Jones for State?

OP-ED: Worldview: Secretary of State deck has wild card, By Trudy Rubin, November 16, 2008

Good commentary on why all the names so far for SECSTATE seem weak and why General James Jones becomes an interesting dark horse.

I gotta admit: Jones + Gates would be formidable.

(Thanks: Michal Shapiro)

Comments

[David Emery]

I think the analysis on the more likely candidates is spot-on. The argument for Jones as an administrator is compelling. The key question would be how well he gets along with the 2nd tier within the administration and within State.

I don't mind a retired General (or Admiral) as SecState. I do object to a retired General/Admiral as SecDef, though.

The success of the Obama presidency will, in my view, very much hang on the quality of people he puts into his cabinet across the board (both State/Def/Homeland and for domestic posts including Attorney General, HUD, Treasury, etc.)

[Tom Barnett]

Indications are that he takes all that logic very seriously--the whole "team of rivals" thing.

I just worry that he's trying to accomplish too much in these picks.