Will Obama Keep Gates As Secretary of Defense?

[Avalon6]

From Joe Klein at Time (http://www.time.com/time/politics/article/0,8599,1815849,00.html)

"When I asked him specifically if he would want to retain Robert Gates as Secretary of Defense, Obama said, "I'm not going to let you pin me down ... but I'd certainly be interested in the sort of people who served in the first Bush Administration." Gates was George H.W. Bush's CIA director — and he has been a superb Secretary of Defense, as good in that post as his predecessor, Donald Rumsfeld, was awful."


I personally wouldn't rule out Gates because he had shown a lot of humility as the SecDef. He was even willing to face a backlash from the Air Force for trying to reform their day to day operations by getting rid of the top Air Force generals.

[SoonerPride]

1. He will be gone.

Off to a golden parachute in a lobbying position to secure billion dollar contracts.

[Avalon6]

2. Can you actually cite why Gates is bad or are you simplying following talking points?

[SoonerPride]

3. For one, he's a texas aggie.

[MrCoffee]

4. That right there is good enough for me!

[SoonerPride]

7. I can't believe I agree with you.

sign of the apocalypse

:)

[SuperTrouper]

5. I don't think so

Obama will probably want someone from his team for Defense...Wes Clark? (if he is not offered the VP)

[MrCoffee]

6. Did you ignore the quote from Obama himself in the OP?

[merci_me]

9. Clark is not eligible for SoD

Clark has to be out of the military for 10 years to be eligible to serve as Secretary of Defense. So, back to the VP position.

How about Chuck Hagel. If Obama wants to go for a bi-partisan team, Hagel's the guy. He already announced on The Daily Show, that he does not support McCain and his pro-war policies. Hagel is a decorated veteran who served on the bottom rung in the Infantry. He knows the dirt, the heat, the smell of death.

[rox63]

8. I wouldn't bet on it

Obama will want his own hand-picked team in the cabinet. He needs to get the stink of the * admin out of the WH.

[Enthusiast]

10. Obama should purge his

administration of any that were tainted by the neo-con ideology.

[Imagevision]

11. gates remains Secretary of defense? about as much as Condi remais as secretary of state

[nsd]

12. No.

Keeping Gates would send two bad and false messages:
(1) No Democrat is strong enough to be entrusted with national security, so you need to keep a Republican for that.
(2) Foreign policy under Obama isn't going to change as much as you might think.

Obama cannot afford to send either message, no matter what Gates' personal qualities might be. Obama has to clean house.

[TexasObserver]

13. Not on a bet! He's Reagan-Bush trash and not up to the job.

[Inuca]

14. Gates himself has said NO

in very strong terms not too long ago when asked whether he would like to continue in the next administration. I do not remember the quote, but it was anything but an evasive answer, rather sounded like he is counting the days until he can get the hell out of there.