Posted on 02/10/2009 6:07:55 PM PST by MindBender26
Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton is finding that her job description is dissolving under her feet, leaving her with only a vestige of the power she must have thought she acquired when she signed on to be President Obama’s chief Cabinet officer.
Since her designation:
• Vice President Biden has moved vigorously to stake out foreign policy as his turf. His visit to Afghanistan, right before the Inauguration, could not but send a signal to Hillary that he would conduct foreign policy in the new administration, leaving Hillary in the role of backup.
• Richard Holbrooke, the former Balkan negotiator and U.N. ambassador, has been named special envoy to Afghanistan and Pakistan. He insisted on direct access to the president, a privilege he was denied during much of the Clinton years.
• Former Sen. George Mitchell (D-Maine), negotiator of the Irish Peace Accords, was appointed to be the administration’s point man on Arab-Israeli negotiations.
• Samantha Powers, Obama’s former campaign aide, who once called Hillary a “monster,” has been appointed to the National Security Council (NSC) as director of “multilateral affairs.”
• Gen. James L. Jones, Obama’s new national security adviser, has announced an expansion of the membership and role of the NSC. He pledges to eliminate “back channels” to the president and wants to grow the NSC’s role to accommodate the “dramatically different” challenges of the current world situation.
• Susan Rice, Obama’s new United Nations ambassador, insisted upon and got Cabinet rank for her portfolio, and she will presumably also have the same kind of access to Obama that she had as his chief foreign policy adviser during the campaign.
So where does all this leave Secretary of State Clinton?
While sympathy for Mrs. Clinton is outside the normal fare of these columns, one cannot help but feel that she is surrounded by people who are, at best, strangers and, at worst, enemies. The competition that has historically occupied secretaries of State and national security advisers seems poised to ratchet up to a new level in the current administration.
Hillary’s essential problem is that she is an outsider in the current mix. She was the adversary in the campaign, and Rice and Powers — at the very least — know it well, having helped to run the campaign that dethroned her. Can they — and she — be devoid of bitterness or at least of normal human trepidation? Not very likely.
The fact is that the power of the Secretary of State is not statutory, nor does it flow from the prestige of the post’s occupant. Former Gen. Al Haig, once supreme commander of NATO and chief of staff to President Nixon, found that out when he was undercut as secretary by the White House troika of Mike Deaver, James Baker and Ed Meese. Bill Rogers, Eisenhower’s attorney general and Nixon’s California confidant, found himself on the outs from the moment he became secretary of State, with Henry Kissinger soaking up all the power through his direct access to Nixon as national security adviser.
The power of the Secretary of State flows directly from the president. But Hillary does not have the inside track with Obama. Rice and Powers, close advisers in the campaign, and Gen. Jones — whose office is in the White House — all may have superior access. Holbrooke and Mitchell will have more immediate information about the world’s trouble spots.
So what is Hillary’s mandate? Of what is she secretary of State? If you take the Middle East, Afghanistan and Pakistan out of the equation, what is left? One would have to assume that the old North Korea hands in the government would monopolize that theater of action. What, precisely, is it that Hillary is to do? The question lingers.
And for this she gave up a Senate seat!
"Do you want cheese on that, Sir"
This is NOT how she planned it
Hey!! Hey!!! She opened up an E-Suggestion Box!!! Don’t ALL SoS’s do that?? What a GIRLIE thing to do....I thought she had a set.....guess not!!
This is all so Hillary won’t run against “The O” in 2012.
She should have thought about it before giving Obama her support. She knows exactly what this idiot in the white house is yet, took her party over her country.
What goes around comes around.
Hitlery got screwed by what she loves the most - POWER.
Now she has NO POWER - Power was the bait and she took it.
Guess, ole Hitlery will be the
WHITE WOMAN sittin on that back of de bus.
Hitlery will know her place on the plantation too.
This was thread was posted before. Hillary may get the last laugh. Why would you quit the Senate to be an employee working for Obama when he can fire her at anytime plus humiliate her?
If you wanted to be President and you knew something about a Kenyan-born usurper - who stole the nomination - what job would you want?
Look at the line of sucession to POTUS.
1. O
2. Joe
3. Pelosi (speaker of House)
4. Robert “sheets” Byrd (senate pro-temp)
5. Hillary at Sec of State.
Well if Berg produces a Kenyan BC (which may be in a sealed court case) then O is toast. Pelosi vouched for him and she is toast as is possibly Howard Dean. Joe was his running mate so he may go.
The knew POTUS is Robert Byrd who is 85(?) and is pretty much senile. Hillary gets VP because the Dems will rally around Clinton. A sick Byrd then steps down or commits suicide by drowning himself in his toilet in the Oval Office.
Senator Cankles iu the new Potus #46 and Bubba becomes VP. This is the reason why she took Sec of State.
This is what happens when you have a weak president. They have tons of people all doing similar jobs and tripping over each other in the process. The result, no clear policy will be articulated. This will be made worse every time Biden opens up his mouth.
But not to worry, Hillary isn’t one to passively move off the stage. She will begin to get nasty. And don’t count out her husband. As you recall, he will not take kindly to Hillary taking a backseat role in international affairs because it will put him on the fringe. Expect to hear a lot of criticism of Obama from Bill in the near future.
“So where does all this leave Secretary of State Clinton?”
<<Unable to say a peep or do a thing—she has been neutralized. Way to go PUMAS for not sticking with the plan.
But I bet Bill did.
After a “suitable” time she will be replaced. She is out of the Senate, dumped from State and will have no job to commend her for another run against O. She has been duped.
leaving her with only a vestige of the power she must have thought she acquired when she signed on to be President Obama’s chief Cabinet officer.
___________________________________________
Ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
Noooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
Whatever will Girlfriend do ????
When you sell your soul to Satan, there’s always fine print, in disappearing ink.
Hillary! just found that out.
Hasn't UN Ambassador been a cabinet rank for a long time?
Punked, indeed.
wow, I am sooooooooo conflicted
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