As Obama transitions into his second term, the public wonders how these next fours years will be different from the previous four. Some Republicans worry about a lack of bipartisanship, as they found Obama’s Inaugural Address to be extremely one-sided. Republican Senator Rob Portman said, “Parts of it sounded like a campaign speech.”
But the Inaugural Address is just one way to attempt to predict the tone of the second term. Political analysts anxiously await Obama’s Cabinet appointments, as high-profile individuals like Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Defense Secretary Leon Panetta have decided to step down. On February 1, John Kerry was sworn in as Secretary of State after easily being approved by the Senate. And despite many Republicans’ attacks on Senator Hagel at a confirmation hearing, it looks like he will become the new Defense Secretary.
But the real controversy does not arise from partisan differences; rather, it comes from the question of diversity. Both Kerry and Hagel are white men, and this upsets some Obama supporters.
During the campaign, gender equality was a big topic of discussion, especially after Mitt Romney’s “binders full of women” comment. And Obama stressed basic rights for immigrants, and had poet Richard Blanco, who came to the United States as a child, read at his inauguration. Many people expected more minorities and more women to be considered for the posts, and were disappointed with the choices.
Rosa Brooks, a professor at the Georgetown University Law Center, lamented the lack of women. “For defense secretary, [Obama] inexplicably selected former Republican Senator Chuck Hagel over Michèle Flournoy, the universally respected former under secretary of defense for policy…. President Obama missed a historic opportunity to be the president who appoints the first female secretary of defense.”
Former presidents George W. Bush and Bill Clinton were known for their history-making Cabinet choices. Bush appointed Condoleezza Rice, an African-American female, to Secretary of State, Margaret Spellings to Education Secretary, and Alberto Gonzales to Attorney General. About 50% of both Bush’s and Clinton’s Cabinets consisted of women or people of color. Clinton was dedicated to assembling a diverse Cabinet, and promised the American people “an administration that looks like America.”
But for many, it’s not just about making history. A Cabinet with a number of different kinds of individuals may allow for a better-run executive department. Mary Frances Berry, a history professor at the University of Pennsylvania and former chairwoman of the United States Commission on Civil Rights, thinks that “Diversity strengthens the institution, as well. You have to have different perspectives in the mix.”
Others point out that diversity is not necessarily measured by gender or the color of one’s skin. During the Bush Administration, Representative Democrat Charles Rangel pointed out that “There’s diversity of color, but it’s the policies that one would be more interested in.”
Obama says that he is committed to having a diverse Cabinet. He has urged the American people to “wait until they’ve seen all my appointments, who is in the White House staff and who is in my Cabinet, before they rush to judgment.”
In fact, it has been rumored that the president is considering John Berry, the openly gay director of the federal government’s Office of Personnel Management, for Secretary of the Interior. But only time will tell just how diverse Obama’s Cabinet will be.
Referenced:
http://washingtonexaminer.com/gop-inaugural-address-just-a-partisan-campaign-speech/article/2519323
http://www.blackvoicenews.com/news/news-wire/48595-obama-slammed-for-lack-of-cabinet-diversity.html
http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/washington/2004-12-09-diverse-usat_x.htm
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/02/05/obama-cabinet-diversity_n_2620217.html