But to say I'm troubled by his choice to keep Robert Gates on as Secretary of Defense would be an understatement. Gates is on the record as opposing the Iraq withdrawal plan that Obama campaigned on so the decision to keep him on at Defense seems odd if the President-elect really does intend to end the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Katrina vanden Heuvel of The Nation has an excellent piece on the choice that should be read. Here are a few of the very strong points she makes:
Obama may believe that Gates will give him the cover and continuity he needs to carry out his planned withdrawal from Iraq. But so could many others, including Republicans like Chuck Hagel, who, at least, opposed the Iraq war. By keeping Gates on Obama worsens the Democratic image on national security--- sending the message that even Democrats agree that Democrats can't run the military. And even more troubling for our future security, Gates has sounded ominous notes about how more US troops can pacify Afghanistan. Speaking only days after a National Intelligence Estimate concluded that the US was caught in a "downward spiral" there, Gates asserted that there is "no reason to be defeatist or underestimate the opportunity to be successful in the long run." Extricating the US from one disastrous war to head into another will drain resources needed to fulfill Obama's hopes and promises for economic growth, health care, energy independence and crowd out other international initiatives.
All of this makes me nervous, but I'm willing to wait and see what happens over the first few month's of Obama's administration before I get too panicked. It's too bad that Gates doesn't have to be Confirmed for the job again, though, because I'd like to see some real debate on this nomination.
Meanwhile, CQPolitics has an article on the potential replacements to fill Hillary Clinton's seat in the Senate. It seems like the most obvious choice is the State Attorney General Andrew Cuomo, who appears to be the most popular pick among those polled and would also eliminate a potential rival in the Democratic Primaries for Governor Paterson.
I'm still hoping that Governor Paterson will select a woman, though, and there are several excellent choices from among New York's Congressional Delegation. The article also mentions the possibility of a 'dark horse' surprise like Caroline Kennedy. In general, I'd prefer someone who has at least held elective office before but I have to admit that I've always greatly admired Caroline and would love to see her in the Senate.
It will be interesting to see what happens.
On a completely different topic, today is World AIDS Day and the 20th Anniversary of the first such day. If you can, please make a donation to help in the fight.
I'll be back later this evening to discuss today's Luke & Noah scenes on As the World Turns.
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