John Kerry Angling for Secretary of State, Obama Ready to Sign Executive Orders to Move Country to the LeftOctober 19th, 2008 | 78 Comments | Posted in Barack Obama, Congress, Hillary Clinton, John Kerry, Taxes
|
Obama and his advisers, anticipating victory on Nov.4, are laying plans to move the country hard left. According to an article in the UK Times, some of this leftward shift will be accomplished via executive orders. Some of us will remember that this was one of Bill Clinton’s favorite tactics.
If the Dems achieve a Super Majority, look for one of two types of tax increases. One will be enacted by Congress. If Obama takes another page out of Clinton’s playbook, he will say after the election that the economy is in much worse shape than we were led to believe and that, regrettably, he will not be able to cut taxes on 95% of Americans after all. Since the Pubbies have blown their credibility and therefore the election, there won’t be enough of us in Congress to stop the tax increase and so Obama & Co. can do all the damage to our Tax Code that you would expect them to do, uncontested. The second type of tax increase that may be enacted is a stealth tax. If enough of the Blue Dog Democrats get some major heat from their constituencies on the tax increase proposals and vote with the remaining Pubbies to stop an outright tax hike, look for the Federal Reserve to foster an “easy money” policy that will generate inflationary pressures over time that will devalue your savings, hurt the dollar’s performance in the currency markets and make everything we need to try to stay in the middle class much more expensive.
The 2010 Congressional elections can’t come soon enough. In saying that, I am assuming that after the country gets a load of Obama’s vision for the country, we will rise up as we did in reaction to Bill and Hill’s first two years in office and recapture both Houses of Congress!
~~John Cronin~~
A senior official in the Obama camp, whose name has been submitted for FBI vetting, said: “We will be ready and we will be seen to be ready.”
He said that Mr Obama is close to finalising plans for his first 100 days in power - which will include major moves on the economy, healthcare and Iraq in his first week, designed to make his priorities clear to Americans.
He is planning a series of early interventions to stamp his authority on the economic crisis. This will include legislation proposing a $300bn stimulus package which would be published before President Bush has even left the White House, so that it can be passed as soon as he takes power.
Mr. Obama is also planning executive orders that do not require legislation on his first day in office, which could include plans to promote renewable energy resources and create jobs.
His transition team, which is reportedly much more extensive and active than Mr McCain’s, features 10 working groups in different policy areas to convert campaign promises into concrete legislation. It is chaired by John Podesta, Bill Clinton’s former White House chief of staff who runs the Centre for American Progress, a think tank long seen as a Democratic administration in exile.
Mr. Podesta is working closely with Michael Signer, a former foreign policy aide to John Edwards in charge of homeland security affairs. Mr Podesta and Jason Furman, one of Mr Obama’s two most influential economic advisers, have already held talks with sceptical conservative Democrats to line up the votes to pass a stimulus package.
Mr. Obama has also worked to cultivate a close relationship with the Treasury Secretary, Henry Paulson, and personally asked him to help out during the transition, sparking speculation that he might keep Mr Paulson in post for the first year of his presidency.
Ms. Kumar said: “There are things that a president can do immediately that establish his brand of leadership and help establish with the public what the priorities are.
“Reagan issued executive orders at the luncheon following the inauguration. He didn’t even wait to get to the White House. He wanted to show how seriously he took the issue of the economy.”
FBI vetting is also under way on 100 people from both campaigns, including Susan Rice, expected to be made the second successive black woman national security adviser after Condoleezza Rice; Greg Craig, a Washington lawyer tipped to become Mr Obama’s chief White House counsel and his likely White House chief of staff; and the former senator and campaign chairman Tom Daschle. If Daschle prefers to become Health Secretary, Obama’s current chief of staff Pete Rouse, nicknamed the 101st Senator for his connections on Capitol Hill, would take the job.
Other key national security officials will include Denis McDonough, chief foreign affairs adviser to the campaign and Richard Danzig, a secretary of the Navy under Clinton.
John Kerry, the Democratic candidate four years ago, and his fellow senator Chris Dodd, a failed candidate this year, are vying to become Secretary of State.
Mr Kerry, an Army veteran, is also a contender to take control of the Pentagon, but many expect that post to go to a Republican, perhaps the maverick senator Chuck Hagel. Colin Powell, a former secretary of state and chairman of the joint chiefs could return to government if he endorses Obama, as many expect. The veteran Democratic Senator Sam Nunn’s name is also in the frame.