Some fleeting thoughts...

Senator Hillary Clinton's confirmation hearing before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee is taking place today, and I wanted to list a few points that I found interesting. They are listed in no order of relative importance:

• Senator John Kerry has been selected to be Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee for the 111th Congress. In watching the hearing today, he seems to have found a place to shine. Interestingly, there was talk that he was interested in the Secretary of State position himself. I voted for John Kerry during the 2004 elections and believe that he would have been a good president; his style and persona, however, just don't seem to provide that spark that is often needed for such a highly visible governmental position. As the Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and in his running of the Senate hearing, he seems to be the perfect person for the job. He was supportive of Hillary Clinton during the hearing, but never seemed to be gushing. John Kerry has the gravitas that seems necessary for the Chairman position. As an aside - I have been waiting to use the word - gravitas - in a blog for months now. If ever a person was a fit for this word, it is Kerry. He could make ordering extra croutons for a Caesar Salad seem serious.



• I believe that Hillary Clinton has been preparing her whole life for this hearing. I know that articles say that she has been practicing for the last few weeks with staff, but practice and rehearsal can only get you so far (remember Palin?). I am currently listening to the audio of Hillary Clinton's autobiography. She has worked hard, and basically seems to be a very intelligent "geek." Note - this is meant as a positive rather than a negative.



• This third point is a brief one. Not only do you have to be intelligent to go through such a process, but you have to kiss a lot of Senate butt, as well. Before questioning Hillary Clinton, each Senator provided her with a laundry list of what they would like her focus to be if she gets confirmed as Secretary of State. Of course, after hearing each list, Senator Clinton had to compliment each Senator on his/her eloquence, as well as assure each that she would address their respective "wish lists."



• Lastly, one can say that: "Bill giveth, and Bill taketh away." Former President Bill Clinton has definitely helped Hillary with their partnership, but it has brought it's negatives with it as well. This most recent negative is surrounding the Bill Clinton Foundation and potential for conflict of interest. The foundation does much good, but complicates things for Hillary by way of taking donations from "less than loved" international donors. I don't think that this fact will cause Hillary to not get confirmed, but it does make the process a bit more messy. In 2007 for example, the Bill Clinton Foundation generated a total revenue of $131,450.00. (Truthfully, if it were up to me, I think that the US government should ask Clinton for his advice on money raising, rather than judging it. We could use some cash flow at this time).