Lawmakers from both parties told the AP this week that they don’t expect any resistance to confirming Hillary Clinton in the State Department, despite fears that her husband’s international deal-making might get in the way. Just to make sure, Clinton’s been meeting with members of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee to seal the deal. Since everything she’s hearing points to go, she’s already picking out the appointees she’d like to line up under her.
According to the Times, Hillary plans to keep on the popular current undersecretary for Political Affairs, William Burns. Kurt Campbell, a former Defense official under her husband, will take over East Asian affairs. She’ll also bring in Wendy Burns, who advised Bill on North Korean affairs. It’s also rumored that Bosnia peace architect Richard Holbrooke will work on India-Pakistan relations, and Middle East expert Dennis Ross will work on Iran — the latter pick underlining Obama’s pledge to interact diplomatically with Tehran.
The takeaway from all this? We get to find out who Paterson is going to pick to replace Hillary soon!
Clinton Is Moving to Fill Senior Posts at State Dept. [NYT]
HILLARY POWWOWS WITH KERRY AHEAD OF HEARING [NYP]
