Senator Hilary Clinton would be an EXCELLENT Secretary of State... but not as Secretary of State for President-Elect Obama starting on January 20, 2009.

President-Elect Obama needs to send the message to the overly-moderate electorate that a spirit of bi-partisanship will exist in his Cabinet, and that his policy shops will not be reflected by the media spin doctors as the "most liberal administration in the history of American politics."

The spirit of Abraham Lincoln only goes so far. I know that Obama is stealing a page from Lincoln's policy of a "team of rivals," but this is no William Seward situation. Annointing Senator Clinton as Secretary of State brings a visible, bold voice of recent opposition and criticism to the Obama foreign policy team. Obama and Clinton agreed on foreign policy minutia about as much as Obama and McCain did. The American public wants a steady hand that reflects their wishes... an element of consistent change that delivers upon a promised spirit of bi-partisanship and compromise.

It is entirely possible to include elements of the Clinton administration in the Obama team structure without literally bringing Bill and Hilary into the fold. Keeping them separate from direct command elements allows them to be a voice of support or dissention from the "outside." Keeping Senator Clinton on Capitol Hill means that she has a chance to become the next "Lion of the Senate" following the departure of Senator Kennedy in a few years. She even can recoup credibility and stature for a possible presidential run again in the upcoming cycles.

Vet Governor Bill Richardson for Secretary of State, or wake up every morning and call Secretary Powell, Senator Nunn, and/or Senator Lugar and beg them to help their country one more time in the post of Secretary of State.

Wow... and I didn't even get a chance to move on to other Cabinet posts.