Obama Staff Appointment Sends Signal On Running Mate Selection

At a time when the McCain campaign is awkwardly trying to court former supporters of Hillary Rodham Clinton, the Obama campaign has just sent up a powerful signal that Clinton herself will likely not be on the Democratic ticket in November.

An Obama press release issued shortly before 1:00 p.m. EST today listed fifteen new high-level appointments to the Obama general election campaign staff. Of the fifteen, only one has been a staffer or prominent supporter of Hillary Clinton -- and that one is Patti Solis Doyle.

Solis Doyle is the longtime Clinton adviser who coined the phrase "Hillaryland." She was Clinton's aide when the Senator was First Lady of Arkansas and initially chaired Clinton's presidential campaign. She was asked to step down, however, in the weeks after SuperTuesday and while the primary campaign for Texas was heating up. The firing was particularly controversial among members of the Chicano-Latino Democratic caucus. Steve Ybarra, a superdelegate from California and a strong advocate of minority rights, was inspired to write a fiery email to the caucus on the matter that was reprinted in the press. Clinton received overwhelming Latino support on SuperTuesday, he wrote, but "apparently, loyalty is not a two-way street." He told The New York Post that the firing was strategically "dumb as a stump." On June 8th, the New York Times reported that Clinton and Solis Doyle hadn't spoken since Solis Doyle stepped down.

In that light, most remarkable about the announced Obama staff appointments today, perhaps, is that Solis Doyle will be the campaign's "Chief of Staff to the Vice Presidential Nominee." Unless an unreported reconciliation has occurred, the decision to appoint Solis Doyle to work closely with Obama's eventual running mate appears to send a clear signal to Clinton and to her supporters that Clinton will not be that person. The move may even be intended to discourage Clinton from applying behind the scenes pressure to be placed on the ticket. This interpretation is bolstered by the fact that Solis Doyle's position has been created and filled even before the running mate has been chosen; while it makes sense for the eventual running mate's staff to be thoroughly up to speed on campaign operations as early as possible, that could have been accomplished by naming Solis Doyle to another position in the campaign, then shifting her responsibilities once the vice presidential choice was announced. To formally slot Solis Doyle in this particular position, at this time, seems to go out of its way to send a message.

When asked for a comment, Obama campaign spokesman Bill Burton pointed out that a statement about the appointments was included in the press release itself but did not respond immediately to a followup request for additional details.

The press release is reproduced in full below:

Obama Campaign Fills Out Key Posts for the General Election

New hires and current staff members assume leadership roles for next phase of the campaign

CHICAGO, IL--The Obama campaign took a major step today in readying for the general election fight, announcing fifteen new members of the campaign's leadership team. The staff members--a combination of new hires and current staff assuming new roles will help broaden and deepen the reach of this campaign for change--from field organizing to constituency outreach to voter registration.

"From the beginning, we've asked the American people to stand up and take ownership of this campaign--and it's because of their overwhelmingly positive response that 16 months later we're poised to make history together," campaign manager David Plouffe said. "Today we're adding to our leadership team so that we reach even more Americans who share the belief that people who love their country can change it. These staff members bring a wealth of organizing experience to their new role, and they'll provide key insight and direction as we continue to build our coalition."

New roles announced today:

Constituency Director: Brian Bond - formerly LGBT Outreach Director at the DNC
National Field Director: Jon Carson - formerly Obama for America Voter Contact Director
Senior Advisor to the Campaign and Chief of Staff to Michelle Obama: Stephanie Cutter
Industrial States Regional Director: Paul Diogardi - formerly Political Director for the Democratic Governor's Association.
Battleground States Director: Jen O'Malley Dillon - formerly Iowa State Director for John Edwards for President
Chief of Staff to the Vice Presidential Nominee: Patti Solis Doyle
Latino Vote Director: Temo Figueroa - formerly Obama for America National Field Director
First Americans Vote Director: Wizipan Garriott
Northeast Regtional Director: Eureka Gilkey - formerly Obama for America Deputy Political Director
50-State Voter Registration Director: Jason Green - formerly Obama for America political and field staff
Campaign Chief of Staff: Jim Messina - formerly Chief of Staff to Senator Max Baucus
LGBT Vote Director: Dave Noble - formerly of the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force
West Regional Director: Matt Rodriguez -.formerly Obama for America New Hampshire State Director
Senior Advisor: Michael Strautmanis
African American Vote Director: Rick Wade

### FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE June 16, 2008 Contact: Obama Press Office, (312) 819-XXXX Paid for by Obama for America

Comments

[Faith101]

I wish some of these people would give it a rest. They are always speculating on Hillary, trying to figure out how she feel, how her supporters feel, just trying to make a story where there is none. These people are professional politicians. Do you actually think they are going to cut off their nose to spite their face. One race is over, they get on board with the next. Hillary will let everybody know how she feels soon enough.

[Cheryl55]

Doyle NEEDED to go...and NOW we see why!

[NorVaGal]

Mr. Bellows, I believe that your headline is pure speculation on your part. The possibility of Ms. Solis Doyle joining the Obama campaign was reported several weeks ago, before the end of the primaries. It has also been widely conjectured that MANY former members of HRC's campaign staff would probably be integrated into the Obama campaign (or vice versa) once the presumptive nominee was identified.

IMO, it is "opinions" like your own that breed continued division and animosity between Clinton and Obama supporters. The hiring of Ms. Solis Doyle is conceivably the first of many high-profile Clinton surrogates. Her inclusion could just as easily be a positive signal of HRC's VP chances as a negative one. Please-- stop fanning rumors and inuendos that are only the figment of your own conjectures and not those of Sen. Obama's. We have no crystal ball to determine Obama's intentions-- and neither do you.

[ched]

Try not to read so much into it. The article makes no mention of the fact that Solis-Doyle is a Chicagoan, a good friend of Axelrod, and that her brother is a long-time friend of Obama. At the same time, it will help with the Latino vote.

The Hillarites constantly in search of a reason to be offended need to get over themselves. It's really not all about them. With a CoS already in place and working with the campaign, the eventual VP choice can hit the ground running in coordination with the main campaign and needn't create an entire staff from scratch. What happens after the election is an entirely different matter.

[M.S. Bellows, Jr. - Huffpost Blogger]

I agree that there are lots of good reasons why Obama would want Solis Doyle on staff -- he's not about to hire someone just to take a swipe at Clinton. And I agree that it's important to have the VP's campaign staff up and running long before he/she is chosen. But that doesn't mean there's no message here. As I wrote above:

"while it makes sense for the eventual running mate's staff to be thoroughly up to speed on campaign operations as early as possible, that could have been accomplished by naming Solis Doyle to another position in the campaign, then shifting her responsibilities once the vice presidential choice was announced. To formally slot Solis Doyle in this particular position, at this time, seems to go out of its way to send a message."

So it's not the hiring of Solis Doyle, it's the placement of her as the chief of staff Clinton would have to work with if she were the veep that (intentionally, I think) sends a message.

[jupitor]

Get off clinton, her people are now comeing aboard. Do you see the lady any where around, to cause any troubl? Of course not! When this lady was let go, it was because clinton couldn't keep harmony with in her party, not because she wasn't a good pick! Most people with half a brain reconize this fact.Mark Penn wanted every thing his ways and caused big rifts with in the campagne party. Obama can see a good thing when he see's it, and he must see something special in this pick to take one of clintons people on.

[moda31]

perhaps it does, but my first thought was that she's a prominent latina woman, with ties to the clinton camp being given a job on the obama team that doesn't really require her to do much of anything right out of the gates, basically a gesture that would be well received by latinos and perhaps even some clintonites. i never really thought the rift between her and sen. clinton was as big as it apparently is, her split with the campaign seemed almost mark penn-ish in practical terms at the time it occurred. she's apparently a longtime friend of obama's strategist, and fits in with the chicago team they have going, i hadn't really thought about what it meant for sen. clinton's already non-existent chances at the veep nod. i'm not sure this is the message they'd want all over the network talking heads right now, which is what's happened, if this was it's intent the timing is a little curious, though the gore endorsement should help push it to the back burner.

[M.S. Bellows, Jr. - Huffpost Blogger]

good comment; thanks.

[ZenNonna]

I am so ashamed of myself but I am starting to cackle over Hillary's putdowns. Bad feminist...slapping herself. But since I have been a feminist since 1961 I think I have the right to cackle.

[Kaos911]

Listen carefully, you can actually hear Hillary getting SMACKED down :)