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28th July 2008, 06:29 PM | #1 |
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Possible Obama Cabinet-My List
As an Obama supporter, I was just researching who I thought would be the best candidates for Obama's Cabinet if he's elected.
Here's my list. It draws from Senators, Governors, Representatives, with a few oddballs that are none of the above. It includes mostly Democrats, but also a few Republicans. Also, there's one Bush Cabinet member who I believe Obama should keep, at least for a year or two. Vice President: Bill Richardson Secretary of State: Joe Biden Secretary of Defense: Robert Gates Secretary of Commerce: Bobby Rush Attorney General: Ed Rendell Secretary of Agriculture: Bruce Babbitt Secretary of Housing and Urban Development: Patty Murray Secretary of Transportation: Christopher Ward Secretary of Labor: William Gould Secretary of Education: Mark Yudof Secretary of the Treasury: Michael Bloomberg Secretary of Energy: Ted Kulongski Secretary of Health and Human Services: Jim Ramstad Secretary of the Interior: Mark Gearan Secretary of Veterans' Affairs: Jim Webb Feel free to debate me on the pros and cons of selecting these people for an Obama Cabinet. I'd love to hear some other opinions and some alternatives to the people I propose. Also, I strongly encourage anyone wishing to do a speculative Cabinet list for McCain, in this thread even. |
28th July 2008, 07:02 PM | #2 |
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He probably won't pick so many sitting senators. And Hillary will definitely stay in the Senate barring a Supreme Court nomination.
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28th July 2008, 07:08 PM | #3 |
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Good point, but Obama was struggling with Appalachian and blue-collar voters against Hillary. If, as Secretary of Labor, she has a good relationship with their unions, he could end up doing far better there if he runs for (hypothetical) reelection in 2012.
And I don't think a half-dozen or so sitting Senators amongst 14 Cabinet members is too many, but I'm no expert. |
28th July 2008, 07:38 PM | #4 |
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I removed Hillary and a couple Senators, Brainster, for a modified list.
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28th July 2008, 07:38 PM | #5 |
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28th July 2008, 07:50 PM | #6 |
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28th July 2008, 08:06 PM | #7 |
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By the way, I'd appreciate input on the pros and cons of these people being in Obama's cabinet individually.
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28th July 2008, 09:58 PM | #8 |
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Since the only pick that has any chance of affecting the election is the Veep, I'll focus there. I don't see what Richardson brings to the table. As a VP, yeah, he might be great. But it's the election that counts now and Richardson was very weak as a candidate and I don't think Obama wants someone who needs training wheels.
That said, other than excluding HRC, I don't know of a good person for the slot. If the Edwards rumor proves to be just that, then I'd prefer him as AG. If his small head ran his big head, he's history. |
28th July 2008, 10:00 PM | #9 |
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Gotta fit Gary Coleman and David Hasselhoff in there somewhere.
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28th July 2008, 10:12 PM | #10 |
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28th July 2008, 10:22 PM | #11 |
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Update:After more thought, here's my revised list
Vice President: Tim Kaine Secretary of State: Bill Richardson Secretary of Defense: Robert Gates Secretary of Commerce: Bobby Rush Attorney General: Ed Rendell or John Edwards Secretary of Agriculture: Bruce Babbitt Secretary of Housing and Urban Development: Patty Murray Secretary of Transportation: Christopher Ward Secretary of Labor: William Gould Secretary of Education: Mark Yudof Secretary of the Treasury: Michael Bloomberg Secretary of Energy: Ted Kulongski Secretary of Health and Human Services: Jim Ramstad Secretary of the Interior: Mark Gearan Secretary of Veterans' Affairs: Jim Webb |
29th July 2008, 12:08 AM | #12 |
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Babbitt's something of an antiquity; I could see him over at EPA (because he's currently head of the World Wildlife Fund), but not at Agriculture.
Let me suggest an extremely likely candidate for AG: Janet Napolitano. Two-time governor, term-limited out. Prior US attorney and Arizona Attorney General. Savvy and just conservative enough on issues like immigration to get through confirmation. She's, ahem, a single woman, which is part of the reason why she's not going to be veep (the other of course is that she's from Arizona, which Obama has to write off). I absolutely think Obama will put her in a major slot. Of course, if McCain wins, she'll be running for his Senate seat. |
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29th July 2008, 05:59 AM | #13 |
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Quote:
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29th July 2008, 06:11 AM | #14 |
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29th July 2008, 08:12 AM | #15 |
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29th July 2008, 09:00 AM | #16 |
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Oh, and MaGZ-everyone here knows the reason why you don't want Bloomberg in the Cabinet.
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29th July 2008, 09:01 AM | #17 |
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My revised list
Vice President: Tim Kaine Secretary of State: Bill Richardson Secretary of Defense: Jack Reed Secretary of Commerce: Olympia Snowe Attorney General: Janet Napolitano Secretary of Agriculture: Daniel J. Gustafson Secretary of Housing and Urban Development: Mike Huckabee Secretary of Transportation: Christopher Ward Secretary of Labor: William Gould Secretary of Education: Mark Yudof Secretary of the Treasury: Michael Bloomberg Secretary of Energy: Ted Kulongski Secretary of Health and Human Services: Jim Ramstad Secretary of the Interior: Mark Gearan Secretary of Veterans' Affairs: Jim Webb |
29th July 2008, 09:02 AM | #18 |
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ETA:*double post*
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29th July 2008, 10:07 AM | #19 |
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Some of your casting is too obvious. Go for some more surprising decisions! I think Secretary of Transportation, for example, would be a challenging yet rewarding role for Bloomberg.
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29th July 2008, 11:20 AM | #20 |
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29th July 2008, 11:22 AM | #21 |
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It seems to me that Wes Clark would be a slam dunk for Defense.
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30th July 2008, 04:14 AM | #22 |
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30th July 2008, 04:17 AM | #23 |
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30th July 2008, 04:51 PM | #24 |
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30th July 2008, 05:13 PM | #25 |
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