Barack Obama to announce Hillary Clinton as his choice for Secretary of State

It's not official yet, but according to news reports, President-elect Barack Obama will announce tomorrow that former First Lady and New York Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton is his choice for Secretary of State:

A deal with Bill Clinton over his post-White House work helped clear the way for Hillary Rodham Clinton to join President-elect Barack Obama's national security team as secretary of state, reshaping a once-bitter rivalry into a high-profile strategic and diplomatic union.

Obama was to be joined by the New York senator at a Chicago news conference Monday, Democratic officials said, where he also planned to announce that Defense Secretary Robert Gates would remain in his job for a year or more and that retired Marine General James L. Jones would serve as national security adviser.

The New York Times adds:

The Obama and Clinton teams have been preparing the ground for this announcement for days. Mr. Clinton, who has extensive business and philanthropic interests around the world, agreed to a nine-point plan covering disclosure, vetting and other areas to avoid potential conflicts of interest, including for the first time the release of more than 200,000 donors to his foundation by the end of the year. That goes beyond the requirements of existing law.

We're not too thrilled that Gates is being asked to stay on at Defense, but we do think that Clinton is a solid choice for Secretary of State.

Obama's decision to tap her as his top diplomat shows he's serious about building a strong administration. Clinton is sharp and resourceful.She has the potential to be a very effective Secretary of State, provided that she can be a team player.

We think she's got what it takes.

She's tough and she's a fighter, but in the end, she doesn't let her own bitterness get in the way of the future she wants to build.

"Every moment wasted looking back keeps us from moving forward. Life is too short, time is too precious, and the stakes are too high to dwell on what might have been. We have to work together for what still can be."

- Hillary Clinton

If Clinton accepts the job and is confirmed as Secretary of State, she'll have to resign her Senate seat. That will mean Governor David Paterson will have to pick a successor - an unenviable task, considering that there are many people interested in becoming New York's junior senator.

Paterson has signaled he wants someone with diverse experience:

Though in earlier interviews Paterson joked that the only person he was sure that he wasn't going to appoint was himself, he revealed a little more about his thinking in a recent interview. The New York Observer's Web site quoted Paterson: "I'm looking for a person with a combination of skills that can represent a state that has significant rural, suburban and urban communities," he said, adding that it is important to include those from under-represented areas of the state.

"It's very important, because the skill level can be the same among the individuals, but there is history and familiarity that people have who come from different parts of the state, or have unique backgrounds," Paterson said.

Senate Democratic leaders are undoubtedly relieved that Clinton has decided to accept Obama's offer to join his Cabinet, because it means they don't have to create a special leadership position for her in the caucus.

A new administration and several freshman Senators are on their way to our nation's capitol, but the people who have been running Congress for the past two years (Nancy Pelosi, Steny Hoyer, Chris van Hollen, Jim Clyburn, Harry Reid, Dick Durbin, Chuck Schumer, Patty Murray) will still be in charge come January.