Obama Names Hillary Clinton to State Post

By Michael D. Shear and William Branigin
Washington Post Staff Writers
Monday, December 1, 2008; 1:01 PM

CHICAGO, Dec. 1 -- President-elect Barack Obama Monday formally announced a national security team that is led by his onetime chief Democratic rival and includes a top member of President Bush's Cabinet -- a bipartisan group that he said shares his pragmatism and his commitment to strengthen America's standing in the world.

In a news conference in Chicago, Obama introduced Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.) as secretary of state, bringing on board the candidate who battled him for the Democratic presidential nomination during a long primary season. As America's top diplomat, Clinton will be the face of Obama's efforts to remake the country's foreign policy.

Obama also announced that Bush's defense secretary, Robert M. Gates, has agreed to remain in the job in the new administration, providing continuity while taking on what the president-elect said would be a new mission: "responsibly ending the war in Iraq through a successful transition to Iraqi control."

In response to questions, Obama said, "I assembled this team because I'm a strong believer in strong personalities and strong opinions. I think that's how the best decisions are made." He vowed to counter the danger of "group-think" that precludes dissenting views and pledged to welcome "a vigorous debate inside the White House."

He stressed, however, that he will set policy, will be responsible for his administration's "vision" and will expect his team to implement decisions once they are made. "So, as Harry Truman said, the buck will stop with me."

As he introduced Clinton, Gates and other members of his team, Obama said that "in the 21st century, our destiny is shared with the world's" and that the United States has a stake in global events regarding such matters as financial markets, public health, climate change and security from terrorism.

"In this uncertain world, the time has come for a new beginning -- a new dawn of American leadership to overcome the challenges of the 21st century," Obama said. "We will strengthen our capacity to defeat our enemies and support our friends. We will renew old alliances and forge new and enduring partnerships. We will show the world once more that America is relentless in defense of our people, steady in advancing our interests, and committed to the ideals that shine as a beacon to the world: democracy and justice; opportunity and unyielding hope -- because American values are America's greatest export to the world."

He said the members of his national security team "share my pragmatism about the use of power and my sense of purpose about America's role as a leader in the world."

He hailed Clinton as a "tough campaign opponent" who knows many of the world's leaders and "will command respect in every capital." He added: "Hillary's appointment is a sign to friend and foe of the seriousness of my commitment to renew American diplomacy and restore our alliances."

Obama said that Gates, who took the helm at the Pentagon two years ago, has "restored accountability" during his tenure and "won the confidence of military commanders." Gates also has "earned the respect of members of Congress on both sides of the aisle for his pragmatism and competence," Obama said.

In the new administration, he said, Gates will shift the U.S. focus in the war on terrorism to Afghanistan, where a resurgent Taliban has been gaining ground and al-Qaeda poses a threat from safe havens across the border in Pakistan.

During this year's campaign for the Democratic nomination, Obama and Clinton had each claimed to be the best candidate to restore the nation's reputation abroad, end the Iraq war and engage the new global economy as president. Now, they will try to do that together, though under Obama's direction.

Gates was tapped to continue as defense secretary despite having overseen a war policy that was the subject of withering criticism from both Obama and Clinton during the campaign.

To be successful, Gates and Clinton will have to forge a working relationship that often eludes the secretaries of state and defense even when they are members of the same party. Gates and Clinton will have their own power bases, and each has sought assurances of access to Obama. But Obama clearly believes the pair can work together, especially on the difficult task of withdrawing U.S. troops from Iraq.

To help in coordinating the competing views, Obama turned to retired Marine Gen. James L. Jones, whom he introduced Monday as his national security adviser.

Jones, operating inside the White House, will be charged with melding military and diplomatic policy and with helping Obama navigate the two bureaucracies.

The three other Cabinet selections announced Monday were Eric H. Holder Jr. as attorney general, Arizona Gov. Janet Napolitano as secretary of homeland security and Susan Rice as U.S. ambassador to the United Nations.

"I am confident that this team is what we need to make a new beginning for American national security," Obama said after introducing each member. "And as we move forward, with respect for America's tradition of a bipartisan national security policy and a commitment to national unity, we have to recall that when it comes to keeping our nation and our people safe, we are not Republicans or Democrats, we are Americans."

Observing that there is "no monopoly of power or wisdom in either party," he added: "Together, as one nation, as one people, we can shape our times, instead of being shaped by them. Together, we will meet the challenges of the 21st century, not with fear, but with hope."

Clinton promised that "if confirmed, I will give this assignment, your administration and our country my all." She said it was difficult for her to leave the Senate but that she was ready to take on the "daunting tasks" facing the country, including a reeling economy and "relentless" threats, as shown by last week's terrorist assault on Mumbai.

"America cannot solve these crises without the world, and the world cannot solve them without America," she said. "By electing Barack Obama our next president, the American people have demanded not just a new direction at home but a new effort to renew America's standing in the world as a force for positive change."

In response to questions, Obama said he has spoken to Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh about the events in Mumbai and conveyed his condolences. He said he and his team "are absolutely committed to eliminating the threat of terrorism . . . wherever it is found," adding: "We cannot tolerate a world where innocents are being killed by extremists based on twisted ideologies."

Obama was reminded that he has asserted a U.S. right to attack al-Qaeda targets in Pakistan if actionable intelligence exists and Pakistani authorities are unable or unwilling to do so themselves, and he was asked if India has the same right, in view of reports that the Mumbai assailants came from Pakistan.

"I think that sovereign nations obviously have a right to protect themselves," he replied, declining to comment further on that point.

The trio of Clinton, Gates and Jones that Obama introduced Monday represents a centrist team that has already angered some of the president-elect's most ardent liberal supporters, who had expected a foreign policy team with clear, left-leaning credentials.

But as he did in choosing his economic team, Obama has favored experience over ideology in forming his national security cabinet. At a news conference last week, the president-elect defended his choices, saying that his nominees do not undercut the direction that voters chose on Election Day.

"Understand where the vision for change comes from, first and foremost," he told reporters. "It comes from me. That's my job, to provide a vision in terms of where we are going and to make sure, then, that my team is implementing."

Holder, his pick for attorney general, and Napolitano, his choice for homeland security secretary, will lead the effort to protect the country against terrorist attacks while stepping back from Bush administration torture and interrogation policies that riled many in the country and became the subject of fierce attacks during the campaign.

A border-state governor, Napolitano will be in charge of efforts to revamp immigration policy. A former state attorney general, she has been a moderate and pragmatic governor with little interest in satisfying the left wing of the party.

Holder, a former judge, U.S. attorney and deputy attorney general, will become the nation's first African American attorney general. He is close to Obama, having co-led the search for a vice presidential candidate during the campaign.

Obama announced that Rice, a close friend and adviser, will become the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, assuming a role that will once again become a Cabinet-rank position.

The decision to name Clinton as secretary of state was made after working out an agreement with former president Bill Clinton regarding his global charity efforts. That agreement calls for Clinton to release the names of 208,000 donors to his foundation, and a willingness to refer questions about conflicts of interest to the State Department ethics office and to the White House counsel's office.

Branigin reported from Washington.

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