Second, more recent history suggests that secretaries of state, in particular, are only effective if world leaders believe there is no daylight between them and the president. Think Henry Kissinger and former president Richard Nixon, James Baker and Bush Sr. Surely few will believe that of Obama and Hillary. Yet one senior Democrat tells me that this was a point explicitly discussed and agreed by the two former opponents last week, and that Hillary has won all that she asked for on that score — including “constant and immediate access” to Obama.
The Hillary nomination is the one that gives me pause. But the other signs are encouraging. The only real criticism of Obama’s presidency? That it hasn’t started yet.
RSS