New Cabinet
President Bush wasted no time setting the agenda for his second term, but he will be carrying it out with a new Cabinet. As of this writing six of the 15 Cabinet members including Secretary of State Colin Powell, who was viewed as the lone statesman, announced their resignations. The president plans to elevate national security adviser Condoleezza Rice to State. He has also announced that his long-time friend White House counsel Alberto Gonzales is his top pick to replace outgoing Attorney General John Ashcroft.
Powell, Ashcroft and Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld (who unfortunately has yet to say he is leaving) were three of the most familiar faces to Americans, especially following Sept. 11.
Those who weren’t easily swayed by Rumsfeld’s counsel to invade Iraq, believed the cause was just once Powell made the case before the United Nations.
The perception that Powell played a steady, credible hand at State cannot easily be duplicated, especially when there are those who believe he was nudged aside. Rice has positioned herself well to be next in line for the post and is expected to easily win confirmation although she will likely face tough questioning.
That scrutiny will pale when compared to what faces Gonzales. Few mourn the departure of Ashcroft who ran roughshod over the Constitution to fight terrorism, but already critics are lining up on both sides to attack Gonzales’ prior legal judgment. Gonzales is faulted by conservatives for a decision made while a Texan judge to side with a teen who was seeking an abortion without her parents’ consent, and by Democrats for giving the president bad advice that led policy changes that led to the notorious Abu Ghraib prison scandal.
Also on the departing list are Commerce Secretary Don Evans, Agriculture Secretary Ann Veneman who managed to stay far below the public’s radar, Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham who failed to get an energy policy past Congress, and Education Secretary Rod Paige who did have success with instituting No Child Left Behind.
There might be more to come. Some of the faces will be new to the public, but so far the president’s selections are shaping up to be those he has long surrounded himself with, going back to his days in Texas. How well this serves the other 49 states remains to be seen. And that will be the definitive factor in whether Bush finds success in carrying out his second-term agenda.