Obama, Favreau, and Hillary at State

This is an post I wrote a couple weeks ago–before the inauguration–discussing Hillary’s role in the new Administration. As Susan and Ani note, Hillary has been busy. As a whole host of issues arising from potential discussions with Iran where competing players will be jockeying for position (such as Susan Rice) we will get a better picture of the precise role Hillary will play and her influence when others are involved. From the work already done by Hillary, I hope that my early concerns prove to be unwarranted.

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As I saw Hillary during her confirmation hearing, I was once again impressed by her depth and breadth of knowledge. I definitely feel confident in her abilities and competency, but I’m not entirely sure that will be enough for her to be an effective Secretary of State. Why? Two words: Jon Favreau.

Why does Jon Favreau still bother me? As Pat Racimora points out, Obama has not shied away from discarding previous friends and mentors when their politically embarrassing behavior became public. I don’t want to rehash the argument on Obama’s character for tossing out his old friends, but I find it glaring that he essentially gave a free pass to Favreau on this issue, appointing him director of White House Speech Writing

Now that the election is over, Obama may not see a need to abandon allies anymore. Or the non action on Favreau could be a signal of something else. It’s clear that his supporters and high level advisers have negative views of Hillary so its reasonable to ask just how widespread the “dehumanizing” view of Hillary is amongst Obama’s team and with Obama himself. To be sure, Obama’s appointment of Hillary as Secretary of State may, in fact, be an indication that he truly values her input on foreign policy and that his campaign largely built upon ridicule of Hillary’s judgment on foreign policy was just a ruse. But the fact that a strong rebuke of Favreau was not readily made publicly I have my concerns. Additionally, if you wanted to silence the one person with a following bigger than you, the best way to make them disappear is to send them abroad.

In addition to how Obama views Hillary, its also important to ask if Obama’s non reproof will negatively impact Hillary’s position as the chief US diplomat. Here, I think Anglachel says it succinctly:

To allow this image of her being treated with disrespect by a close associate of the president, someone who appears to be on track as a member of the administration, says two things to the nations and diplomats she will engage:

1. Go ahead, piss on her. We do.

2. We don’t respect you enough to send someone we respect to treat with you.

Had this photo come out during the campaign, it could have been kept an individual matter, dimissed (however disingenuously) as the unfortunate side effect of a highly competitive contest. But now Hillary has been named Secretary of State and the revelation of the contempt under these circumstances carries a different meaning. This image is no longer about her.

Even if Obama sees Hillary as more than a “monster”, the lack of a swift and strong response has the potential to inadvertently hinder Hillary’s ability to perform her duties.

We will soon find out what role Obama plans to give Hillary as she starts taking on the responsibilities. For our sake, I hope that Obama does value Hillary and that it will be more than clear that she is an important member of his administration.