There was no way to expect that Barack Obama could choose his Cabinet and fill key posts without dipping into the ranks of Democrats who were part of the Clinton Administration. But I didn't think it would be this much.
First, we had Rep. Rahm Emmanuel being tapped as White House Chief of Staff. One key transition aide is former Chief of Staff John Podesta. And there are many more.
Like I said, that's fine. That's understandable. People worked for Bill Clinton and now they are ready to come back and help Barack Obama.
But some of the names have knocked loose some News Memories in the back of my mind that really took me back to the Clinton Years.
The new White House Counsel is going to be a guy named Greg Craig. Yep, that's the same Greg Craig who was the lawyer for then President Clinton, while he was dealing with the Monica Lewinsky scandal.
(One sidebar - ten years ago on November 17, we got to hear Monica's voice on the infamous Linda Tripp tapes. They are sitting up on my top shelf right here in the Capitol.)
Then there is all the talk about Hillary Clinton being Secretary of State. One might think that Obama would want to keep Hillary safely in the Senate, but maybe he wants some "drama" in the West Wing.
It immediately drew less than stellar reviews from critics, including some who know the Clintons very well.
"If Barack Obama appoints Hillary Clinton as his Secretary of State, it will send a cynical message to his supporters: that change is something they can still only hope for," sneered Dick Morris, who was Bill Clinton's chief pollster and strategist.
I'm going to play contrarian on this story right now. I don't believe she will be the pick. But maybe I'm going to be wrong.
That's okay you say, Obama can pick New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson, who has a strong background in diplomacy.
But do we have to then go over Richardson having breakfast with Lewinsky, and offering her a job at the United Nations? All while some say President Clinton was trying to get her out of DC?
And then there's word that former deputy Attorney General Eric Holder may be the new Attorney General.
Which means we get to re-live the controversy over last minute pardons issued by Bill Clinton before he left office, including the one for Mark Rich. That would be "fugitive" Mark Rich, who had fled the US to avoid prosecution on tax evasion charges.
Critics immediately charged that big donations to the Democratic Party by Rich's wife had basically "bought" him a pardon.
I thought that I had tucked all those Clinton News Morsels way back in my brain. But I guess a lot of them are now going to be needed again.
There's no getting away from the Clintons. Even if a guy named Obama is President.
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