As the Obama Administration puts off until April a government efficiency plan promised in February, we’re reminded yet again that the president still has not filled the top positions at the Treasury Department. Given that economic woes our nation faces (about which he continually reminds us), shouldn’t that be his primary focus?
Today completes the second month of Barack Obama’s presidency and it’s not just key positions in that key Department which remain unfilled. Not just that, two of his cabinet appointees, Kathleen Sebelius to HHS and Gary Locke to Commerce, have yet to be confirmed.
So, let’s compare Obama’s record in picking a cabinet with that of his much maligned predecessor, recalling that the incumbent had five more weeks to staff his Administration before taking office than did George W. Bush just over eight years ago.
As Wikipedia provides the days the various Department Secretaries took office which I summarize below. In preparing this chart, we see that Bush did a better job of staffing the upper echelons of his Administration than the incumbent has done.
Check below the jump to see the appointees and the dates they took office:
Secretary of State:Â Colin Powell (January 20, 2001)Â Â Â Hillary Clinton (January 21, 2009)
Secretary of the Treasury:Â Paul O’Neill (January 20, 2001)Â Timothy Geithner (January 26, 2009)
Secretary of Defense:Â Donald Rumsfeld (January 20, 2001)Â Robert Gates (Bush Administration holdover)
Attorney General:Â Â John Ashcroft (February 2, 2001)Â Eric Holder (February 3, 2009)
Secretary of the Interior:Â Gale Norton (January 31, 2001)Â Ken Salazar (January 20, 2009)
Secretary of Agriculture:Â Ann Veneman (January 20, 2001)Â Tom Vilsack (Janaury 20, 2009)
Secretary of Commerce:Â Donald Evans (January 20, 2001)Â Gary Locke (not yet confirmed)
Secretary of Labor:Â Â Elaine Chao (January 29, 2001)Â Â Hilda Solis (February 24, 2009)
Secretary of Health and Human Services: Tommy Thompson (February 2, 2001) Kathleen Sebelius (not yet confirmed)
Secretary of Housing and Urban Development:Â Â Mel Martinez (January 24, 2001)Â Shaun Donovan (January 26, 2009)
Secretary of Transportation:Â Norman Mineta (January 25, 2001)Â Ray LaHood (January 22, 2009)
Secretary of Energy:Â Â Spencer Abraham (January 20, 2001)Â Norman Chu (January 21, 2009)
Secretary of Education:Â Rod Paige (January 20, 2001)Â Arne Duncan (January 20, 2009)
Secretary of Veterans’ Affairs: Anthony Principi (January 23, 2009)Â Eric Shinseki (January 21, 2009)
Secretary of Homeland Security:Â (Not then created)Â Â Janet Napolitano (January 23, 2009)
Other Cabinet-level positions requiring Senate confirmation
Director of the Office of Management and Budget:   Mitch Daniels (January 23, 2001) Peter Orszag (January 20, 2009)
United States Trade Representative: Robert Zoellick (January 20, 2001) Ron Kirk (March 18, 2009)
Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency:Â Christine Todd Whitman (January 31, 2001)Â Â Lisa P. Jackson (January 22, 2009)
Ambassador to the United Nations:Â John Negroponte (September 15, 2001) Â Susan Rice (January 22, 2009)
Chair of the Council of Economic Advisors:Â Robert Glenn Hubbard (February 2001)Â Christina Romer (January 28, 2009)
Perhaps it’s more telling to look at the baggage Dear Teleprompter’s appointees brought with them.
Tim Geither – Tax Cheat
Janet Napolitano – Left her state with a $1.3 Billion deficit, opposes immigration law enforcement, and refers to acts of terrorism as “man-made disasters.”
Hilda Solis – Tax problems
Eric Holder – Point man for Bill Clinton’s pardons of terrorists and Marc Rich
Ray LaHood – Major Republican Prok Barreler
Arne Duncan – Chicago School Systems failure rate: 85%. The schools he ran were so bad, Dear Teleprompter wouldn’t send his own kids to them.
Kathlee Sebelius – Left her state with a Billion deficit even after massive tax-increases; pro-abortion fanatic.
Gary Locke – Implicated in illegal Chinese donations scandal
Ron Kirk – Tax Cheat
Hillary Clinton – One embarrassing foreign policy gaffe after another.
Bob gates?
Re #2: Isn’t it lovely that the only major appointment of Obama’s so far that isn’t a criminal or a vermin… was a continuation from President Bush’s administration? Kinda underlines how corrupt and cronyish Obama and his court really are.
Scottland, thanks for catching my error since fixed. I had Bill Gates, meant Robert.
Humm…reminds me of John Kerry’s comments on how stupid Bush was only to find out that Bush recieved better grades than Kerry!!! Oh and don’t forget – who nominated Kerry for his Vietnam Medals – oh, that’s right Kerry nominated himself.
And how many more days does Geithner have? It’ll be amazing if he makes it 6 months.
Lest we forget, the liberals told us constantly the he was the ONLY ONE who could save the world. And where are we now?
Nice.
The economy cannot get better until the banking crisis is solved. Obama is depending on a crisis atmosphere to cram most of his socialist agenda down America’s throat. (“Never let a good crisis go to waste” ~Rahm Emmanuel & Hillary Clinton) Obama is going into his third month and STILL hasnt proposed a fix to the banking crisis, and STILL hasn’t filled the positions at treasury, for no other reason than he simply hasnt nominated the people. Every day the banking crisis doesn’t get solved, people lose more and more of their life’s savings, more people lose their jobs, etc…
and yet Obama has time to spend 2 days in California, bowling and going on the tonight show to mock retarded people in front of the whole nation…
no one is that incompetent. Obama is allowing the banking crisis to continue while he does nothing about it in order to “use the crisis” to pass his radical agenda.
The difference between the two Messiahs? At least Jesus could put together a cabinet.
#6 I’m not so sure the incompetence is on purpose. To furthur the crisis and steam towards socialism. I think more likely that Obamateleprompter is simply over his head. Of course Biden is no help either. When Obamateleprompter could use a steady experienced hand to help and teach and train him, he’s got a bigger boob and gaff machine in his VP. His wife goes out and puts food coloring in the fountains and starts digging up the lawn. If you are the adults or the staff how do you approach the “Clampets” and disuade them?
#7 – Now THAT was a good comment!
Anyone want to put together a “Geither Watch” pool? Whoever guesses the date that he resigns/gets fired gets a prize. Any takers?
Regards,
Peter H.
Sorry, meant to type “Geithner.” Don’t want the lower-casers to fall all over themselves trying to correct my spelling and/or grammar usage.
Regards,
Peter H.
5 months ago Democrats and Republicans raved about the cooperation of the outgoing administration during the transition. It all seems for naught. This group is in way over their heads. The country is gonna have to just hold on til they either get trained up or quit in disgrace. At some point the old hands in the Clinton administration and previous Republican administrations are going to shun these Obamateleprompter boobs. They will want to help for the good of the country , but not get tainted by the incompetence. Just look at how few leftists come around here to justify the errors, blunders, missteps and embarrassments. Lesson One…..don’t promote a COMMUNITY ORGANIZER to President. Lesson learned. Oh and in the future always get promises from the prospective first ladies that they will leave their trinkets at home and promise not to start painting the walls at the White House or digging up the lawns or fishing in the “cement pond”.
Gene,
I’ve been trying to figure out if Obama is incompetent or if he is allowing the crisis to continue, unaddressed to further his agenda. While I think there is a lot of incompetence going on in his administration… the one thing all the experts seem to agree on is that the banking crisis is the key, and must be the top priority. Obama has surely heard this, and yet he isnt making it his top priority. He could name people to fill the posts at treasury right this second if he wanted to. He hasnt named them, because he doesnt want to.
AE I worry that the best and brightest may not be willing to work for this administration. He may not be able to get good people, so he is forced to hire, tax cheats, bumblers and morons. Look at the standard Obamateleprompter set with his very first hire……
jumpin Joe Biden. Boob.
It is said that the administration may be taking advantage of the situation to cram through a bunch of socialist measures before fixing the banking problem, but it is also possible that they don’t know what to do, are hoping for the best. And while they fiddle, they pass a bunch of anti capitalism bills. It is frustrating that the typical leftist Democrats aren’t standing up and explaining the errors or making themselves available for questions. Even in this blog they have dissappeared, hoping in a week or two Obamateleprompter will get it together. His supporters don’t lead, they wait for his directions. Today socialist Congresswoman Maxine Waters actually came out and said the “President needs to get up to speed” and get trained up on some of this Treasury mess. I got to give her credit, most of her leftist collegues are hiding under the beds.
He is a deer in the headlights. Most Americans, but particularly liberals, have no idea what is about to hit us. The U.S. is going to be hit with a currency crisis before Obama’s time is out, and possibly soon. Image today’s economy, plus 20% inflation rates, followed by banana-republic controls on capital, wages and prices from Obama. Peter Schiff has more: http://blog.mises.org/archives/009620.asp
To continue the thought – The rest of the world is starting to figure out that we’ll never pay back all that money we’ve borrowed and are borrowing, and is looking for ways to dethrone the dollar as a reserve currency and international trade currency. I read that the Gulf states are working on a new gold-backed currency, possibly for 2010 launch. What happens after that – and possibly before – is that the dollar crashes. The Dear Teleprompter and his minions don’t see it coming, are doing nothing to prevent it and will (rightly) take the blame for it, when it comes.