Cabinet Positions

A long-held rule in politics is that politicians are only as good as the advisors they select. I'm now officially concerned.

I was one of the few conservatives I know who held out hope that President-Elect Obama would select a cabinet made up of the best and brightest; after all, didn't he talk about a need to move away from Washington insiders?

I don't begrudge him the choice of his chief of staff. Every politician needs a bulldog in order to get things done, and that includes Obama. The position that concerns me the most right now is Secretary of State.

The goodwill that President Clinton enjoys (and whether you are a conservative or a liberal, you must admit that his reputation on the world stage is very good) does not extend to his wife. I fail to see what foreign policy experience she has obtained, even as a senator. Her main agenda seems to be the creation of a nanny state, not ensuring constitutional freedoms and promoting our nation overseas.

I can get behind John Kerry for this position. Kerry has a long-standing reputation as a foreign policy expert, serves on the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations, and is able to drop the partisan bickering when needed in order to serve the nation.

We'll see how long Obama keeps his promise to not surround himself with lobbyists. Even if that promise is kept, I don't see much of a difference if he chooses the standard Washington crew.