Oops! He´s Done It Again: Barack Placates Hillary

Rumor is, pretty much confirmed now, that Hillary Rodham Clinton will be awarded the crown jewel in the Obama administration – Secretary of State. "WHY?", you may be asking yourself. You are not alone.

That is an interesting question - one to ponder. Certainly the alleged appointment is not out of generosity or good will. The insider word is that the Obama´s don´t especially like the Clinton´s and vice versa. That much is certain. So why bring her into his fold knowing that she possesses an autonomous and strong personality, an established individuality forged over years of calculated political maneuvering? A person who may be hard to control.

One argument is that she is popular on the world scene, that just the name Clinton opens many doors and establishes instant credibility with foreign leaders. Not so fast! She was a President´s wife for eight years traveling to countries on good will missions only and has served merely eight years in the Senate where she has little foreign affairs experience and has chaired no committees which would change that opinion.

Another suggestion has been that she bolsters the Obama team with her intelligence and feisty personality, that she will be a hard - nosed negotiator in affairs of state. Perhaps so, but this comes with conditions. She has her own – and her husband´s – agenda to promote. She has displayed a fiercely independent vent when it comes to things such as the Middle East crisis, Israel, Palestine, etc. She has her own views on Iraq and Iran as well as Afghanistan. She will not suddenly abandon them.

Critics question the appointment as unwise in consideration of these and other factors. They note that she will be difficult to manage and perhaps an out-of-control individual when it comes to accepting direction from the man she feels she should have beaten in the primaries if only had it not been for real or imagined unfairness such as being the victim of certain inequities including gender and media bias. Otherwise, she would be the one doing the choosing of cabinet members at this time. That she has not gotten completely over those feelings, you can be sure.

Another argument against her is that Barack promised change in Washington, but with her serving in this top position, there is less evidence of that. Instead, will it be more of the same? An extension of the ´Clinton Era´?

David Ignatius (The Washington Post) highlights the problems inherent in her selection writing "…it could be the wrong job for her since it has the potential to undermine Obama´s own transformational role in foreign policy…why subcontract this to Clinton and her entourage?"

And, there is the question of Bill, the globe trotting opportunist who is raking in big bucks ´consulting´ and speaking with a number of foreign leaders and companies while acting as a quasi statesman. Can he – and will he – forfeit his lucrative travels and foreign adventures in the interest of Hillary´s success as Secretary of State where she will have to be involved in hard negotiations with some of those with whom Billy boy now hobnobs? We will see.

But, did Barack need to put himself in this precarious position in the first place? He ´owed´ Hillary nothing of this nature. She was his fierce opponent ordained early on to be the next President of the United States but for his late surge. Both the Clintons certainly had nothing kind to say about Obama throughout the spring season of despair when it became obvious that he was closing the gap and overtaking her in the primaries. There was no love then from the Clintons and I doubt anything has dramatically changed.

Consider that Barack chose the likes of Joe Biden as his Vice President for reasons of Biden´s own foreign affairs expertise to lessen the argument of Obama not being ready on the infamous ´Day One´ which Hillary argued throughout the primaries. Can Joe be expected to take a back seat to Hillary in the administration? Not a likely scenario when it comes to his and her strong egos. There may be clashes of will, differences of opinion and tactics, and infighting. Barack need not have subjected his White House to such possibilities.

Proponents of this appointment, Hillary supporters mostly, say there is no one more qualified to do the job, that she brings name recognition to the front, and that she deserves a shot at the spoils of office. Hogwash! Barack had many other choices for the position which he has apparently ignored. It would have meant less consternation to many of us had he deliberated more in his choices. Did the voters reject Hillary and Bill -and their politics - in the primaries only to be once again inflicted with the Clintons on the national – and now international – stage?

Sorry, guess I´m suffering ´Clinton fatigue´, but I am not the only one who cannot fathom Barack´s choice in this instance. ´Just when you thought it was safe to…´ we may be destined to suffer the Clintons and their melodramatic ways interminably.