Secretary Clinton is "the superstar of the Cabinet. Everything she touches is well run."
Those flattering words, reported by USA Today, were spoken by Republican Rep. Mark Kirk (Ill.), who's on the subcommittee that oversees the State Department.
When Clinton first became secretary of state, many people seemed to think that she'd have a difficult time playing second fiddle to President Obama. Today's USA Today article, however, dispels that myth.
The article reports that Clinton seems to have comfortably settled into her "supporting role" to Obama. And "supporting role" doesn't always mean off to the side. Clinton told USA Today, "I feel very much in the center of helping to devise the policies, carry out the policies, pick the people who will implement the policies."
Although the State Department's special envoys sometimes get more attention than Clinton, it doesn't mean Clinton isn't working hard behind the scenes. Vice President Joseph Biden told USA Today, "[The president] listens to her as much or more than anybody. … She's the main player … the one he looks to give the last wind-up pitch about what should be done."
And, it was Clinton's idea to appoint the special envoys. On This Week with George Stephanopoulos, she said, "I wanted special envoys, because we were inheriting so many hotspot problems that I knew you could never have one person possibly address all of that."
Sounds like Clinton knows how to wisely delegate and manage a hefty workload! As Rep. Kirk said, "Everything she touches is well run."
A couple of other noteworthy quotes from the article:
"The fact she is not in the headlines every day not only doesn't seem to be bothering her. She looks maybe the happiest she's seemed in her entire career." --Kristin Lord of the Center for a New American Security
"I would be real surprised if [Clinton] ever ran [for president] again. … I think that when she took this job, she chose to go a different course." --political analyst Charlie Cook
Photo: Matthew Cavanaugh-Pool/Getty Images
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