Hillary Makes A Power Grab

And we thought the vitriol would be between President Obama and Secretary Clinton. Not so, and who would of thought it would be between Clinton & Geithner? The Team of Rivals is about to hit their first disagreement: who gets to lead on China policy? As the New York Times reported four days ago, the jockeying for Cabinet preeminence has begun. Clinton has been talking about China since her confirmation hearing (and before, in her presidential campaign) and has called for a "comprehensive approach" to China. First and foremost, this is a clear break from the Bush administration's take on Sino-American policy, which focussed almost entirely on economics. Today, Clinton is hosting a closed meeting (calling it a "working lunch" in the State Dept. schedule brief) with Geithner, which coupled with the staggered announcements coming out now of Sec. Clinton's Asian Tour this month, would indicate that this meeting will be mostly about China. Geithner apparently has Chairman of the House of Representatives Financial Services Committee Barney Frank, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke, Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. Chairman Sheila Bair and Comptroller of the Currency John Dugan, all on his dance card for today as well. The rest of Secretary Clinton's day is dominated by her own swearing in ceremony and reception, where no doubt some fuller announcement will be made about her travels this month.