The Beginning of an Executive Headache

If you haven’t already, take a good look at the front page of today’s Washington Post and the story on President-elect Obama’s selection of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.) as his secretary of State. Reporters Michael Abramowitz and Glenn Kessler do a fantastic job of capturing what a Clinton secretariat would look like.

What I found particularly striking is the ease with which both the Obama and Clinton camps discuss how working with each other in this new role will unfold. The Post writes, “Democrats familiar with the transition said the two have spent time over the past several weeks discussing the parameters of the job and how they would work together — Clinton received assurances that she would have the kind of access to Obama she needs …”

Are you kidding me? The last time I checked, a Cabinet official was put in place to execute the will of the chief executive — in this case, the ambassador-in-chief. If Sen. Clinton understood this role before it was offered to her, as the Post reports, then why was any of this horse-trading necessary? I’m compelled to repeat a statement I made earlier this fall — why in the world would Obama choose this potential half-cocked gun as his secretary of State?

Again, don’t misunderstand my concerns — Hillary Clinton will be a strong voice for restoring America to its rightful place in the world, as the talking point goes. But in order to elicit that achievement from her camp, I fear the Obama White House will be forced to engage in hours upon hours of groveling and hand-holding down in Foggy Bottom. Does anyone honestly think she will quietly acquiesce to decisions out of OMB, or the NSA, for that matter? After all, they both play roles in foreign policy decisions.

Stewardship is the operative word here. Secretary Clinton will have to run a diplomatic corps that runs in the tens of thousands throughout the world. That work can be both tedious and mind-numbing. Just ask Colin Powell. While globetrotting is certainly the most glamorous aspect of her job, it’s not the most important. This position is bureaucracy defined. I don’t see Sen. Clinton embracing those elements wholeheartedly. And you definitely can’t hand those “mundane” tasks off to subordinates.

I believe deep down Sen. Clinton knows this as well. Why else would she be predetermining how and when she can communicate with the president? Those are demands made on her terms, not Obama’s, and for that reason alone, I would be gravely concerned. Not to mention that unassuming fella named Bill …

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