As the second Obama Administration is being organized, there are many rumors about members of the Cabinet leaving.
Among them are Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, and Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta, and the suggestions being discussed are very intriguing.
It is thought that Massachusetts Senator John Kerry, the 2004 Democratic Presidential nominee, might be angling for the State Department, with his years of experience as Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman as his major credential. Also, United Nations Ambassador Susan Rice is a second thought.
If Kerry left the Senate, it would open up his seat, and Republican Senator Scott Brown, who just lost his seat to Elizabeth Warren, would certainly campaign for it, against an unknown Democrat.
And if Rice received the position, she would be the fourth woman to be in that position, and the second black woman, and the third black person—following Colin Powell and Condoleezza Rice, as well as Madeleine Albright and Hillary Clinton.
For the Defense Department, if and when Panetta leaves, the rumor is that former Nebraska Senator Chuck Hagel, a Republican, and very reputable, would take the position, and that would mark the second Republican Secretary of Defense for Obama, after Robert Gates.
Having both Kerry and Hagel as important cabinet members would be fantastic, and if Rice was selected, she would also be the second black woman in that position with the name of Rice!