Transition: Richardson at Commerce
Posted: Wednesday, December 03, 2008 9:12 AM by Domenico Montanaro
The Washington Post writes up today’s expected announcement of Bill Richardson as Commerce secretary. “The job will add to an already lengthy Washington résumé for Richardson that includes stints as secretary of energy and U.S. ambassador to the United Nations during President Bill Clinton's administration, as well as nearly two decades as a congressman representing New Mexico. He left the nation's capital in 2002 to run for governor of New Mexico and was reelected with 69 percent of the vote four years later… He is the first Hispanic to be selected for Obama's Cabinet. Should Richardson be confirmed as commerce secretary, New Mexico Lt. Gov. Diane Denish (D) would take over as the state's chief executive until Richardson's term runs out in two years.”
Video: Countdown’s Keith Olbermann talks about Barack Obama expecting to name Gov. Bill Richardson, D-N.M., as head of the Commerce Department in his Cabinet on Wednesday.
Defense Secretary Robert Gates held a press conference yesterday, and he displayed the reasons why Obama kept him at his post. "Saying that his tenure would be ‘open-ended,’ Gates promised during a Pentagon news conference that he would not be merely a caretaker as secretary. He hinted that he planned to put some muscle behind his rhetorical critique of Pentagon spending priorities and to overhaul the way the military buys weapons. He also said that closing the U.S. military prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, would be a high priority, but could require new legislation, such as a measure preventing former detainees from seeking asylum in the United States."
The New York Times adds, "Mr. Gates said he supported the broad outlines of Mr. Obama’s Iraq strategy and gave indications that he and the president-elect could reach common ground on troop withdrawals over the next year. At the least, Mr. Gates suggested that he and Mr. Obama were in closer alignment on Iraq policy than the heated language of the presidential campaign suggested. Reacting to Mr. Obama’s comments on Monday that signaled flexibility in the president-elect’s troop withdrawal plans -- Mr. Obama said he still wanted combat troops out within 16 months but would listen to the recommendations of his commanders -- Mr. Gates said, ‘I think that’s an agreeable approach.’”
The New York Times also looks at Obama's search for a CIA director. "Last week, John O. Brennan, a C.I.A. veteran who was widely seen as Mr. Obama’s likeliest choice to head the intelligence agency, withdrew his name from consideration after liberal critics attacked his alleged role in the agency’s detention and interrogation program. Mr. Brennan protested that he had been a ‘strong opponent’ within the agency of harsh interrogation tactics, yet Mr. Obama evidently decided that nominating Mr. Brennan was not worth a battle with some of his most ardent supporters on the left. Mr. Obama’s search for someone else and his future relationship with the agency are complicated by the tension between his apparent desire to make a clean break with Bush administration policies he has condemned and concern about alienating an agency with a central role in the campaign against Al Qaeda.”
“Mark M. Lowenthal, an intelligence veteran who left a senior post at the C.I.A. in 2005, said Mr. Obama’s decision to exclude Mr. Brennan from contention for the top job had sent a message that ‘if you worked in the C.I.A. during the war on terror, you are now tainted,’ and had created anxiety in the ranks of the agency’s clandestine service."
The Washington Post examines how the Obama transition teams are scrutinizing various agencies. "With pointed questions and clear ground rules, they are dissecting agency initiatives, poring over budgets and unearthing documents that may prove crucial as a new Democratic president assumes control. Their job is to minimize the natural tension between incoming and outgoing administrations, but their work also is creating anxiety among some Bush administration officials as the teams rigorously examine programs and policies.”
"Former Oregon Gov. John Kitzhaber says it's ‘extremely doubtful’ he'll be picked to be interior secretary in the Obama administration," per the AP.
OUR OBAMA CABINET SPECULATION LIST:
President’s office/staff:
-- Chief of Staff: Rahm Emanuel NAMED (Deputies: Jim Messina NAMED, Mona Sutphen NAMED)
-- Senior Advisers: Valerie Jarrett NAMED, Peter Rouse NAMED, David Axelrod NAMED
-- Political Director: Patrick Gaspard NAMED
-- Assistant to the President for Legislative Affairs: Phil Schiliro NAMED
-- White House Counsel: Greg Craig NAMED
-- Press Secretary: Robert Gibbs NAMED
-- Communications Director: Ellen Moran NAMED (Deputy: Dan Pfeiffer NAMED)
-- Director of Scheduling and Advance: Alyssa Mastromonaco NAMED
-- Staff Secretary: Lisa Brown NAMED
-- Cabinet Secretary: Chris Lu NAMED
-- Special Assistant to the President and White House Social Secretary: Desirée Rogers NAMED
-- Director, White House Military Office: Louis Caldera NAMED
Vice President’s office:
-- Biden’s Chief of staff: Ron Klain NAMED
-- Counselor to the Vice President: Mike Donilon NAMED
-- Domestic Policy Advisor to the Vice President: Terrell McSweeny NAMED
-- Assistant to the Vice President for Intergovernmental Affairs and Public Liaison: Evan Ryan NAMED
First Lady’s office:
-- Michelle Obama’s Chief of Staff: Jackie Norris NAMED (Deputy: Melissa Winter NAMED)
POTENTIAL CABINET MEMBERS:
-- Agriculture: Tom Vilsack, Tom Buis (Natl Farmers Union), Charlie Stenholm, Jim Leach, Stephanie Herseth Sandlin, Marshall Matz, John Boyd Jr. (pres, Natl Black Farmers Assn)
-- Commerce: Bill Richardson TO BE NAMED THIS MORNING, Penny Pritzker (reportedly turned down the position), Kathleen Sebelius, John Thompson (Symantec), Ron Kirk (former Dallas mayor), Scott Harris (Harris, Wiltshire & Grannis fndr)
-- Defense: Robert Gates NAMED, (Deputy: Richard Danzig / Michelle Flournoy No. 3), Chuck Hagel, Sam Nunn, Jack Reed, Colin Powell, John Hamre, Tim Roemer, Thomas Pickering, Anthony Zinni, Max Cleland, Michele Flounoy, Gen. James Jones
-- Education: Joel Klein (NYC), Linda Darling-Hammond, Kathleen Sebelius, Colin Powell, Jim Hunt, Arne Duncan, Inez Tenenbaum, Michael Bennett, George Miller, Gaston Caperton (fmr WV gov), Bambi Cardenas (pres, U TX-Pan Am, Susan Castillo (OR supt), Michael Cohen (pres, Achieve), Christopher Edley (dean, UC-Berkeley), Michael Johnston (dir, Mapleton Expeditionary Schl of the Arts), VA Gov. Tim Kaine, Michelle Rhee (DC), Sharon Robinson (pres, Assn of Colls for Tchr Ed), Andrew Rotherman/Jonahtan Schnur (fmr Clinton advisers), Diane Shust (dir, NEA govt rels), Paul Vallas (supt, New Orleans Recovery Schl Dist), Bob Wise (fmr WV gov), Ray Mabus (fmr MS gov), Graham Spainer (pres, Penn St.), John Deasy (supt, Prince George's Cnty schools), Ronnie Musgrove (fmr MS gov)
-- Energy: Dow Chemical CEO Andrew Liveris, Kathleen Sebelius, Philip Sharp, Ed Rendell, Arnold Schwarzenegger (has said no), Al Gore, Jeff Bingaman, Jennifer Granholm, Steve Westly, Frederico Pena, Dan Reicher, Jason Grumet, Ray Mabus (fmr MS gov)
-- HHS: Tom Daschle CONFIRMED BY NBC NEWS, Howard Dean (reportedly ruled out), Eric Whitaker, John Kitzhaber, Kathleen Sebelius
-- Homeland Security: Janet Napolitano NAMED, Ray Kelly (NY), William Bratton (L.A.), Tim Roemer, James Lee Witt, Tom Kean Sr, Jane Harman, Artur Davis, Richard Clarke, Manny Diaz, Maine Sen. Olympia Snowe, Susan Collins, Lee Hamilton (though he said he’s too old), Jamie Gorelick
-- HUD: Manny Diaz (Miami mayor), Shirley Franklin (Atlanta mayor), Saul Ramirez, Jim Clyburn (reportedly not interested)
-- Interior: Rep. Raul M. Grijalva (D-AZ), Rep. Mike Thompson (D-CA), Jay Inslee, John Kitzhaber, Tony Knowles, Ken Salazar, Jamie Rappoport Clark, Brian Schweitzer, Bill Richardson
-- Justice (AG): Eric Holder NAMED, Janet Napolitano, Charles Ogletree, Deval Patrick, James Comey, Patrick Fitzgerald, Artur Davis, Tim Kaine, Jamie Gorelick (but was vice chair of Fannie), Ken Feinberg, Cass Sunstein, Kathleen Sullivan (Stanford Law prof, possible Solicitor General. Also possible SGs: Beth Brinkmann-DC Atty; Preeta Bansal-Skadden, Arps; Elena Kagan-Harvard law dean; Pamela Karlan-Stanford; Teresa Wynn Roseborough-MetLife litigation counsel)
-- Labor: Kathleen Sebelius, Andy Stern (SEIU) (said not interested), Jennifer Granholm, Richard Gephardt, George Miller, David Bonior (said he’s not interested, suggested: American Rights at Work Executive Director Mary Beth Maxwell), Xavier Becerra, Linda Chavez-Thompson, Antonio Villaraigosa
-- State: Hillary Clinton NAMED, Jim Steinberg (deputy) CONFIRMED BY NBC NEWS, John Kerry, Bill Richardson, Richard Lugar, Chuck Hagel, Richard Holbrooke, Chris Dodd, Thomas Pickering, Al Gore, Colin Kahl (CNAS fellow), Tom Daschle
-- Transportation: Ed Rendell, Jane Garvey, Mortimer Downey, Earl Blumenauer, Steve Heminger, James Oberstar, Peter DeFazio, Federico Pena, Jeanette Sadik-Khan, Tim Kaine, John Hickenlooper (Denver mayor), Ron Sims (King County (WA) Executive), Doug Foy (Fmr pres, Convservation Law Fndtn), Parris Glendening (Fmr Gov MD)
-- Treasury: Tim Geithner NAMED, Paul Volcker, Robert Rubin, Jon Corzine, Warren Buffett, Michael Bloomberg, Laura Tyson, Jamie Dimon (JP MorganChase), Jacob "Jack" Lew, Sheila Bair, Indira Nooyi, John Thain (Merrill Lynch)
-- Veterans Affairs: Max Cleland, Tammy Duckworth, Chet Edwards, Arnold Fisher (fmr Fisher House Fndtn chair), James Peake, William Bratton, Anthony G. Brown (MD Lt Gov)
OTHER POSITIONS:
-- National Economic Council Director: Larry Summers NAMED
-- Council of Economic Advisers: Christina Romer (chair), NAMED, Dan Tarullo, Jacob "Jack" Lew, Jason Furman, Austan Goolsbee, Laura Tyson
-- Economic Recovery Advisory Board: Paul Volcker NAMED, Austan Goolsbee (staff director, chief economist) NAMED, Eric E. Schmidt (Google chairman, CEO)
-- Natl Sec Adviser: Gen. James L. Jones NAMED, (Deputy: Tom Donilon) , Jim Steinberg, Rand Beers, Susan Rice, Greg Craig
-- NSC: Dennis Ross, Greg Craig, Susan Rice, Tony Lake
-- OMB: Peter Orszag NAMED (Deputy: Rob Nabors NAMED), John Spratt Jr, Gene Sperling, Jason Furman
-- White House Domestic Policy Council Director: Melody Barnes NAMED (Domestic Policy Council Deputy Director: Heather A. Higginbottom NAMED)
-- CIA: Tony Lake, John Brennan (wrote a letter to Obama asking that his name be withdrawn), Chuck Hagel, Michael Hayden, Jami Miscik (fmr CIA dep dir for Intel)
-- DNI: Ret. Adm. Dennis Blair, Tony Lake, John Brennan, Tim Roemer, Rand Beers, Jane Harman, John Abizaid, Evan Bayh
-- FEMA: James Lee Witt
-- EPA: Howard Learner (Pres, Exec. Dir, Environmental Law and Policy Center), Ian Bowles (MA), RFK Jr, Kathleen Sebelius, Kathleen McGinty (former secretary of Pennsylvania's Department of Env Protection), Mary Nichols (chair of California's Air Resources Board), Robert Sussman, Dan Esty, Lisa Jackson (NJ environ commission)
-- FBI: Robert Mueller (term expires 2011)
-- Fed Chair: Ben Bernanke (at least for first year)
-- FDA: Steven Nissen (Cleveland Clinic), Joshua Sharfstein (Baltimore health commissioner), Janet Woodcock (Big Pharma's choice), Susan Wood (GWU occupational and environmental health professor), Diana Zuckerman (president, National Research Center for Women & Families) Joint Chiefs: Michael Mullen (term ends in late 2009, can expect to be appointed for second term, per tradition)
-- Peace Corps: Chris Shays
-- UN Ambassador: Susan Rice NAMED, Caroline Kennedy, Ray Mabus (fmr MS gov)
-- USTR: Cal Dooley (American Chemistry Council president), Daniel K. Tarullo (Georgetown University law professor), Lael Brainard (Brookings Institution vice president), Thomas F. “Mack” McLarty (fmr Clinton White House chief of staff)
-- Climate: Terry Tamminen (climate change, adviser to Schwarzenegger), Al Gore, Carol Browner (Audobon Society), Jonathan Lash (World Resources Inst), Kathleen McGinty, Janet Napolitano, Mary Nichols, Kathleen Sebelius
-- Auto Czar: Jennifer Granholm
-- Secretary of the Army: Mortimer Downey
-- Chief Technology Officer: Julius Genachowski, Shane Robison (HP), Edward Felten (Princeton)
-- FCC: Jonathan Adelstein (FCC commissioner), Antoinette Bush (Skadden), Karen Kornbluh (Obama’s former Senate policy director), Blair Levin (fmr chief of staff to then-FCC Commissioner Reid Hunt)
