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Obama Was Right About Hillary
Hillary is a handful, but that’s exactly what the State Department—and America—needs.
In choosing Hillary Clinton as his secretary of state, Barack Obama is taking his biggest gamble yet. From day one, the press will be searching for signs of acrimony or insubordination. Liberals will search for signs that Hillary and her aides are pushing foreign policy to the right. Everyone will search for signs that Bill is running amok.
Other than Obama himself, she’ll be the most famous person in every room she’s in.
As I wrote on The Daily Beast last month, I don't know why Hillary would want such a thankless job. But Obama is right to offer it to her. Here are three reasons why.
1) Hillary’s Experienced. She may not be the foreign policy wonk like Richard Holbrooke or James Steinberg, but all those years as First Lady—many of them on the road—have given her considerable exposure to foreign leaders. That’s important because Obama himself won’t be able to devote as much attention to foreign policy as everyone assumed six months ago. Until the economy recovers (and who knows when that will be), he’s going to be primarily a domestic policy president. That means he needs foreign policy advisors who can make tough decisions without a lot of Oval Office hand-holding. Hillary fits the bill.
2) She’s No Pushover. Secretary of state is a hard job. In the last half-century, secretaries of state have often been outmaneuvered by national security advisors, who have greater proximity to the boss, and don’t have a big, slow bureaucracy to manage. Now that vice presidents have started to wield real power, life atop Foggy Bottom has gotten harder still. Hillary will have her hands full going up against James Jones, Robert Gates and Joseph Biden, but she’s got a far better chance than, say, John Kerry or Bill Richardson, for two reasons. First, she’s got star power: Other than Obama himself, she’ll be the most famous person in every room she’s in. Second, she has a network of loyalists, inside and outside government, who know how the game is played. She—and they—won’t be easy to roll.
3) She has a domestic base. When it comes to foreign policy, Obama seems determined to do some pretty controversial things: Step up withdrawals from Iraq, launch a diplomatic push with Iran, perhaps shift resources from America’s military to the diplomatic corps. All these things will require a secretary of state who knows how to sell policies in Peoria, and on Capitol Hill. That’s one of Hillary’s big advantages. She thinks like a politician, not a career diplomat, which is crucial since Obama’s Middle East policies will likely require a kind of political campaign at home, so the right can’t successfully paint him as soft on America’s foes.
Hillary is a handful, but that’s exactly what the State Department—and America—needs. Obama’s taking a gamble, but it just might pay off.
RELATED: Mark McKinnon on Why Republicans Are Gushing About Obama.
Peter Beinart is a Senior Fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations.
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cajola
I've just watched Obama announce his new team...what a powerful team they will be, I think they have more than enough experience between them to do a fantastic job.
Bravo, Obama you made a great selection.
statusquomustgo
blech
JulioHuato
One of my concerns with Hillary is her management skills. Big projects she managed (e.g. passing a health-care bill, her presidential campaign), she botched miserably. She doesn't seem to be very organized. That may take away from her effectiveness.
Concordian
Yes, Hillary Clinton is the best person for the job. She has deeper insights into what opposing parties may be maneuvering to do than Obama, and she's shown that while her heart is always in the right place, she can be tough when necessary to get a difficult job done. Hillary Clinton will be a magnificent Secretary of State. Bravo!
wfleet
The key to a livable planet for all of us is the education of girls around the world. This very hour, seeing Hillary made SoS, all the women and girls around the world have begun blossoming with hope. They know Hillary is their champion.
(The problem with Condi Rice is that she's an academic with no public charisma. I'm sure she's great in a seminar of graduate students. She has an intellectual shield which, like emergency-yellow police tape, declares Do Not Cross.) Hillary actually listens. Watch her on a ropeline on CSpan sometime and you'll see what keen & caring listening looks like.
I'm so impressed with Prez O that he would grok what a team they would be and would have the insight & huevos to see over the horizon past the primaries' fol-de-rol. I predict that this will be a legendary team, O & Hill. It's been a long time since I felt this calm and glad. Let's get after crafting a sensible and collaborative world. Bringing superstar power to State makes utterly clear that O thinks Diplomacy Rocks. Hurray.
Forestroot
How many world leaders has Hillary not met? And what world leader does not know who she is? And how could a Secretary of Defense ever ignore her like Rummy ignored Powell? Peter puts together a nice, succinct proof as to why Senator Clinton was the best choice. And this is off subject Peter, but do you know if Shuster ever sleeps?
cjshea
You make great points. I had thought Richardson should be chosen because he is a career diplomat but, upon reflection, we will need a politician to sell what will be a fairly dramatic (and absolutely necessary) shift in foreign policy.
Veronicaxy
I'm glad to read this take on Hillary Clinton, it makes sense. Hillary's key value is in the relationships and influence she's built over the years and her considerable star power.
Back in the primaries when I was researching the candidates I was astonished at the lack of Clinton's professional accomplishment while her husband was in office and after -- in contrast to her early adult years. Her own web site didn't help me figure out what she had done well in politics. In fact when her husband wrote about her movingly in a magazine article about why people should vote for her, the accomplishments he focused on were from that early era.
This is different than Obama's lack of accomplishment because she's had decades of exposure to major U.S. and foreign affairs on him.
This might be her place to shine at last and I wish her the best of success. We certainly need to rebuild relationships now.
We'll certainly know more about what she's made of in four years.
anonymous360
"Secretary of state is a hard job."
.........
"Obama's taking a gamble, but it just might pay off."
.........
Can I have the last five minutes back?
Rosewren
Hillary showed that she was a fighter who would keep going and going and going no matter how tough it got and that is going to be essential in her work around the globe as Sec of State. She is strong enough in her own right not to be a "yes sir" peon and still smart enough to put her loyalties where she wants. I think once she commits to someone such as she has with Obama she will give it 100% and then some.
bezvodka
I hope Mr. Beinart is right. I think that Hillary will use her position to advance herself in preparation for another run at the presidential nomination. Period.
Of course, in her spare time Hillary could be better than Powell, who was a patsy who despite his record and his four stars couldn't stand up to anyone (so that's not saying much), and certainly could be better than Rice who is Sec'y of War really, and who before accomplishing absolutely nothing at State was the worst National Security advisor in history, an overpromoted "Soviet specialist" out of her league altogether (so that's not saying much either).
Thank you.
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