November 10, 2008 at 05:11:30

Obama Mania

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By Stephen Lendman (about the author) Page 7 of 9 page(s)

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Another long-time insider. He twice served as assistant secretary of state. From 1977 - 1981 under Jimmy Carter for Asia and from 1994 - 1996 for Europe under Bill Clinton. From 1993 - 1994, he was ambassador to Germany, and from 1999 - 2001 served as UN ambassador. It's rumored he's being considered for secretary of state, a position he failed to get to replace Warren Christopher when Madeleine Albright got the job as the first ever woman in it.

Richard Lugar

A senior Republican senator and man, who as mayor of Indianapolis in 1975, gave an impressive welcoming address to a group assembled by this writer for an event unrelated to world or national affairs. He's now served 30 years in the Senate where he's been chairman of the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations from 1987 - 1995 and again from 2003 - 2007. He's been mentioned as a possible secretary of state.

Lawrence Summers

From 1982 - 1983, he served on the Reagan administration's Council of Economic Advisors. Then in 1993 in the Clinton administration as under-Treasury secretary for international affairs and as Treasury secretary from 1999 - 2001. Earlier from 1991 - 1993, he was chief economist for the World Bank where he authored a controversial memo stating that "the economic logic behind dumping a load of toxic waste in the lowest wage country is impeccable and we should face up to that."

Summers was later president of Harvard University from 2001 - 2006 where controversy again dogged him. For his contentious relations with faculty members and for suggesting that the presence of few women in upper-level science and math positions was because of innate differences between men and women. The combination led to his 2006 resignation.

He now teaches at Harvard's Kennedy School of Government, is a consultant to Goldman Sachs, and is a managing director of the DE Shaw & Company hedge fund. His name is being floated as the leading candidate for Treasury secretary, and as Michel Chossudovsky states: "Putting a Hedge Fund manager (with links to the Wall Street financial establishment) in charge of the Treasury is tantamount to putting the fox in charge of the chicken coup," and more evidence that Obama plans the kind of business as usual that he pledged to get rid of.

Jon Corzine

Former CEO of Goldman Sachs who was forced out by the current Treasury secretary, Henry Paulson, in a palace coup. He's now New Jersey governor and according to the New Jersey Star-Ledger "is being actively vetted by the Obama transition team as a possible candidate for Treasury secretary in the new administration, two New Jersey Democrats familiar with the process said (on November 5)....Neither Corzine nor his aides would respond to a request for comment."

Paul Volker

The former Fed chairman from 1979 under Jimmy Carter and under Ronald Reagan until Alan Greenspan replaced him in 1987. He's a key Obama economic advisor and another possible Treasury secretary. Timothy Geithner, the New York Fed chairman, is also being mentioned. He's allied with Henry Paulson and worked closely with him on his bailout plan.

James Steinberg

An academic and political advisor, he served as deputy National Security Advisor to Bill Clinton in his second term. He's currently dean of the Lyndon Johnson School of Public Affairs at the University of Texas. He's reported most likely to become National Security Advisor.

Senators John Kerry and Republican Chuck Hagel are mentioned as possible secretary of state choices, and the AP reports that Kerry wants the job. New Mexico governor Bill Richardson also who under Clinton was energy secretary and UN ambassador but then broke with the Clintons to support Obama.

Dennis Ross

The former State department director for policy planning and special Middle East coordinator under Clinton. Under Republicans and Democrats he's been instrumental in shaping Middle East policy with an extreme pro-Israeli bias. He may do it again under Obama or serve in another key role.

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