Chief strategist to Barack Obama and incoming Senior Advisor David Axelrod visited three Sunday Morning talk shows today to comment on the new administration.
On ABC's "This Week" Axelrod told host George Stephanopoulos that the new Cabinet will not be "potted plants", emphasizing that prospective Cabinet members – including Sen. Hillary Clinton – will make strong partners in governance as evident by their capacity to form their own opinions.
Then on Fox News Sunday, Axelrod said that he will not emulate the former presidential Senior Advisor Karl Rove. "My role with Barack Obama for the last six years has been to help the communications operation impart his message… I'm not trying to rebuild the Democratic Party" – a stark contrast from the focus Rove put on strengthening conservative Republican success across the country, and at every level of government.
The Change We Sought
Although it has been less than a month since the Election, the Obama Team does seem committed to the very same message they put forth throughout the campaign.
Not only have they made an effort to nominate thoughtful and opinioned people to the Cabinet, but Obama will likely nominate Hillary Clinton (a former rival especially on foreign affairs), and keep Robert Gates (a Republican Secretary of Defense). The only cabinet member Bush differed with was Colin Powell, who was pressured out of the administration (to "spend more time with his family").
And if Axelrod is telling the truth, there will be a dramatic change in what the Senior Advisor job entails. Obama originally said he would eliminate the Rove position from the White House – and for all practical purposes, it is exactly what he is doing.
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