“Speculation that President-elect Barack Obama may appoint Senator Hillary Clinton as secretary of state has induced reams of commentary on their personal compatibility, Bill Clinton’s income sources, and historical precedents for a Cabinet of rivals. … This ought to be a moment for a serious public conversation about the qualities needed at this precarious juncture. The nation’s top diplomat must be someone who has — and is known to have — the complete confidence of the president. Whatever mistakes she may have made, when Condoleezza Rice spoke to a foreign head of state her interlocutors understood that she spoke for the president. The same was true of James Baker when he served as secretary of state for the first President Bush.” (11/20/08)