filkertom: Where The Walls Will Fall

Tom Smith (

filkertom) wrote,
@ 2008-05-15 09:17:00

Where The Walls Will Fall
There was a reason -- okay, there were a lot of reasons -- I was an Edwards man. Watching his endorsement of Obama in Grand Rapids last night, I remember them all.

I don't think he'd be happy as a VP candidate again. But damn what he could do in Health and Human Services.

Any thoughts on an Obama cabinet? I also think Gore could be a phenomenal Secretary of the Interior. And Vincent Bugliosi as Attorney General would be one of the biggest boosts to our reputation EVAR.

(Post a new comment)

maiac
2008-05-15 01:37 pm UTC (link)

Jimmy Carter's probably too old to be Secretary of State, but dang, he'd be good.

Pat Schroeder or Marian Wright Edelman as Secretary of Education.

Gore as Secretary of the Interior, or head of the EPA?

Patrick Fitzgerald as Attorney General. Or maybe head of the FBI.

Secretary of Defense.... that's a tough one. The only reason I wouldn't want Carl Levin in the position is that we need him too much in the Senate.

Bring back Robert Reich to run the Treasury.

If President Obama doesn't manage to eliminate the Department of Homeland Security, put Bruce Schneier in charge of it. (He'd probably run screaming from the idea, but it would be good to have somebody who has a clue about SECURITY.)

For head of FEMA, somebody from Mercy Corps or ACORN or one of the other organizations that have been on the ground helping to clean up and rebuild from disasters.

Valerie Plame Wilson as head of the CIA.

(Reply to this) (Thread)

	redaxe 2008-05-15 01:50 pm UTC (link)
	grins I started my reply below with no replies here, went to get a drink, came back and finished it -- and, well, Great Minds etc. :-) Nice picks, with Wilson and Reich. Maybe President Carter could handle HUD; he's got plenty of experience on the ground with housing, as well as his statesmanship. (Reply to this) (Parent)

redaxe
2008-05-15 01:47 pm UTC (link)

I've been thinking JE as AG for a while; it would be good to see him go after all the war criminals, profiteers, and other crooks Obama will pitch from office (assuming they aren't preemptively pardoned by Chimpy on his way out the door). Patrick Fitzgerald would also be a great AG.

I would want to undo the stupidity of Homeland Security; failing that, we could put Bruce Schneier into the position.

I do know that I'd love to see some changes in Congressional leadership, as well. Boot Harry Reid in favor of Chris Dodd, and let Nancy Pelosi answer to Henry Waxman as Speaker of the House, and I'll be ecstatic.

(Reply to this) (Thread)

	palenoue 2008-05-15 06:04 pm UTC (link)
	(assuming they aren't preemptively pardoned by Chimpy on his way out the door) Wouldn't it be fun if Bush handed out lots of pardons, then Obama issued a "signing statement" saying that the previous president's pardons didn't apply to him? He could use the same rationale as the Bush supporters do. (Reply to this) (Parent)

	rmeidaking 2008-05-15 01:48 pm UTC (link)
	I've wanted Edwards as Attorney General for a while now. The guy knows how to run an investigation, and I suspect he could oversee a forensic audit. Especially of his own department.... (Reply to this) (Thread)

	realtegan 2008-05-15 02:16 pm UTC (link)
	Amen amen amen amen. I want Edwards as AG. (Reply to this) (Parent)(Thread)

	fair_witness 2008-05-15 03:06 pm UTC (link)
	Ditto. While I wouldn't mind seeing him on the ticket as VP, I think he'd make an outstanding AG, and we need someone tenacious in that position next administration to start cleaning out the Aegean Stables formerly known as the D of J. (Reply to this) (Parent)(Thread)

	maiac 2008-05-15 03:09 pm UTC (link)
	I know this is extremely optimistic, but I keep thinking it won't be that difficult to clean out the Augean Stables. Just announce clear and specific standards for work performance and require the detritus from the Bush Administration to do the job the way it's supposed to be done. Then stay away from doorways so you don't get trampled by the fleeing Busheviks. (Reply to this) (Parent)(Thread)

filkertom
2008-05-15 03:24 pm UTC (link)

The one problem is the one thing that I think is the most necessary is the one thing that's least likely: dragging Dubya and Darth and Rove and Wolfowitz and Rummy and Condi and Feith and Colin and Yoo and Gonzales and Kristol and the rest of 'em to the Hague in chains. That would involve admitting we were freakin' deluded as a country, and handing over our ~~war criminals~~ elected officials.

(Reply to this) (Parent)(Thread)

	fair_witness 2008-05-15 03:46 pm UTC (link)
	And while we're at it, the site for Bush's presidential library should be turned over to some institution that can make good use of the real estate. Maybe a facility for educating the local children who were left behind. (Reply to this) (Parent)

	sazettel 2008-05-15 01:53 pm UTC (link)
	I have heard, but have no confirmation for it, that the job Edwards wants is attorney general. I'd be good with that. (Reply to this)

	sazettel 2008-05-15 01:55 pm UTC (link)
	Here's a thought; if we can't get rid of it altogether, which would be my preferred option, Colin Powell for Homeland Security? (Reply to this) (Thread)

	maiac 2008-05-15 02:04 pm UTC (link)
	No. Oh, no, never. Colin Powell was willing to lie for Bush to justify the Iraq War, all the while posturing as a "moderate" who was reluctant to go to war. If there were any justice in the world, he would be publicly reviled. (Reply to this) (Parent)(Thread)

	filkertom 2008-05-15 03:04 pm UTC (link)
	Exactly. Between that, the dog-and-pony show at the UN, and helping to cover up My Lai, Powell is on my short list of People Who Should Not Get Away With It But Likely Will Dammit. (Reply to this) (Parent)(Thread)

	fredhuggins 2008-05-15 09:04 pm UTC (link)
	You know how I know Harry Potter is fiction? Cornelius Fudge governed horribly, then GOT his comeuppance. (Reply to this) (Parent)

	holzman 2008-05-15 03:58 pm UTC (link)
	Powell's got a date to keep at the Hague along with the rest of the war criminals. The Gods willing, he'll be a little too busy for the next 50 years or so to have any role in public life. (Reply to this) (Parent)

underpope
2008-05-15 02:23 pm UTC (link)

Gore would be a great Secretary of the Interior, but I suspect he's done with politics. The man certainly seems a lot happier now that he's moved beyond that scene to become an environmental statesman, but damn, he'd be good there. Remember the chaos that was James Watt?

Edwards as AG. That would be so freaking awesome. And I think that Carter as Secretary of State would be so cool I'd have to go pee.

I really think Clinton should be in there somewhere. I'm not sure about her foreign policy politics but she's proven herself to be a scrapper and surely there's need for her determination and force of will somewhere within the new administration.

(Reply to this) (Thread)

shsilver
2008-05-15 02:47 pm UTC (link)

And I think that Carter as Secretary of State would be so cool I'd have to go pee.

In recent years, Carter has lost a lot of credibility with Israel to the extent that on his most recent trip no Israeli government official would agree to meet with him. I think the SoS needs to be someone more neutral in that area, especially given some of Obama's perceived "problems" in that area.

(Reply to this) (Parent)(Thread)

	maiac 2008-05-15 02:58 pm UTC (link)
	::smacks forehead:: Yeah. Israel's a deal killer. I hadn't thought of Bill Richardson until you and others mentioned him, and I endorse that nomination. He's got such cred that Bush sent him on a diplomatic mission to North Korea. (Reply to this) (Parent)

	vik_thor 2008-05-15 02:35 pm UTC (link)
	nobody's mentioned Bill Richardson yet... I think he would be good as Secretary of State. (He has the international experience.0 Carter for HUD. (such a concept, actually having people who KNOW stuff be in charge of the stuff!) (Reply to this) (Thread)

	filkertom 2008-05-15 03:03 pm UTC (link)
	Tell me about it. Actually, I think Richardson wouldn't be a half-bad VP choice. Same with Dodd. (Reply to this) (Parent)

	shsilver 2008-05-15 02:45 pm UTC (link)
	Secretary of State: Either Bill Richardson or Joseph Biden. Health and Human Services: Hillary Clinton (or give her a Supreme Court appointment) Defense: Wesley Clark Labor: John Edwards Veteran Affairs: Colin Powell (he got 'em into it, let him make good) Director of the EPA: Al Gore (Reply to this) (Thread)

	maiac 2008-05-15 02:59 pm UTC (link)
	Colin Powell for nothing. He has no credibility after being Bush's errand boy and designated liar as Secretary of State. (Reply to this) (Parent)(Thread)

	shsilver 2008-05-15 03:36 pm UTC (link)
	I do think he should be given a shot at redemption in an area which would force him to see the results of his lies every day. Failing that, I think Veteran Affairs should go to someone who supported Bush's Folly. (Reply to this) (Parent)(Thread)

	holzman 2008-05-15 04:00 pm UTC (link)
	Redemption he can get at his Church. His proper role in the US government is on a plane to the Hague. (Reply to this) (Parent)

	maiac 2008-05-15 07:13 pm UTC (link)
	Anybody who supports Bush's Folly would be a horrible choice for administering Veterans Affairs. Remember, the people who are all "support [sending] the troops [to Iraq]" are also completely neglecting the troops that come home from Iraq. How can we expect a Bushevik to do a decent job for President Obama? (Reply to this) (Parent)

	Al Gore for Secretary of Energy randwolf 2008-05-15 02:51 pm UTC (link)
	! (Reply to this) (Thread)

	Re: Al Gore for Secretary of Energy filkertom 2008-05-15 03:05 pm UTC (link)
	That'd work great. I keep forgetting that's a separate post, not under the auspices of Interior. In which case, Richardson for Interior.... (Reply to this) (Parent)

My Dream Team 08

mannoftalent
2008-05-15 03:16 pm UTC (link)

I did a long post on this awhile ago, so I'll just give the highlights. I'm a solid democrat, but I think some reaching across the aisle is a good idea, especially with the Republicans who aren't ideological assholes.-

VP- Bill Richardson (Assuming Hillary doesn't bully her way into the job)

SecDef- McCain. I don't think he'd be a good Prez, but he does know his way around the military establishment, and he's taken on Rumsfeld in the Senate.

SecTreas- Michael Bloomberg. The man made his fortune understanding the financial markets and how they work.

Attorney General- John Edwards. He'd restore integrity and be the best looking one since Bobby Kennedy.

Director of FEMA- Rudy Giuliani.

SecEnergy- Al Gore and/or Arnold Schwartzenneger

SecState- Bill Clinton. Because he's good at foreign policy, and if anyone can apologize and be believed, its him.

(Reply to this) (Thread)

	Re: My Dream Team 08 jcw_da_dmg 2008-05-15 03:46 pm UTC (link)
	Hillary doesn't WANT to be VP under Obama - she'd have to eat too much crow. She might make a deal for a Supreme Court seat, just like Earl Warren did with Ike. (Reply to this) (Parent)(Thread)

	Re: My Dream Team 08 mannoftalent 2008-05-15 03:53 pm UTC (link)
	She doesn't have the experience or skill set to be a justice. She'd probably take the VP seat as a launching pad for 2012 or 2016. Either that or Senate Maj. leader. (Reply to this) (Parent)

Re: My Dream Team 08

holzman
2008-05-15 04:06 pm UTC (link)

I've got a simple principle to suggest: The people who got us into this mess have demonstrated that they are incompetent. Let's stop proposing giving jobs to Republicans.

The guy who with the anger management issues who wants to be in Iraq for another hundred years is unfit and incompetent to be the Secretary of Defense.

The guy who never met a constitutional protection he didn't like to trample who put his emergency command center at the World Trade Center is unfit and incompetent to be Director of Fema.

The guy who switched from the Democratic to the Republican party after losing the Democratic primary and can't get it through his head that an elected official does not wield the powers of a corporate CEO is unfit and incompetent to be Secretary of the Treasury.

(Reply to this) (Parent)(Thread)

	Re: My Dream Team 08 maiac 2008-05-15 07:14 pm UTC (link)
	Hear, hear! (Reply to this) (Parent)

bayushisan
2008-05-15 03:17 pm UTC (link)

I agree that Clark would make a good Secretary of Defense. Just don't put him in the VP spot please. ;) (sorry couldn't resist)

From what little I know of him Edwards would make a good Attorney General. For Secretary of State I think I'd look to Daniel Shapiro or Susan Rice. Carter, as much good as he's done with Habitat for Humanity, is too much of a wild card these days.

I mainly just want to see people who won't by syccophants about their jobs this time.

(Reply to this) (Thread)

	filkertom 2008-05-15 03:26 pm UTC (link)
	Got that. Public service is a noble cause, and the people who get into it should do so for the sake of helping to make thing better for as many people as possible and not screw things up too badly along the way. It's not that hard a concept. (Reply to this) (Parent)(Thread)

	bayushisan 2008-05-15 07:47 pm UTC (link)
	Yup. That's one reason I write about the things that I do. I want to help people and since my health doesn't always allow me to do physical stuff I speak out as often as I can about the thigns that matter to me. :) (Reply to this) (Parent)

unclelumpy
2008-05-15 04:35 pm UTC (link)

McCain's going to win. And it won't be Obama's fault.

It's because, according to a CNN poll, 35% of Hillary's supporters say if Obama wins the nomination, they will vote for McCain, and another 36% say they won't vote at all.

There you have it, kids. Hillary has officially become Ralph Nader with tits.

We're going to get at least 4 more years of illegal war, vanishing liberties, a crumbling infrastructure and an economy swirling ever faster down the shitter because a bunch of dried-up, heartless, self-centered, ex-hippie hags can't put their country before their cunt.

(Reply to this) (Thread)

Okay...

trifleresplende
2008-05-16 04:09 am UTC (link)

First of all, I don't see how a CNN poll is anywhere close to reliable information. Online polls are notoriously unrepresentative of the truth and are easy to hack and inflate.

Also, the sexism evident in your attack on Hillary (who I really dislike for other reasons) is disturbing. To what other rhetorical purpose can you possible say "Ralph Nader with tits" or "put their country before their cunt"? The "ex-hippie hags" remark is purely specious, since I see no evidence that it's these types of people are the ones voting in the poll you hold as gospel.

That said, I appreciate your tireless cynicism and pessimism, which are much more important to hold on to than optimism and hope. Optimism only got us into the mess we're in, and hope will only make it worse.

(Reply to this) (Parent)(Thread)

	Re: Okay... unclelumpy 2008-05-16 07:09 pm UTC (link)
	No one ever became poor by underestimating the intelligence of the average human being. (Reply to this) (Parent)

tigertoy
2008-05-15 06:25 pm UTC (link)

Before commenting on any specific people for specific slots, two general comments:

(1) If I could give Obama just one simple piece of advice, it would be to avoid Illinois when looking for well-known people to headline his administration. Illinois' state government is a steaming cesspool of corruption and incompetence that genuinely rivals the Bush administration in badness. Other than Obama himself, there's only one other Democrat anyone's heard of whom I actually admire in Illinois -- Dick Durbin. And we still need Durbin in the Senate.

(2) In general, I do not want to see Obama cherry-picking the most competent sitting Democratic Governors and Senators for Cabinet posts, because we need those folks where they are, serving the terms they were elected to. And obviously, I don't want to see him picking any *in*competents to "kick them upstairs". For each post, I want him to exhaust the options among people who aren't already serving in important offices before plundering those offices for his administration. I know it's not the way politics usually works, but it should be. And I'd also like to point out to the ambitious that (at least by my own guess based on what I can remember seeing) accepting a cabinet post is a lousy career move; plenty of people who were prominent as Governors or Senators vanish into obscurity after serving as Cabinet secretaries for a term.

On individuals, I don't mind bribing Hillary with the VP slot, a Supreme Court seat (although unless the Democrats really kick ass in the Senate races this fall, she'd never be confirmed), or any cabinet post she wants if she can get get her supporters to support Obama wholeheartedly.

Edwards would be fine as Attorney General. If Gore wants the job, he'd be great for Interior, EPA, or Energy -- but I don't think he does, and if he has to be dragged into it kicking and screaming, he'll probably quit if something politically ugly comes along and makes it even harder than he expected to do anything in the job. Peter Fitzgerald should be promoted to the highest job in the Justice Department where he'd still actually be prosecuting cases, not just shuffling papers and making speeches; that might be Solicitor General. I think Jimmy Carter is too old and is losing his marbles, but if he wants the job, he might be able to do some good as UN Ambassador; it's 20 years too late to ask him to be Secretary of State.

If Hillary as VP isn't the price required for party unity, Bill Richardson would be great.

And finally, Bruce Schneier for Secretary of Homeland Security is the best political idea I've heard in months. You have to start tapping fictional characters to do better than that. (Honor Harrington for SecDef, anyone?)

(Reply to this) (Thread)

maiac
2008-05-15 07:17 pm UTC (link)

I briefly considered Jim Webb for Secretary of Defense or for Veterans Affairs, but immediately decided I wouldn't want to remove any Democratic senators or governors from their current positions. Otherwise, I'd be all for Carl Levin as Secretary of Defense, because of his long years of experience with military issues in the Senate. (Carl is likely to win re-election by a huge margin, but other Democratic candidate would have a much harder time against Michigan's Republican thugs.)

(Reply to this) (Parent)

	fredhuggins 2008-05-15 08:58 pm UTC (link)
	Let's see, I'd put John Edwards on bass guitar and Yoda on drums... Wait, what are we talking about? (Reply to this)

palenoue
2008-05-16 04:25 am UTC (link)

Keith Olberman for White House Press Secretary?

It could be interesting when he fields snarky questions from GOP friendly reporters, bringing up all of their sycophant questions and interviews they did for Bush then chastising them for ignoring real issues while pursuing republican "talking point," then wrapping it up with his traditional "Have you no shame?" finale.

That would be a press conference I'd watch from start to finish.

(Reply to this)

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