Who will President-Elect Obama recruit to be the Secretaries of Interior and Agriculture, the two departments that oversee federal lands and the firefighters that manage them? The Guardian, a United Kingdom newspaper, speculated on these positions on October 30. Here is how they did it:
We asked campaign advisors, nonprofit conservation advocates, think-tank types, lobbyists, academics, and friendly looking folks behind us in line at the co-op. It’s a cardinal sin in Washington to openly speculate on these matters before an election, so we promised confidentiality to many sources.
For Secretary of Interior they came up with these names:
- Brian Schweitzer, governor of Montana
- Jamie Rappaport Clark, former Director of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service under the Clinton administration. She now works for Defenders of Wildlife.
- Jay Inslee, a Washington state congressman in the Seattle area.
Secretary of Agriculture:
- Tom Vilsack, former Iowa governor and presidential candidate.
- Tom Buis, president of the National Farmer’s Union, former senior agricultural policy advisor to Tom Daschel, the Obama buddy and former Senate majority leader.
- Stephanie Herseth Sandlin, South Dakota’s representative in the U.S. House. She previously directed the South Dakota Farmer’s Union Foundation. She sits on the House Agriculture Committee.
