|
Who's in the running for Obama administration jobs
2008-11-21
It's Washington's favorite parlor game during a presidential transition: trying to figure out who'll land a top spot in the new administration. President-elect Barack Obama is weighing an array of Washington insiders and outsiders, including some Republicans, for Cabinet and other top positions, according to Democratic officials. Just like the stock market, names rise and fall weekly, some zooming to the top, others dropping out of contention. Hillary Rodham Clinton suddenly is considered the top prospect for secretary of state, although other names remain in the mix. It looks like Eric Holder, former deputy attorney general, is on track to become attorney general. Some of those who are the subject of speculation already have been chosen by Obama to serve as part of his transition team. Some names being floated are surprising, such as former Bush Secretary of State Colin Powell for education secretary. Others are high-profile governors or members of Congress. Many are also little known to the general public -- and may remain so. ___ DEFENSE SECRETARY Defense Secretary Robert Gates. Former Navy Secretary Richard Danzig. Sen. Chuck Hagel, R-Neb., critic of Iraq war, retiring from Senate. Sen. Jack Reed, D-R.I., member of Senate Armed Services Committee. John Hamre, former deputy defense secretary, now president of Center for Strategic and International Studies. ___ TREASURY SECRETARY Timothy Geithner, president of Federal Reserve Bank of New York. Former Federal Reserve Chairman Paul Volcker. Lawrence Summers, former treasury secretary and one-time Harvard University president. ___ SECRETARY OF STATE Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, D-NY, former first lady and one-time rival of Obama's for the Democratic presidential nomination. Gov. Bill Richardson, D-N.M., former U.N. ambassador and energy secretary. Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., 2004 presidential nominee. Sen. Chuck Hagel, R-Neb., critic of Iraq war, retiring from Senate. Richard Holbrooke, former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations. ___ ATTORNEY GENERAL Eric Holder, former deputy attorney general. ___ HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES SECRETARY Former Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle, D-S.D. ___ HOMELAND SECURITY SECRETARY Arizona Gov. Janet Napolitano. ___ CIA DIRECTOR John Brennan, former director of the National Counterterrorism Center ___ NATIONAL INTELLIGENCE DIRECTOR Tim Roemer, former Indiana congressman and member of the 9/11 commission. Rep. Jane Harman, D-Calif., chairwoman of House Homeland Security intelligence subcommittee. Jami Miscik, former head of CIA's analytical operations. ___ NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISER James B. Steinberg, former deputy national security adviser. ___ ENERGY SECRETARY Dan Reicher, director of climate change and energy initiatives at Google, former assistant energy secretary in charge of efficiency and renewable energy programs in the Clinton administration. Former Rep. Philip Sharp, D-Ind., president of Resources for the Future think tank. Kansas Gov. Kathleen Sebelius. ___ INTERIOR SECRETARY Former Oregon Gov. John Kitzhaber. Former Alaska Gov. Tony Knowles. New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson. Rep. Mike Thompson, D-Calif. ___ EPA ADMINISTRATOR Lisa P. Jackson, commissioner of New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection. Mary Nichols, head of California Air Resources Board. Kathleen McGinty, former secretary of Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection. ___ HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT SECRETARY Rep. James Clyburn, D-S.C. Renee Glover, head of Atlanta's housing authority Nicolas Retsinas, director of Harvard's Joint Center for Housing Studies Shaun Donovan, commissioner of New York City's housing department. ___ LABOR SECRETARY Ed McElroy, former president of the American Federation of Teachers Former Rep. Dick Gephardt of Missouri Linda Chavez-Thompson, former AFL-CIO vice president Former Rep. David Bonior, member of Obama's Transition Economic Advisory Board. Maria Echaveste, former Clinton White House adviser. ___ COMMERCE SECRETARY Laura D'Andrea Tyson, former chair of White House Council of Economic Advisers under President Clinton. ___ OFFICE OF MANAGEMENT AND BUDGET DIRECTOR Peter Orszag, director of Congressional Budget Office. ___ EDUCATION SECRETARY Colin Powell, former secretary of state, former chairman of Joint Chiefs of Staff. Kansas Gov. Kathleen Sebelius. Arne Duncan, chief executive officer of Chicago public schools. Inez Tenenbaum, former South Carolina schools superintendent. Linda Darling-Hammond, education professor at Stanford University. ___ TRANSPORTATION SECRETARY Jane Garvey, former head of Federal Aviation Administration. Mortimer Downey, former deputy transportation secretary. Former House Majority Leader Dick Gephardt. Kansas Gov. Kathleen Sebelius. ___ AGRICULTURE SECRETARY Former Iowa Gov. Tom Vilsack. Tom Buis, president of National Farmers Union. Former Rep. Charles Stenholm, D-Texas. ___ VETERANS AFFAIRS Tammy Duckworth, a disabled Iraq war veteran and Illinois veterans affairs director. Former Sen. Max Cleland of Georgia, a Vietnam veteran who had three limbs amputated after a grenade blast. Current VA Secretary James Peake.
What's Really at Stake in Georgia's Senate Runoff (2008-12-02)Obama weighs names for top posts (2008-11-21)Who's in the running for Obama administration jobs (2008-11-21)McCain to headline rally for Georgia GOP senator (2008-11-13)McCain asks Georgia voters to back Sen. Chambliss (2008-11-13)
| 
