change america

[alien autopsy]

looks like obama is appointing all the old clinton team advisors and cabinet members. change is not about going back in time, picking up where old policies left off. its about something radically different. i dont think we are going to see it with this guy.

[Documad]

I don't want to see all the Clinton people again. But if you're a democratic president in 2008, and if you need to hire a shitload of people, and if you want some of them to have relevant experience, you're probably going to hire some people who worked for Clinton.

At first, Clinton tried to run the government without any experienced help, and it's what caused his administration to tank in the first year. I'll be happy if the Clinton people learned from their failures and can help Obama avoid them.

But I get what you're saying about not wanting just the same old people. Hopefully there will be a mix.

[yeahwho]

Presidents typically say they want to be surrounded by strong-willed people who have the courage to disagree with them. President-elect Barack Obama, reaching out to Hillary Rodham Clinton and Republicans, actually might mean it.


I posted this article on another thread (apropos) but felt it was apropos for this thread too, it's an AP reporter speaking with pulitzer prize winning author Doris Kearns Goodwin, author of Team of Rivals:The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln (http://www.doriskearnsgoodwin.com/)

[RobMoney$]

It's gonna be hard for him to find qualified candidates to serve in his cabinet without reaching into Clinton's array of political friends, unless Obama wants to reach into the GOP for people and I don't really see that happening too much. Obama has essentially no political network of his own at this point. He's going to have to learn on the job who he's comfortable with and who he isn't, and the prospect of that scenerio is a little concerning to me.
The Clinton network is pretty widespread throughout the Democratic party. It's one of the reasons why I supported Hillary in the first place, because of her familiarity and the connections she had within her party.

I guess I'd rather see him reach out to the Clintons' established political network than to some unknowns simply for the sake of "change".

[DroppinScience]

It's gonna be hard for him to find qualified candidates to serve in his cabinet without reaching into Clinton's array of political friends, unless Obama wants to reach into the GOP for people and I don't really see that happening too much. Obama has essentially no political network of his own at this point. He's going to have to learn on the job who he's comfortable with and who he isn't, and the prospect of that scenerio is a little concerning to me.
The Clinton network is pretty widespread throughout the Democratic party. It's one of the reasons why I supported Hillary in the first place, because of her familiarity and the connections she had within her party.

I guess I'd rather see him reach out to the Clintons' established political network than to some unknowns simply for the sake of "change".

That's not accurate to say Obama does not have a political network. The truth is his team is a cross between Washington insiders and his trusted associates with Chicago roots. Some do indeed have Clinton ties, but he's not relying solely on them.

Read on for more:

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/27752793/

[alien autopsy]

there are plenty of people qualified to take those positions who are not "experienced", or should i say, "corrupted". we dont need these same assholes coming back in to the picture. we have millions of brilliant minds who are honest and competent and who are more profession and educated than those handed these spots. for example, why not have MICHAEL POLLAN be the secretary of agriculture?

seriously, you have to be retarted to think that former clinton administration officials are the most capable for these positions. why dont we hand these postitions over the EXPERTS rather than POLITICIANS!

[ericg]

word

[ms.peachy]

seriously, you have to be retarted

You know, if you are going to be monumentally offensive, you might want to at least learn how to spell the word properly. (Or maybe you have learning difficulties yourself, which seems highly possible.)

[Documad]

seriously, you have to be retarted to think that former clinton administration officials are the most capable for these positions. why dont we hand these postitions over the EXPERTS rather than POLITICIANS!

The big jobs in government involve RUNNING THE GOVERNMENT. Politicians ARE experts at politics.

You might find it interesting to look into any one particular agency (let's say the Department of Labor), figure out how many people work for the leader of that agency, figure out what sort of people work there and what their job duties are. Then look at the policy/legislative side of the job. You'll get a much better idea about why experience at a management level in a big federal government agency is sort of helpful if you're going to run a big federal government agency. By the way, it's much easier to look all this up on the internet. It's amazing how much information some federal agencies put on their websites. You'll be surprised at the scope of responsibility some agencies have.

I don't know much about Obama's pick for attorney general, except that he held a lower management position in the office before. That's a good sign. It also gives him some kind of track record which can be examined by the senate when they confirm him. There will be some good and some bad things in that record. For instance, he's apparently embarrassed about his role in Clinton's pardons. If his regrets are genuine, that's okay with me. You're always going to make mistakes in big important jobs. I like people who learn from their mistakes.

[alien autopsy]

im so sorry peachy. i didnt know you were so fragile. im glad someone is out there making sure i spell things correctlydjan;da;sdg.

politicians are experts at politics. but what is politics? its a game isnt it? where you honor those who contribute to your campaigns by hooking them up with no bid contracts and high level positions in any one of the government agencies. its a game where you sit before a group of other polticians and give a speech seeing how many times you can use the word "freedom" "terrorist" "main street" etc.... its a game where you go behind closed doors and sneak a bunch of legislation into bills that have nothing do with those bills. its a game where you say what you need to say and do what you are told, or you are ousted.

it doesnt take much to be a politician- as far as i know, all you need to do is sell out. look at our friends in alaska sara palin and ted stevens! class acts they are!

as for the heads of agencies, the EPA has a marvelous history of being comprised of PROFESSIONALS, and being headed by a CORRUPT POLITICIAN- there is a big difference there.

we can find better people for the job, there are everywhere out there. they are in our universities, writing, studying, observing, teaching, and doing the actual dirty work. the right people are not tucked away in washington, where they are called upon every 4, 8, or 12 years to come back to office and leave their corporate chair, board or presidential position with the company who first donated to their campaign. and then return to that position when they leave office. ever heard of the revolving door policy? IT IS HOW WASHINGTON FUNCTIONS, IT IS ONE OF THE MAIN REASONS IT IS SO CORRUPT AND FUCT.

[alien autopsy]

heard last night that obama put that asshole who pardoned all of clintons old criminal buddies before he left office. fuck this idiot. you all have been duped. at least black children will grow up believing that they could be president too one day. thats about the only good thing that is going to come out of all of this.

[ms.peachy]

im so sorry peachy. i didnt know you were so fragile. im glad someone is out there making sure i spell things correctlydjan;da;sdg.

I'm not fragile, I simply have zero respect for anyone who can't think of a better word to use than that one.

[alien autopsy]

thats retarted

[alien autopsy]

more clinton cabinet members, more professional polticians in charge of our money and our laws. sadly, this is not what we need.

[ericg]

everybody up on the 'clinton chronicles'? google google

[alien autopsy]

just finished the movie...feel ashamed for not having known about this before- a testament to our media and its ability to shield the public from the truth.

clinton was a womanizer, a coke addict, a money laundering key player in a drug cartel that brough hundreds of millions of dollars of coke into this country. as a result of his careless wrecklessness, something like over 50 people have been assasinated to cover bill's own ass. and the man goes down for a blow job? what a fucking joke. he should be spending the rest of his life behind bars, and hilary is fucking complicit because it was her law firm that handled a lot of the legal dirty work. shes a dumb bitch coke whore her self and should not be allowed to govern.

saddest part is, beyond the death, the drugs and the tragedy....so many of us do not know about this, despite all the efforts by witnesses, lawyers, journalists, attorneys and now many of them are dead. you all it it to yourselves, your country, if you care so much about freedom, HOPE and CHANGE to watch THE CLINTON CHRONICLES and learn something about america, about the clintons, and about our government.

[Bob]

it doesnt take much to be a politician- as far as i know,

how far is that exactly?

[yeahwho]

how far is that exactly?

not too far and not too much.

Looks like this may be a foregone conclusion, according to the vibe of the NYTimes (http://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/22/us/politics/22obama.html) (Hillary Rodham Clinton has decided to give up her Senate seat and accept the position of secretary of state).

If this actually does come to pass, this will be such a vast improvement over Condoleezza Rice. I am extremely happy.

[ericg]

ignorance is bliss, eh yeahwho

[yeahwho]

ignorance is bliss, eh yeahwho

General common sense is really not all that appealing.The ability to relate to the majority of people and effect change for the positive is something I am trying to understand.

ignorance comes in many forms and shapes, but if you want my honest answer, inevitably it's very painful.

[Documad]

ignorance is bliss, eh yeahwho

You're right.

It's been pure torture for the past seven years. Apparently many americans (and most voters) thought that Bush wasn't a dangerous guy for our country. Most of them woke up really recently. But imagine what it's like for those of us who knew the country was going down the shitter since early 2002 and we did what we could to get the word out but no one listened.

And when the Iraq war started, I can't even explain what it was like. Everywhere I went, even my good friends were totally wrapped up in the 24/7 coverage on CNN and all the nonsense the media was reporting. They were completely sucked in to the military's version of the big action movie on their TVs. I felt like I was totally alone because I that same news footage made me want to vomit from day one.

[yeahwho]

We've been completely cheated by this guy, George W. Bush. How we can ever recover, I do not know. Gail Collins who writes excellent columns for the NYTimes says it so direct today in her Time for Him to Go (http://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/22/opinion/22collins.html) column,

Thanksgiving is next week, and President Bush could make it a really special holiday by resigning. Seriously. We have an economy that’s crashing and a vacuum at the top. Bush — who is currently on a trip to Peru to meet with Asian leaders who no longer care what he thinks — hasn’t got the clout, or possibly even the energy, to do anything useful. His most recent contribution to resolving the fiscal crisis was lecturing representatives of the world’s most important economies on the glories of free-market capitalism.

[alien autopsy]

hope america, change america! finally, we can rest now that we have the real deal in office! i mean, thanks to all the wisdom spreading and protesting by documad and others bush is finally gone and we can get back to living our lives, free and clear of fear!

long live obama! the first black president! america is changing!

[Randetica]

hope america, change america! finally, we can rest now that we have the real deal in office! i mean, thanks to all the wisdom spreading and protesting by documad and others bush is finally gone and we can get back to living our lives, free and clear of fear!

long live obama! the first black president! america is changing!

dont worry, reality is gonna find them sooner or later