Every time somebody floats the idea of having Gates, Hagel, Lugar, or Powell in the cabinet a ton of folks come out of the woodwork and attack the idea. While I am somewhat sympathetic to the notion that we should have a Democrat as the Secretary of Defense (and would want someone like Danzig AFTER a caretaker period for Gates, which would reassure the military that while the mission IS changing, we're not selling them out), the basic premise is flawed.
I didn't support Obama so we could kick in Republican teeth.
I want a truly, honest-to-God bipartisan cabinet. Why? We're fucked. We're fucked economically. We're fucked abroad. We're fucked on energy. We're fucked on transportation. We're fucked any number of ways. This is an "All Hands on Deck" moment in American history, people. We need our very best people, regardless of race, gender, creed, or political stripe! We can't accept anything less.
General Motors is a few months away from collapse. Do you guys and gals understand what that means? If GM fails, yes of course, their workers are screwed. But something this large has so many second and third order effects as to boggle the mind!
There is a great deal of pain and sacrifice ahead. We have the majorities in both Houses of the Congress to pass practically anything we want to pass. The temptation to do precisely that is strong. We know better how to address these issues, so why should we give the Republicans the time of day? I'll tell you why.
Nearly 57 million people voted for McCain-Palin, and most of them for honorable reasons. We often forget that in the heat of a campaign. Yes, the other side has no shortage of demons (neither, by the way, do we), but that's not the norm. Oh, their rank and file may not be to our liking and we for damned sure think they're wrong but that doesn't make them evil.
And they're going to suffer with us. I want them to know that their people are a part of this. Going forward we face to many challenges to leave the other side feeling disconnected, much as we have these last eight years.
Think about the hell it's been for us, watching them fuck our country! It has been horrible. Were we consulted? Were we listened to? No and no. We were ignored and mocked. Crisis after crisis was used by Karl Rove and President Bush to cost us seat after seat. It was a disgrace. Lord knows I want vengeance!
But I think justice is a better idea, people. We have to heal the damage. Every single one of you has a Republican friend or relative, if not several or many. Step back for a moment. Do you really want these people, the good and decent ones, to feel as though the whole of the next four years will be dictation? We've won that power, but that doesn't make it wise to use it so.
I want three to five Republicans in the cabinet. I want President Obama to consult with them, and other Republicans. Obviously not just any Republicans. Most of their elected officials scare the shit out of me, but there are exceptions. I trust President-Elect Obama to know who's willing to actually put our country first and try to help him help us!
This country is more important than kicking in Republican teeth. Yes, I want that, oh good God how I want that. But imagine how much sweeter this will be if we succeed where they failed? I don't just mean policy, I mean process. There aren't that many Republicans I'd trust in the Obama Administration, but there are a few. We can argue over exactly who should be there, and that's healthy. But we need to grow up and realize that just because we can shut them out doesn't mean we should.
If I wanted a war I would have supported Hillary Clinton or John Edwards. I'm an American before I'm a Democrat and right now America is hurt. Guys, we can be petty and try to slap 'em down just as they did us, but this stuff is too important. The Obama Premise, well, that's why I'm here. I didn't want a generic Democrat.
I wanted Barack Obama.