When Hillary Clinton was the front runner in the race towards the White House, University of Miami's campus was aflutter with rumors that President Donna Shalala might be headed back to Washington. Possibly to extend her lead as longest serving secretary of Health and Human Services. A couple of fantasy Obama Cabinet players have put her name forward for that same role, but now some Washington/Bloggy gossip mongers have her name on the short list for Secretary of Veteran's Affairs. Shalala was, of course, recently awarded the Presidential Meddle of Freedom for heading the President's Commission On Care for America's Returning Wounded Warriors with Bob Dole. But every Secretary of Veteran's Affairs has been a veteran, so it's probably just rumor.
Though, here's the interesting thing - a lot of people saw the Democratic primary as the party moving on from or even rejecting the Clintons' influence, so it's kind of interesting to hear all these Clinton associates being mentioned for jobs. But post-election we're reminded more and more that this is the same ol' Democratic Party it always was (hello, Lieberman appeasers), and Obama's first official appointment, Rahm Emanuel, got his start in politics in Bill Clinton's first presidential race. Viva los Clintons.
