Political pundits are a strange breed. They feed off one another like kids copying a book report. Most are saying with certainty that Colin Powell will be, or should be, the secretary of state in a Bush administration. Excuse me. The armed forces are hurting, notwithstanding the administration's and the Pentagon's protestations to the contrary. Enlistments are off, spare parts are hard to come by, morale is low, pay is substandard, thousands are on food stamps, and so on. Who better to lead the military back to greatness than Gen. Colin Powell – as secretary of defense?
If you missed the speech by Condoleezza Rice, the black foreign policy adviser to Gov. George W. Bush (and currently on leave as provost of Stanford University), you missed one of the highlights. Poised, knowledgeable and articulate, she exuded confidence and charisma. Most of the pundits are touting her for national security adviser. She has secretary of state written all over her. Do a search on the Internet about her. Read her article in the January/February issue of Foreign Affairs. Find her convention speech. View a video clip of her speech.
And who better for Health and Human Services than the former president of the American Red Cross and former Secretary of Transportation Elizabeth Dole?
One of the exciting prospects about a Bush administration is the wealth of people he has available to fill Cabinet posts and advise him. Make a list of all the accomplishments of the Clinton Cabinet. All you will need is the back of a matchbook.
RICHARD C. RHODES, Honey Grove
(from the Sunday, August 13, 2000 issue of The Dallas Morning News)
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Richard Rhodes
08/13/2000