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Stop Carping About Obama Relying on Folks from the Clinton Administration

By Larry Johnson on November 19, 2008 at 6:20 PM in Current Affairs

While I had my own issues about some aspects of the Clinton Administration, there is no question the United States was better off at the end of his term than at the start. You cannot say the same for George W. Bush. So why in the hell are some commentators and pundits bitching about Barack Obama turning to folks who served on the Clinton team for help in setting up his Administration? The people complaining about this display a level of stupidity that even Borat would ridicule.

Barack had two other choices–1) ignore anyone with prior White House experience, or 2) select folks who worked in the Carter Admnistration. While I have had serious questions about Barack’s judgment in hanging with the likes of Bill Ayers, Jeremiah Wright, and Tony Rezko, the President-elect is not a moron. He wisely recognizes the need to have experienced folks around him. Otherwise, he runs the risk of repeating some of the mistakes of the first Clinton term. Learning on the run is not a preferred option.

What about the Carter folk? Do you realize that someone who was 40 years old when Carter left office is now 68? Bottomline is that most of the folks who served as assistant secretaries or deputy assistant secretaries are approaching or have surpassed the age of retirement. Zibigniew Brezinski is no spring chicken and will not (nor should he) play an active role in the Obama Administration.

I will concede that prior experience is not all that it is cracked up to be. Look at the debacle of George W. Bush–he had Condi Rice, Dick Cheney, and Colin Powell. We know how that turned out. My early read of Barack’s choice of John Podesta is that it shows the man from Illinois is serious about wanting to have a successful Presidency. And the nice thing about Podesta (and Rahm Emanuel), they will keep the Rezkos, Wrights, and Farrakhans far away.