A raft of recent NYT letters to the editor angrily decries Obama’s executive branch selections as overly centrist, that he was elected by liberals and should govern accordingly. These flames are bound to be fanned by the newly revivified rumor that Gates will be staying on as Secretary of Defense.
Three points. I don’t agree that Obama was elected “by the left.” The left was certainly a part of his coalition, but also part of it were new voters and centrists. Plus, as one of our commenters astutely observed when Obama began “tacking to the center” during the primary, this is a guy who marketed himself as post-partisan. He was never going to come up with a super lefty cabinet.
Second, we’re talking about Barack Obama, not George W. Bush. Part of the reason I supported him is his judgment – probably the main reason. I think he has core values I agree with, and policies derived from those core values, using his judgment, will likely be policies I’m in favor of. If anything, I appreciate the curiosity motivating the desire for genuine, substantive debate inside the White House.
Third, and finally, Obama has shown himself to be pretty good at the political game, and by bringing together disparate voices such as Clinton’s (not that disparate anyway) and Gates’, he can co-opt them. They’d be in the fold, but he’d still be the boss. Win-win.
Tuesday, November 25, 2008
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2 comments:
Now that Gates is staying on, what do you guys think?
I like it. First, I think Gates is a good Secretary of Defense, and has focused on accountability and execution - sharp contrast from his predecessor, who focused on firestarting. Operationally, there are clear benefits to keeping the same Secretary of Defense. Politically, I'd say this is the best example of the co-opting referred to above.
In term of downside, it does seem to perpetuate the idea that Democrats are defense weaklings. Going back to Bill Cohen, Clinton's last Secretary of Defense and a Republican, it looks like we'll have twelve straight years of Republicans in charge of the Pentagon (since the plan seems to be that Gates will step down after a year). But maybe co-optation is the exact right way to combat that notion - keep Iraq as a definitively Republican endeavor, and once we draw down our troops, a new Secretary can come in without the baggage.
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