Change will not come if we wait for some other person or some other time. We are the ones we’ve been waiting for. We are the change that we seek.
Since his victory in the November 2008 elections, Obama and his advisors have been hard at work vetting candidates for cabinet and other executive branch decisions, as well as determining the priorities and types of topics Obama will consider in his agenda. Join us this Wednesday 3 December at 7pm in CAS 326 as we simulate Obama’s Transition Team.
Also, don’t forget that after Wednesday’s meeting, we will hold Secretary elections! In addition, applications for our travel conference to McGill in January are due Sunday night. Check your email for the application, or drop us a line at modelun@bu.edu if you want but don’t have the application!
Responsibilities of the Transition Team
“The transition is responsible for ensuring that the transfer of power from the current administration to the Obama Administration is smooth and that the continuity of leadership is preserved.” However, to ready the new administration for Obama’s inauguration, the transition team has to select appropriate officials for Executive Branch offices (most importantly, those in the Cabinet), as well as review and plan revisions for agencies in the Executive Branch.
The Obama Transition Agenda
The transition team is currently working on developing proposals for when Obama is inaugurated on January 20, 2009. For this, five main agenda items have been selected:
- Revitalizing the Economy: Obama plans to create “good jobs”, provide immediate relief to families struggling as a result of the crisis, use every tool possible to respond aggressively and rapidly to the financial crisis, and provide direct assistance to homeowners rather than to lenders.
- Ending the War in Iraq: This will involve a practical, phased withdrawal; a diplomatic, rather than military, surge; a way to prevent humanitarian crisis, and the implementation of a Status-of-Forces Agreement (SOFA).
- Providing Health Care for All: This should entail making sure health insurance buyers receive the right benefits (rather than simply adding to the profits of insurance and drug companies), while phasing in reforms to save families up to $2500 on health care.
- Protecting America: A huge undertaking, this goal involves updating the military, destroying Al Qaeda, securing nuclear materials, strengthening biosecurity, protecting and improving intelligence and information networks, updating American infrastructure, and developing plans to better handle
natural disasters, among other things. - Renewing American Global Leadership: Obama’s team says that the following are important issues to resolve before this can be complete: Afghanistan and Pakistan, nuclear weapons, Iran, energy security, renewed American diplomacy, Israel, and bipartisanship and openness.
Other important issues on the agenda, though not as high of a priority as these, include such issues as education, immigration, technology, and civil rights.
People Represented
Obama’s Team
- Barack Obama, President-Elect (chair)
- Rahm Emanuel, Chief of Staff designate
- Joe Biden, Vice President-Elect
- Hillary Clinton, Secretary of State designate
- Tim Geithner, Secretary of the Treasury designate
- Eric Holder, Attorney General designate
- General James L. Jones, National Security Advisor designate
- Bill Richardson, Secretary of Commerce designate
- Gregory B. Craig, White House Counsel designate
- David Axelrod, Senior Advisor designate
- Valerie Jarrett, Senior Advisor designate
- Pete Rouse, Senior Advisor designate
- Christina Romer, Chairwoman of the Council of Economic Advisors
- Janet Napolitano, Secretary of Homeland Security designate
- Susan Rice, U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. designate
Bush’s Team
- George W. Bush, President
- Joshua B. Bolten, Chief of Staff
- Dick Cheney, Vice President
- Condoleezza Rice, Secretary of State
- Henry Paulson, Secretary of the Treasury
- Michael Mukasey, Attorney General
- Carlos Gutierrez, Secretary of Commerce
- Admiral Michael Mullen, USN, JCS Chairman
- General James E. Cartwright, USMC, JCS Vice Chairman
- Admiral Gary Roughead, USN, Chief of Naval Operations
- General Norton A. Schwartz, USAF Chief of Staff
- General James T. Conway, Commandant of USMC
- Robert Gates, Secretary of Defense
- Michael Chertoff, Secretary of Homeland Security
- Zalmay Khalilzad, U.S. Ambassador to the U.N.
For more information, try out these articles and websites:
- Change.gov – Obama’s official transition website
- New York Times page on Obama’s Transition Team
- Lost in Transition – A National Journal website
- changedotgov on Youtube
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XblF3z-ST0Y]
