Submitted by greenhattedamigo on Wed, 12/03/2008 - 7:40pm
Obama Names Richardson as Commerce Secretary
Following Monday's announcements that Sen. Hillary Clinton has been officially named Secretary of State, and that Robert Gates will remain head of the Department of Defense, President-Elect Barack Obama formally announced Wednesday that Bill Richardson, Governor of New Mexico and former Ambassador to the UN under President Clinton, will serve as Secretary of Commerce.
When asked if the Commerce seat was a consolation prize to the man once considered for the State job, the former senator from Illinois replied:
Commerce secretary is a pretty good job.
According to Obama, Richardson will be dealing with the economy, one of the most important items on the agenda when Obama is inaugurated this January.
Furthermore, Obama noted that Richardson's
[M]ixture of diplomatic experience, hands-on experience as governor, experience in the cabinet, [and] experience in Congress
will result in a prominent position within the Obama administration.
Richardson is the first Latino appointment to Obama's cabinent, which, according to the President-Elect, will, when finished, be the most diverse ever assembled. Roughly half of the Cabinet positions have been filled.
Mon, 12/15/2008 - 4:29pm
#2
I agree that most of them have probably passed out of their political prime, and many of the Cabinet-level seats have also been given to senior aides and assistants that do not appear to have stakes in elected office.
However, I do agree that they are a very diverse group. I believe that under intense pressure it's possible that they will crumble slightly. Just like most elements of the Obama presidency, I believe that we are in an all-or-nothing situation. Either his plans and policies will work beautifully (with the possibility of some minor kinks along the way) or they will fall apart. Only time will tell, but I think that some of the things he has planned are long-shot gambles.
I read a poll recently that said most americans think obama has done a good job choosing his cabinet. but last night some people on cnn said it might not work because obama is the only one that could hold them together and it's too much for one person. the counter-argument was that obama's cabinet knows what's a stake. they're experienced enough to know that they need to follow obama's agenda, not their own. and anyway most of them are too old to have motives for future political office.
what do you guys think?