WashPo: Hillary Clinton Largely Invisible On Big Foreign Policy Issues

washingtonpost.com:

With the exception of former senator Edmund S. Muskie's brief turn as secretary of state at the end of the Carter administration, Hillary Rodham Clinton is the first politician in the job in six decades -- the rest have hailed from the fields of foreign policy or the military.

By all accounts, she is the consummate team player and is often the best-briefed, most prepared person in the room. President Obama's aides say he values her advice and appreciates her dedication, dampening speculation that he and his erstwhile rival would not work well together.

Read the whole story: washingtonpost.com

Comments

[babyboomerorig]

I, personally, think that the President has more one-on-one conferences with Hillary than almost anyone else. He values her thoughts, even though he's marginalizing her attempts at a 2012 run and has used her personality and expertise to further US-Foreign relations with other countries.

Her most blatant comment came when she thought she was being asked about what her husband thought of something.

[constitutional 1]

Hillary should have stayed in the senate. She allowed the administration to marginalize her with the secretary of state role. Obama has the 2012 nomination locked, no chance the DNC would not support an incumbent. She will probably be done in DC after her time as Secretary is up.

[StephenBarry]

Q: What does your husband think of the article Mrs. Clinton ?

A: Fu&^ Yo* £&&%$" )*&^% !!!!!! ??!!??!! **&^&%%&&.

[constitutional 1]

lol

[yankees]

I think it is a smart move by Obama - Bury Clinton. Of course she is using this time as "experience" for her run in 2012 for the Democratic primaries.

[Rog49Thomas]

Let's see, the charge is that Hillary is not active in the Israeli/Palestinian "peace" effort.

Hmm, considering that Israel is the third rail of US politics, if HC has any future political aspirations, why would she reach out to grab it?

Hint making real peace in the Middle East is going to require goring a few sacred bulls.

[GoDems2012]

Oh, it's the Post. Taken with a tiny grain of salt.

[Rog49Thomas]

A "tiny grain"?

You must not read the Post often.

You'll need a salt shaker full.

[rissole]

My only question is what has Hillary Clinton done since becoming SOS?

[NeoconGal]

She tore that student in Africa a new as@hole when his question was misinterpreted. Other than that I can't think of anything.

[merger]

It was funny, but dang I wouldn't have wanted to be on the receiving end of that.

[NO-LIE]

Tore a new a$$-hole on a student, neo now thats funny!

[RedDogBear]

The US state department was in a shambles after 8 years of Bush and 4 years of Rice. I think its quite defensible to say it was in the worst shape its been in since the US had a department of state. The Bush administration essentially didn't care about diplomacy. There version of it was "do what we want or we'll ignore you if you are lucky or bomb you if you aren't" Also, Rice, who did let the first attack on US soil by a foreign power since the war of 1812 when she was national security advisor (I think that qualifies her as worst security advisor ever) was if anything even a worse SOS. She let major positions go unfilled. Virtually everyone who didn't quit was disgruntled and disgusted. There were countless news stories documenting this. So a lot of what Clinton has been doing has been basic repairing of the department and re-establishing with other nations that we don't just want to ignore or bomb them. That doesn't get headlines but its still essential. There have, however been significant diplomatic achievements already. Getting the journalists from Korea and negotiating nuclear weapons treaty with the Russians are two off the top of my head.

[Ms Fu]

Actually, Bill Clinton dealt with the North Korean government to get the journalists out.

[happysquared]

Can't wait next year, surely the media won't be able to keep recycling these '08 election nontroversies.

The election is over. Madame Secretary is doing a great job supporting our President and our great country.

Get over it.

[wanda665]

with you happy.

[Spencaa]

I'm saying it again, the Media is trying to stir up a fight between Hillary and Barack, real or not, because they got so much material out of it in the Primaries

[samjer]

Yeah, the liberal media cant get enough of this cr@p.

[Spencaa]

Hillary Clinton is just letting Obama do his thing. The Media is just pissed they aren't fighting like it's tge Primaries again

[Justtellthetruth]

She is no help at all in the Israeli palestinian conflict. She has been MIA on the entire issue with the exception of a few very tepid statements. We need someone in her position that is not politically fearful of taking this issue head on, even if it means getting tough with the Israeli right and dumping on the US AIPAC crowd that she has traditionally coddled.

[samjer]

So whats Obamas plan for the Israeli problem? Hillary implements his plans. So if anybodys been MIA on the Israeli problem its Obama. Hillarys mending broken aliances that Bush spent 8yrs destroying.

[mrh3]

Huh?

[Ms Fu]

If Clinton is not involved in issues, then that is Obama's fault, because she can't go to where she isn't sent. But if she is sent and isn't successful, well that falls equally between Obama and Clinton. She can't be tough on Israel until Obama tells her to, so we can't blame her for that.

[Palemoon]

With as bad as his administration is going so far, perhaps it would be wise for President Obama to start listening to his cabinet instead of his misguided and very poor advisors.

[Airmail56]

She should take a run at that Govenor's seat in New York. I don't think she will ever really be happy in this White House. Could set her up for a run in '12.

[lungfish]

Guess that making up a story about running through sniper fire in Bosnia isnt quite the Foreign Policy credential that Hillary thought it was....

[writer10027]

Fortunately, a minority focus only on a petty point while ignoring the overriding positive. Do apply teh same metric to your "faves"?

The President chose his SoS wisely.

[jennylynn]

Have all of the several Hillary supporters abandoned her?

[samjer]

So..... 18 mil=several? 70% aproval rating. You had better go back to school cuz your math sucks.

[wanda665]

jenny wants a rise.