Many on this site have views of Hillary Clinton informed by the media and/or by an external analysis of her actions throughout her public service career. Very few have had a chance to work with her in a professional capacity to the degree with which former Sec. Def. Bob Gates did. With Hillary running for president, it is worth reflecting on some first hand accounts of her performance as the US's top diplomat and fourth in line to the presidency.
It is also worth adding that Bob Gates, at the time of his appointment to Sec. Def, secured the votes of Obama and Clinton. He was considered to be bipartison (or non-partison) in many cases and is respected by democrats and republicans alike. I would argue that his thoughts on one's leadership ability and decision making process are valuable, regardless of any personal opinion of him or his service.
The below quotes are taken from his memoir ("Duty: Memoirs of a Secretary at War"). Every comment regarding Clinton was selected (reference in passing was usually left out,however). For what its' worth, I recommend anybody interested in our near past read this book.
Also - spoiler alert - some of Bob's comments you'll like, some you'll dislike. But they are likely to be the most unbiased review of first hand experience with her from the last five years.
Please make your own decision on Gate's observances of Hilary.
"....It was my great good fortune to have two formidable women - Condi and Hillary Clinton - serve as secretary of state during my tenure...
"...Hillary and I developed a very strong partnership, in part because it turned out we agreed on almost every important issue...."
"...commentators were observing that in an administration where all power and decision making were gravitating to the White House, Hillary and I represented the only independent "power center," not least because, for very different reasons, we were both seen as "un-fireable"...."
"...Hillary had been promised she would have freedom to choose her own subordinates at State, but that promise was not fully kept, and that would be an ongoing source of tension between her and the White House staff, especially the politicos..."
"....I had not known Hillary personally, and what views I had were shaped almost entirely by what I had read in the newspapers and seen on television. I quickly learned I had been badly misinformed. I found her smart, idealistic but pragmatic, tough-minded, indefatigable, funny, a very valuable colleague, and a superb representative of the United States all over the world...."
"....When Jim Jones spoke, it was pretty clear that his only friends in the roomer were Mullen, me, and maybe Hillary..."
"...Richard Holbrooke enjoyed Hillary's steadfast support. The president's curtness in addressing him made clear he was not Obama's cup of tea, further limiting his influence and effectiveness...."
"....I was both impressed and pleased that Hillary Clinton's first overseas trip as secretary of state was to Asia, beginning in Indonesia. I thought it sent an important message...."
"....As an old "Russia hand", I had no objection to Obama's reaching out to Moscow as long as no unilateral concession were involved. I was greatly reassured in an early meeting when Hillary said that she had no interest "ever" in doing something for nothing. She sent Sergei Lavrov a handwritten not on January 29 outlining a number of areas where the two sides could work together constructively, include a follow-on strategic arms agreement, global economic challenges, Middle East peace, Iran, North Korea, and Afghanistan...."
"...the North Korean government said it would release the two women only if a former U.S. president came to get them. Hillary, Jim Jones, and I gathered in Jones's office in early August to discuss what to do. Hillary had asked President Carter to go, but he made clear that if he went, he would discuss broader aspects of the U.S.-North Korean relationship....Clinton told Carter he could not go without a prior guarantee of the women's release...""
"...From Karzai on down, the Afghans had to shake their heads at our complaints about their corruption when elements of the American government (and almost certainly a number of our closes allies) were paying off them and their relatives as agents and to secure their cooperation. Hillary and I repeatedly objected to this contradictory behavior by the United States, but to no avail..."
"...Hillary agreed with my overall proposal [on US troops in Afghanistan] , but urged the president to consider approving the fourth brigade combat team if the allies wouldn't come up with the troops..."
"...The exchanged that followed [the Afghan troop discussion] was remarkable. In strongly supporting a surge in Afghanistan, Hillary told the president that her opposition to the surge in Iraq had been political because she was facing him in the Iowa primary. She went on to say, "The Iraq surge worked." The president conceded vaguely that opposition to the Iraq surge had been political. To hear the two of them making these admission, and in front of me, was as surprising as it was dismaying..."
"...I called Hillary in Singapore, told her of my conversation with the president, explained what I'd said about the three brigade combat teams, and asked whether she still supported that. She affirmed her strong support....I told her I'd called because the president might make a decision on his trip and she would be the only strong voice present. She laughed and said she'd do her best..."
"...Hillary strongly supported McChrystal's approach, with UN ambassador Susan Rice, Deputy Secretary of State Steinberg, Mullen, Cartwright, McChrystal, Petraeus, and me supportive of the "maximum leverage" option (my alternative). Biden, Donilon, and Brennan were all opposed. Eikenberry supported more troops but was skeptical that counterinsurgency would work because of the deficiencies of the Afghan government..."
"...Hillary had her first meeting with Russian foreign minister Lavrov in Geneva on March 6, and someone persuaded her to present him with a big red button, with the word "reset" printed on the top in Russian. Unfortunately, the Russian word on the button actually said "overcharge.". This reaffirmed my strong view that gimmicks in foreign policy generally backfire. They are right up there with presidents putting on funny hats..."
"...I suspect Hillary would have a problem with Susan as national security adviser....the president laughed and said, "That's well known outside of this room. Hilary's forgiven me, but not the people who came over to me"...
"...Hillary had come to the meeting loaded for bear. She gave a number of examples of Eikenberry's insubordination to herself and her deputy, Jack Lew, including refusals to provide information and plans. She said, "He's a huge problem." She agreed with me on the administration's treatment of Karzai. Then she went after the NSS and the White House staff, expressing anger at their direct dealings with Eikenberry and offering a number of examples of what she termed their arrogance, their efforts to control the civilian side of the war effort, their refusal to accommodate requests for meetings, and their refusal to work with Holbrooke and his team. As she talked, she became more forceful. "I've had it," she said. "You want it [control of the civilian side of the war], I'll turn it all over to you and wash my hands of it. I'll not be held accountable for something I cannot manage because White House and NSS interference..."
"...I told Hillary I though the president was going to relieve McChrystal and was thinking about Petraeus as a replacement. She thought Pretraeus was a great idea..."
"...Hillary suggested Ryan Crocker as our new ambassador, replacing Eikenberry..."
"...State had been requested to prepare a paper on corruption in Afghanistan, and I was told that Hillary had personally redrafted major elements. The analysis was the best I had ever seen on the topic..."
"...Donilon reassured me that Biden, Hillary, he, and I were on the same page. All of us were very concerned that the president [was] leaning hard on the need for regime change in Egypt. The White House worried about Obama being "on the wrong side of history." But how can anyone know which is the "right" or "wrong" side of history when nearly all revolutions, begun with and and idealism, culminate in repression and bloodshed? After Mubarak, what?...."
"...The lineup inside the administration on how to respond to events in Libya was another shift of the political kaleidoscope, this time with Biden, Donilon, Daley, Mullen, McDonough, Brennan, and me urged caution about military involvement, and the UN ambassador Susan Rice and NSS staffers Ben Rhodes and Samantha Power urging aggressive U.S. action to prevent an anticipate massacre of the rebels as Qaddafi fought to remain in power. In the final phase of the internal debate, Hillary threw her considerable clout behind Rice, Rhodes, and Power..."
"...For my replacement, my short list included Hillary, Colin Powell, Panetta, and New York mayor Michael Bloomberg..."
"...On April 4, 2011, the president told me I could still change my mind about leaving. During our meeting, he said that Hillary had told him the previous day, "You're not leaning hard enough on Bob." I told him, "I'm spent. I'm just out of gas."..."
"...Finally, the president went around the table and asked each person for his or her recommendation [on the Bin Laden raid]. Biden was against the operation. Cartwright and I supported the drone option. Panetta was in favor of the raid. Everyone else [including Hillary] acknowledge it was a close call but also supported the raid...."
"...The president decided to withdraw 10,000 troops by the end of December 2011 and the remainder of the surge by the end of summer 2012. He turned to me, Hillary, Mullen, and Petraeus and asked, "If I decide this, will you support it publicly?" All but Petraeus said yes...."
"...Hillary was a terrific colleague and a highly valued one - not least for her sense of humor..."