I thought would be great secretaries of state." But Obama "was quite persistent and very persuasive," Clinton said.

She added, "Ultimately, it came down to my feeling that, number one, when your president asks you to do something for your country, you really need a good reason not to do it. Number two, if I had won and I had asked him to please help me serve our country, I would have hoped he would say yes. And finally, I looked around our world and I thought, you know, we are in just so many deep holes that everybody had better grab a shovel and start digging out."...

http://www.cnn.com/2009/POLITICS/06/07/clinton.obama/

[Forkboy]

1. ...

:popcorn:

[ruggerson]

82. see, you were wrong

you're such a pessimist. The thread ended up being a beacon of warmth and friendliness.

:P

[Forkboy]

111. LOL

I don't know what I was thinking. ;)

[Flying Dream Blues]

2. Great article...there will be some great books written about his administration I think.

Hillary has done a fantastic job so far and I think President Obama is lucky to have her.

[Cha]

3. Thanks, I find this

very interesting.

[MadMaddie]

4. I think Hillary is going to be very effective in her position.

I think she has substantial power but she will pick and choose when to use it.

[MADem]

5. She is a truly brilliant pragmatist. It's one of many reasons why I like her.

She added, "Ultimately, it came down to my feeling that, number one, when your president asks you to do something for your country, you really need a good reason not to do it. Number two, if I had won and I had asked him to please help me serve our country, I would have hoped he would say yes. And finally, I looked around our world and I thought, you know, we are in just so many deep holes that everybody had better grab a shovel and start digging out."...

[ErinBerin84]

6. This has been reported already,

She was doubtful, but Obama assured her that she would have direct access to the president. I wanted to see his interview, I feel like the only time I see her do interviews is with Andrea Mitchell, and Andrea is very annoying (not that George is that much of a prize either).

[Captain Hilts]

7. I still wish she had Harry Reid's job. She wouldn't have said "I don't work for him." Ugh! nt

[Jennicut]

8. She made the right decision.

She would have little power in the Senate (though she would have made a much better majority leader then Harry Reid). She can be a very effective SOS and her being in Obama's cabinet has to some degree helped heal the wounds of the past.

[Beacool]

9. She already said it some time ago.

She had said no and suggested other people instead. It took convincing from some others (such as Biden) and further talks with Obama for her to decide to take the job. One of the things that she asked for was to have control on hiring and special envoys. She believed that there was too much to do and envoys were needed. Dick Morris' assertion that by having envoys Obama has effectively marginalized her is pure bullcrap and RW propaganda.

;)

[ErinBerin84]

12. hmmm, never heard the thing about the envoys.

Where did you read that? ( I don't doubt it's true, I'm just interested to read it. I read about her picking her own staff members, but not about the envoys being her idea. There was talk about many of the people who ended up being the envoys getting positions in his administration before she joined. They all, including Hillary, seem to be doing a good job so far. ).

[Beacool]

19. For starters, she said it in her interview with George.

But, she also said it months ago. It was one of the issues that she discussed with Obama before taking the job. I didn't bookmark the article, I didn't think of it.

What she said in the interview aired today is more or less what she said then:

STEPHANOPOULOS: What is your role, exactly?

CLINTON: Well, my role is as the chief diplomat for the United States of America. And, you know, when I agreed to do this job, I made it very clear to the president that I would be able to run the State Department and USAID and that we would have to forge a team that I think we've done very well, and that I wanted special envoys, because we were inheriting so many hotspot problems that I knew you could never have one person possibly address all of that.

STEPHANOPOULOS: It also gives you the ability to get out of the crisis management and carve out areas where you're really going to take initiative. What are those?

CLINTON: Well, I'm having to do both. I mean, I spend a lot of my time on the problems that you would imagine: Afghanistan and Pakistan, the Middle East, Iran. But I'm also working to create a strategic set of priorities that will guide our efforts.

So, for example, there are specific regional and country-based endeavors that we are teeing up. We are going to work really hard on our relationships with, for example, Indonesia, and Turkey, and India.

We have a strategic and economic dialogue that will start the last week in July with China that Secretary Geithner and I are going to co-lead.

STEPHANOPOULOS: So there's plenty of work to go around?

http://abcnews.go.com/ThisWeek/Politics/story?id=7775502&page=1

:-)

[ErinBerin84]

21. I'm glad the envoys got in

I have a feeling a lot would have ended up serving in the administration anyway, since there was talk about many of them all along, but it shows that the media's line about Clinton being a "power-grabber" was not true of course . Still not sure whose "idea: it was to have envoys, but I think that picking Clinton showed that Obama wanted to signal to the world that it would take diplomacy seriously by getting someone who could garner a lot of attention.

[Beacool]

22. She had talked about sending envoys when she was running her campaign.

She said in quite a few of her speeches that one of the first things that she would do if she became president would be to send special envoys, nothing new.

:shrug:

[ErinBerin84]

23. I mean, in terms of who the people would be

;)

A lot of the same people probably would have ended up in either the Clinton or Obama administration, thankfully the Democratic party has a lot more talented players than the Republican party. And they both discussed the role that diplomacy would have in their administrations during the campaign.

[Beacool]

24. Oh yeah, in that we fully agree.

I think that someone reported that more than half of the people serving in the Obama administration were also in Clinton's. Which stands to reason since it was the last Democratic administration. There's little doubt that Hillary would have offered Holbrooke and Mitchell posts if she had been the one who had won the presidency.

[ProSense]

10. Seems a little revisionist.

Clinton Said to Be Divided on Cabinet Post

Bill Clinton in Talks to Smooth Wife's Path to Cabinet

Almost everyone in the Clinton camp, including Bill, was lobbying hard for her, and then the story about her trying to find a role in the Senate. Hillary might have been torn, but when she took the posiiton she was in a tough spot.





edited typo

[wyldwolf]

13. ..says a former FEC chairman and unnmamed sources

:eyes:

As I recall, you were still denying this would happen even when it was clear to most it was a done deal.

[ClarkUSA]

14. Your news stories from Nov. '08 indicates she was willing to be SoS very soon after Election Day.

[ruggerson]

15. I've heard it's very difficult to get a good meal in the senate

"and then the story about her trying to find a roll in the Senate"

[ProSense]

16. Looky, I edited the typo just for you. n/t

[ecstatic]

17. I'm really happy for her

but let's be honest, she does have a way of exaggerating...

[Creideiki]

125. She's a politician. All politicians have a way of exaggerating.

You know things like, "I believe in transparency in government," and "I'm a fierce defender of gays and lesbians." Politician speak.

[AtomicKitten]

18. Revisionist history indeed.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/11/25/report-clinton-camp-fabri_n_146489.html

[wyldwolf]

25. Fabricated history

As a Huffpo commenter pointed out, that article is so poor the author "...did not even need to quote unamed sources. So did Obama say that he suggested she might do something like SOSUS but did not mean exactly that? When a President elect is talking to his main competitor about a position, do you think he was not serious about it? I guess we are going to be cursed with these crybaby Clinton haters for the full term. So they are saying that Obama was tricked and did not have the stones to stand up to her. If she is that good at maneuvering maybe she is the best for State."

Yep, these "crybaby Hillary Hater" have moved into freeper territory. There's no longer a need to even quote the proverbial "unnamed sources."

[AtomicKitten]

26. Exactly. She fabricated the "initial offer" to box Obama in. n/t

[wyldwolf]

27. Elizabeth Drew fabricated the account. No quoted sources - named or unnamed.

:shrug:

Wishful freeperish "progressive" muckracking. Desperate and sad. Huffpo and their ilk are in their own little isolated world.

[AtomicKitten]

28. more on this smooth move by Clinton

The New York Times reports that suspected leaks from the Clinton team are angering Obama aides and may threaten Hillary Clinton's position.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/11/13/hillary-clinton-secretary_n_143735.html

Both sides were engaged in a delicate public and private dance, maneuvering for position and reputation in case the deal falls through. Aides in each camp have grown increasingly sour toward the other in recent days as the matter played out publicly.

In their public signals, the Clintons are trying to take the former president's activities off the table as an issue, in their view eliminating any excuses for Mr. Obama not to give Mrs. Clinton the job. Some in the Obama camp are bristling at what they see as strategic leaks by the Clintons aimed at boxing in the president-elect and forcing him to offer the post.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=132&topic_id=7881371

“Given that everyone's mystified by how deliberately public the Clintons have made this once secret process, the assumption is either that the Clintons are trying to use the public buzz to steamroll their way in, create a sense of inevitability that overcomes those concerns, or that it's just a matter of time before they … satisfy vetting somehow, some way.

Otherwise, after all this speculation, there’ll be a permanent dark cloud hanging over her finances. … But generally the sense among the no-drama Obama world is: This is well on its way to winning best Oscar for drama.”

Pres. Obama was still meeting with others including Richardson and Kerry when she leaked the fabricated offer:

President-elect Barack Obama has met with his former rival Hillary Clinton, who Democratic officials have confirmed is a possible candidate to become his secretary of state.
http://www.cbc.ca/world/story/2008/11/14/obama-secstate.html

Clinton met with Obama at his transition office in Chicago Thursday, Democratic officials said Friday, but the meeting was kept secret until after it was finished.

Unnamed Democratic sources have been quoted saying the two discussed the position. Clinton walked away from the meeting under the impression that it was hers for the taking, should she be interested, multiple sources told CNN.

Other sources have suggested that where she stands amongst other candidates for the job, or whether she would even accept it, isn't yet clear.

* snip *

Officials in Obama's transition office refused to comment.

Both NBC and the Washington Post reported Thursday that advisers to the New York senator said she was under consideration by Obama to replace Condoleezza Rice as the United States' top diplomat. If she took the post, Clinton would be the third woman to hold it after Rice and Madeleine Albright.

Obama also met Friday with New Mexican Gov. Bill Richardson, who is reportedly under consideration for the position of secretary of state as well. Richardson was the former ambassador to the United Nations under Hillary's husband, former U.S. president Bill Clinton. He has also done diplomatic work in his role as governor in places such as Sudan and North Korea.

Others who have been named as potential candidates for the job include 2004 presidential contender John Kerry, who was defeated by incumbent George W. Bush, and Republican Senator Chuck Hagel, who threw his weight behind Obama over McCain in the recent election.

[wyldwolf]

29. anonymous sources say...

... :rofl:

[AtomicKitten]

30. You must be new to politics. LOL. n/t

[wyldwolf]

31. you must be new to muckracking. LOL. n/t

[AtomicKitten]

32. The truth cannot be endured, apparently.

You have that in common with the wingnuts ... and you operate in exactly the same way.

:hi:

[wyldwolf]

35. So Elizabeth Drew must invent her own.

You have that in common with the wingnuts ... and you operate in exactly the same way.

[demhistorian]

34. Like Arianna, Elizabeth Drew is a McCain lover.

[AtomicKitten]

43. BS. Drew kicked some serious ass during Watergate and Iran/Contra.

She wrote brilliantly and exposed the 9/11 Commission, appearing on Al Franken's radio show.

[demhistorian]

45. and yet she was a major fan of John McCain. Even wrote a favorable book about him.

[wyldwolf]

47. AK must be "new to politics." LOL.

[AtomicKitten]

50. And you're a shill for the Clintons, but I digress.

The truth shall prevail in spite of your bullying behavior.

[wyldwolf]

52. and you're a hysterical Clinton hater

The truth shall prevail in spite of your bullying behavior.

[AtomicKitten]

57. I tell the truth about the Clintons. And the truth hurts, apparently. n/t

[wyldwolf]

62. just like Chris Rudy, Ken Starr, and the Arkansas project. You keep good company

[AtomicKitten]

49. She's an author and has written many bios.

There was a time when many Dems had a "favorable" view of McCain. But that was then and this is now and, as I said, she's been crystal clear on where she stands which is nowhere in the vicinity of where you claim. But nice try smearing her. Do some research next time.

[wyldwolf]

51. including a glowing one about John McCain

[AtomicKitten]

54. In 2002. Thanks for playing n/t

[wyldwolf]

58. yeah... 2002 is SOOO ancient history. LOL

[PBS Poll-435]

70. 2002. I remember that era. No electricity yet

And the horse that powered my buggy always veered right. (I think he needed an alignment.)

[Beacool]

72. Give it up Wyld, it ain't worth it.

The CDS is too strong in some. Ignore them, they believe in their own reality.

:eyes:



:7

[wyldwolf]

74. yeah, but it's fun.

[PBS Poll-435]

75. ...

:thumbsup:

[Beacool]

78. True................

:evilgrin:


:hi:

[jesus_of_suburbia]

96. ...

:toast:

[ProSense]

55. Maybe it's you who is new: How John McCain lost me

By ELIZABETH DREW

Also, Bill and Hillary are really close to McCain.

[wyldwolf]

60. so she was fooled from who knows when to 2008.

[ProSense]

64. So what do you think

the Clintons' excuse is for still being really close friends of McCain?

[wyldwolf]

65. I dunno. Do you have some inside information on how close they are?

[Visine]

66. Wow. So you are saying Obama is easily duped?

You have been trying to cut the cheese both ways for far too long.

[joshcryer]

101. Yes the liars are saying exactly that, that Obama was forced to pick her.

This lie was perpetuated for weeks before her selection, while at the same time denying that she was picked at all, while at the same time saying that if she got selected then Obama was in a box.

Dispicible.

[AtomicKitten]

116. Trouble with reading? What she tried to do is elbow the rest out

before Pres Obama made the decision.

Thanks for playing.

[Name removed]

113. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[PBS Poll-435]

33. Huffington Post?

:rofl:

[AtomicKitten]

36. Linked to Elizabeth Drew of NYBooks, well respected, but let the impuging of sources begin!

http://www.nybooks.com/articles/22170

[demhistorian]

38. a distinguished fan of John McCain

[ErinBerin84]

42. I question anyone

who fell for that maverick BS, but at least even she said that McCain had "lost her" in the years leading up to the 08 election.

http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0908/13541_Page2.html

[PBS Poll-435]

Thanks for the link!

[lumberjack_jeff]

107. Given the choice between questionable sources and the horse's mouth... n/t

[PBS Poll-435]

37. We loved your articles on her ineligibility due to the emoluments clause

Or was it the emollients clause?


:eyes:

[ProSense]

39. Wow, desperate, huh? n/t

[PBS Poll-435]

40. LOL!

;-)

[AtomicKitten]

44. I have no idea what you are talking about and suspect neither do you. n/t

[wyldwolf]

46. it doesn't appear that was even directed at you

:shrug:

[PBS Poll-435]

53. God do I ever love Google

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=132&topic_id=7924200&mesg_id=7924200

[AtomicKitten]

56. Your comment was directed to someone else, apparently.

And I never posted on that thread.

[PBS Poll-435]

59. Um, you said... "I have no idea what you are talking about and suspect neither do you. n/t"

The OP is was as bad as the birthers regarding Clinton's eligibility as SoS.

[ProSense]

61. Thanks for confirming

my point about being desperate.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=132&topic_id=7948348&mesg_id=7948348

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=132&topic_id=7973191&mesg_id=7973191

[AtomicKitten]

63. interesting - I missed that whole thing n/t

[PBS Poll-435]

67. Which came first? The chicken or the egg?

I love that you posted links to an article by a Clinton supporter and your own (eight days later...) confirming that the Saxbe fix would work in Clinton's situation.


Desperate? Nah. 1 step away from literally rolling on the floor with laughter.

[ProSense]

68. Give it up.

You have it backward, and the desperation keeps growing.

[PBS Poll-435]

69. Listen. You posted an article that Clinton was "ineligible" to serve as SoS in November

You left no comment when posting the article.




Then... Eight days later you posted some gibberish relating to the Saxbe fix and the fact that Clinton could/would/should be the next SoS.

[ProSense]

71. You can't can you? Actually,

Jack Balkin wrote a piece detailing the entire situation related to the Saxby fix, providing links to the relevant memos and opinions.

Nov 25

Dec 3

Dec 11

Trying to help you out, take it.

[PBS Poll-435]

73. Haha

Seriously. You followed up on your original post 8 days later. It was a birtheresque moment.


I am sure, 100% sure, that you didn't want Clinton nominated as SoS.



She was, and BTW, your 11/25 post is HILLARYious.

[ProSense]

76. Here's a clue

I don't write the news. Are you suggesting that I should have reported on what was happening (Dem's working on Saxbe Fix) by pulling it out of thin air?


You really can't connect the dots accurately can you?





edited missing word

[PBS Poll-435]

79. Nobody is a "reporter" on DU

This is a community of people and I really resent the arrogance.

(And I will forgive the bolded text from your 11/25 "article."

[ProSense]

80. I don't care.

I'll chock it up to your inability to acknowledge that you are desperately trying to distract from the original point I made in this thread, which is: the OP point is revisionism.

[PBS Poll-435]

81. Neither you nor I will ever know what really happened behind closed doors

I would prefer to believe that it took intense lobbying & flowers for Senator Clinton to accept the President-elect's offer.

[AtomicKitten]

115. They deflect and distract to try to shout over hearing uncomfortable truths. n/t

[Name removed]

100. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[sohndrsmith]

11. From what I've heard on this from Wolffe's book, Obama wanted

Clinton for this position very early, and didn't want "no" for an answer.

I think she's done a better-than-superior job as SOS so far, and I feel guilty about my earlier skepticism. She has been exemplary, and I don't think anyone else would have been better for the position. Clinton has the right mix of fight, cooperation and experience (and brains) that insures her legacy of respect and a place in history she deserves. Not to mention she's an integral part of repairing this country and it's global partnerships/conflicts - which I think is unmatched. Who else could handle these global issues better than Clinton?

She certainly has shown me that she's better than the person I expected her to be (I used to be someone who was NOT in her corner - Beacool can attest to that - if remembered - we've had some fantastic debates months ago). : )

I think the details of "who said what when" during the initial process are far less important than the fact that the right person is in the right position - without doubt.

[jbnow]

94. Knew someone would bring up Wolffe's book. The primaries weren't over

(though the race was) when he said Obama first talked about it...because she was so smart and hard working and understood the world situations

I haven't read the book. Wolffe was talking about it on one of the shows

I was concerned there could be more problems but it looks like they both made a wise choice

[Beacool]

105. Oh yeah, I forgot about those discussions.

How are you?

As for Wolffe, I wouldn't trust what he says too much unless there's supporting evidence.

Take care!!!

:hi:

[CreekDog]

20. I give her a lot of credit for the job she is doing and him credit for knowing she would

Obama saw past the rancor of the campaign and saw a unique qualities Hillary could bring to that job.

[Raine]

41. She's doing a TERRIFIC job

as SOS! :thumbsup:

[jillan]

77. Agreed! She is definitely putting her all into it.

[MasonJar]

48. Sometimes I wish Hillary were in the Senate fighting for public health care for all.

She certainly is doing a great job as Sec of State and obviously approves of her boss.

[jbnow]

95. Public health care for all was not the Clinton plan either but I bet getting

health care through the senate was one of her considerations.

[Captain Hilts]

108. Me, too, actually. I'd prefer her to have Reid's seat. He ticks me off.

And his "I don't work for him," the day after the inauguration was unforgivable.

[Beacool]

83. This is turning into another fun thread.

Just like every other Clinton thread. The same bunch of haters came out in full force, it's highly amusing.

:popcorn:



:rofl:

[PBS Poll-435]

84. I call it "flypaper"

Amazing how predictable it is.

[ronnykmarshall]

109. That's perfect!

It's always the same flies.

[AtomicKitten]

117. How apt! And here you all are!

[Forkboy]

118. I'm on the outside looking in. Both sides are as predictable as the sun rising.

Both the ones who like Clinton and those who don't act the same way in every thread, both convinced it's only the other side acting a certain way.

Pretty funny stuff, actually.

[geek tragedy]

85. Between this thread and the Jeremiah Wright thread

the bitter partisans on both sides are making ASSES of themselves.

[ruggerson]

86. hmmm we agree

I wonder if that is an omen of something good or bad. :)

[Beacool]

90. Personally, I abstained from commenting on the Wright thread.

I don't care to hear his opinion on anything.

;)

[Visine]

87. It's sort of like comfort-food on the internets..the same old posters, with the same old regularity

They just can't help themselves and they will never change.


They don't trust Obama enough to be a strong leader and so they continually cower in fear over Hillary.

They are still afraid that Hillary is smarter than Obama.

[PBS Poll-435]

88. You are really new to have such clarity.

Welcome to DU!

[Visine]

89. I am older than the hills.

Surely you are not stupid enough to believe that a post-count is indicative of intelligence.

Right?

[PBS Poll-435]

91. Nah, but the people that I trust on DU have been here forever.

Long before the Clinton/Obama wars... ;-)




Your observations were spot-on.

[Beacool]

92. I never heard it put that way........

"It's sort of like comfort-food on the internets". I don't think that they fear Hillary, they just are the LW of the party and the Clintons never passed their "purity" test. It'll be interesting to see if down the line Obama doesn't disappoint them too. Less than six months does not a presidency make.

:eyes:

Welcome to DU!!!

:hi:

[Name removed]

102. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Name removed]

119. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Name removed]

114. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[madura]

93. shame on you Barack Obama, shame on you!

John McCain would be a better president than you!
hahahahahahahaha!
how can she work for someone so shameful as Obama?
You better believe that Obama has those Clintons on a very tight leash and they ain;t used to it or liking it much. something will pop sooner or later and they will dig their own hole even deeper

[akbacchus_BC]

97. Please stop it. The Primaries are in the past and no need to

rehash it. They were rivals for the Democratic nomination and even if she played a little bit dirty, it is over. SOS Clinton is doing a great job, both her and the President mutually respect each other and rather than rehashing the past, focus on the important issues that need to be addressed. The President inherited a boatload of shit and he needs his nominees to work with him and SOS Clinton is standing up to the plate and the Clintons are not on leashes.

I supported both of them during the Primaries and whichever one won the nomination, America would be back on the right path.

Let's concentrate on helping this new administration to fight the GOP propaganda and fulfill its promises to the American people most importantly and the world as well.

Peace

[960]

98. Perfectly stated!

Thank heavens that she and President Obama are able to be adults and put petty differences aside. Too bad some still have trouble, or like to stir it up.

[akbacchus_BC]

99. That's our problem, we have a democratic President, a fantastic VP,

a great SOS and even if SOS Clinton had won the nomination, her choices for cabinet positions most likely would have been the same, yet we are not satisfied a Dem is in control, we just love to eat our own. No wonder the GOP propaganda machine works, they support their own, whereas, some of us have to rehash old times.

There is no time to rehash the primaries, too many important issues have to be addressed. Americans are bleeding for health care, let's ask the President to focus on that too, not eat our own!

[karynnj]

104. Actually, ALL people in a cabinet are on on "leashes" if you care to call it that

A cost for having the privilege of being in an administration is that you do give up part of your independence. For any Secretary of State, how much influence they have on the President's foreign policy choices can vary widely and how much freedom they have on diplomacy will vary, but at the end of the day, they must speak for the President's choices. If a disagreement is severe enough, they have the choice - as Colin Powell did of backing the President when they have grave misgivings on the policy or resigning.

That said, this is the top cabinet position and HRC is a serious person, neither President Obama or VP Biden are going to micromanage what she does in running the state department. This would make no sense.

As to the Clintons being on "leashes", HRC can not criticize her boss. It would be counterproductive to doing her job - any dissent should and will be private. As to Bill Clinton, the only "leash" he is on is knowing that if he does something that gets negative publicity, it reflects on HRC and indirectly on President Obama. Now, if you assume that he would not want business deals or personal matters that could damage his own legacy - which would be the primary effect, he would likely have the desire to avoid that damage as a "leash" on what he would do. So, there may be little additional constraint.

(My guess is that a bigger concern to Clinton might be various articles that have started to link Clinton/Bush foreign policy - such as the one speaking of Baker's 1989 policy against settlements, which spoke of Obama's position going back to something like that. (The fact is the big change was not when Clinton came in - he continued working on the Oslo accords, but when Bush came in.) Articles like this that sneak in as "history" things are not true. )

[akbacchus_BC]

121. This is a late reply and you may not see it. I so totally agree with you!

[ronnykmarshall]

110. Good try ...

but it will never happen.

There those that will still fight the primary and hide behind "facts" and "opinions" to still spew that same tired crap from last year.

[TahitiNut]

120. Q.E.D.

:eyes:

[akbacchus_BC]

123. That must be Latin! Just want to let you know that I admire you

and your postings on here. DU is the best.

Regards

[Beacool]

126. Yes, it's Latin.

Abbreviation of "quod erat demonstrandum", which literally means "which was to be demonstrated".

The phrase is written in its abbreviated form at the end of a mathematical proof or philosophical argument to signify that the last statement deduced was the one to be demonstrated; the abbreviation thus signals the completion of the proof.

:-)

[akbacchus_BC]

122. I know, some people just cannot get past the primaries. Always

have to dig up shit! Time to effing move on and ask President Obama to keep his campaign promises and help him along too. He needs our support because the right wing is not patriotic, they want him to fail!

[leftynyc]

127. You sound like an idiot

Surely President Obama wouldn't have put someone in such an important position if he couldn't be sure of her loyalty. And surely SOS Clinton wouldn't have accepted the job if she didn't feel she could work with the President. People on both sides of this issue that refuse to see they work well together are one step up from right wing crazies.

[Mass]

103. Steph. No surprise. May be he could have used these precious minutes asking real questions about

real policies. Who cares whether she said YES or NO the first time asked. This is not a prom. What matters is how she is doing the job (and the answer is well).

[WI_DEM]

106. Very nice. I don't see how anybody can have any problems with what she said.

[grantcart]

112. glad she sign on - she will be a great SOS

[laugle]

124. Thanks for the post! Hillary is a class act and

Obama and our country are fortunate she chose to take the job!

But damn, I miss Billy boy!