Had it been Scoop Jackson who won the Dem nomination and Presidency in 1976, it’s very likely he’d have made Kirkpatrick Sec of Defense or Sec of State.
Quite likely. If I recall correctly, while Carter was President, Jackson and Kilpatrick became associated through the Committee on the Present Danger, a public interest group composed of hawkish Democrats opposed to detente and arms cuts. I heard Kilpatrick speak once at the local university in the late 80s and was impressed with her intelligence and the serious, academic manner in which she summarized opposing views without rancor or distortion.