U.S. & World

CHICAGO (CBS) ― President-elect Barack Obama is filling his Cabinet at record speed, choosing loyal friends and one-time foes to guide his wartime foreign policy decisions.

Obama appeared at a morning news conference Monday at the Chicago Hilton & Towers, 720 S. Michigan Ave., to announce Democratic primary rival Hillary Rodham Clinton as his secretary of state and say that President George W. Bush's defense secretary, Robert Gates, is staying on.

Obama named Washington lawyer Eric Holder as attorney general and Arizona Gov. Janet Napolitano as homeland security secretary. He also planned to announce two senior foreign policy positions outside the Cabinet: campaign foreign policy adviser Susan Rice as U.N. ambassador and retired Marine Gen. James L. Jones as national security adviser.

The announcements rounded out the top tier of the team that will advise the incoming chief executive on foreign and national security issues in an era marked by wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and terrorism around the globe.

"The time has come for a new beginning, a new dawn of American leadership to overcome the challenges of the 21st century," Obama said as his Cabinet picks stood behind him on a flag-draped stage.

"We will strengthen our capacity to defeat our enemies and support our friends," he said. We will renew old alliances and forge new and enduring partnerships."

Obama said his appointees "share my pragmatism about the use of power, and my sense of purpose about America's role as a leader in the world."

"I assembled this team because I am a strong believer in strong personalities and strong opinions," he said. "I think that's how the best decisions are made. One of the dangers in a White House, based on my reading of history, is that you get wrapped up in group-think and everybody agrees with everything and there's no discussion and there are no dissenting views. So I am going to be welcoming a vigorous debate inside the White House.

"But understand, I will be setting policy as president. I will be responsible for the vision that this team carries out, and I will expect them to implement that vision once decisions are made."

Clinton and Obama - the two former rivals - walked out of Monday's news conference arms entwined - a visible display of the mutual admiration they now profess.

In nominating Clinton, Obama called her "a friend, a colleague, a source of counsel and a tough campaign opponent…. I am proud that she will be our next secretary of state."

Obama added: "She possesses an extraordinary intelligence and toughness, and a remarkable work ethic. ... She is an American of tremendous stature who will have my complete confidence, who knows many of the world's leaders, who will command respect in every capital, and who will clearly have the ability to advance our interests around the world."

At the news conference, Clinton said, "If confirmed, I will give this assignment, your administration and your country my all. Mr. President-elect, I am proud to join you on what will be a difficult and exciting adventure in this new century."

Clinton said in electing Obama, the American people had mandated that the U.S. regain its worldwide standing as "a force for positive change."

"The fate of our nation and the future of our children will be forged in the crucible of these global challenges," Clinton said. "America cannot solve these crises without the world, and the world cannot solve them without America."

Things, of course, were different a few months ago when Obama and Clinton verbally sparred while both were competing for the Democratic nomination.

"This is fun for the press to try to stir up whatever quotes were generated during the campaign. I'm not faulting it. We share a view that America has to be safe and secure," Obama said. "And, in order to do that, we have to combine military power with strengthened diplomacy."

Several of Sen. Clinton's friends were on hand for Monday's announcement, including one she met in sixth grade in her native Park Ridge.

"It was bittersweet. I was thinking a year ago, where we were and what a difference a year makes," Betsy Ebeling said. "But this is pretty good."

"This team that he's putting together that includes such giants, in my view, as General Jones and Hillary Clinton gives me great confidence in the future of his presidency and this country," said Clinton supporter J.B. Pritzker.

"I think she will be incredible. I think they will be great together," said Clinton supporter Valerie Alexander. "I think the days of the campaign are over."

Sen. Clinton had scarcely finished speaking when her husband issued a written statement. "She is the right person for the job of helping to restore America's image abroad, end the war in Iraq, advance peace and increase our security, by building a future for our children with more partners and fewer adversaries, one of shared responsibilities and opportunities," he said.

Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, asked about Clinton at a news conference in London, said Monday: "I think that she will bring enormous energy and intellect and skill to the position."

"Most important, I know her to be somebody who has what you need most in this job, which is a deep love for the United States of America," Rice said. She added, "As to advice, I'll give her that advice privately, and then she won't — and you won't — hear from me again."

Gates' presence in Chicago made him a visible symbol of the transition in power from the Bush administration to one headed by Obama.

The president-elect, reprising a campaign vow, said he would give the military a new mission as soon as he takes office: "responsibly ending the war in Iraq through a successful transition to Iraqi control." He did not mention his oft-repeated pledge to withdraw most U.S. combat troops within 16 months.

Holder said in accepting his nomination that the Department of Justice must focus in part on protecting constitutional guarantees and American traditions.

Napolitano, like Clinton, must resign her current job. As a border state governor, she has experience with immigration issues, one of the pressing concerns that will confront the new administration.

Obama said Jones, his national security adviser, "will bring to the job the dual experience of serving in uniform and as a diplomat. He has commanded a platoon in battle, served as supreme allied commander in a time of war and worked on behalf of peace in the Middle East."

The event was unlike those of last week, when Obama was the only one to speak. This time, he called on each of his appointees to make remarks, beginning with Clinton.

"The time has come for a new beginning, a new dawn of American leadership to overcome the challenges of the 21st century," Obama said as his Cabinet picks stood behind him on a flag-draped stage.

"We will strengthen our capacity to defeat our enemies and support our friends," he said. "We will renew old alliances and forge new and enduring partnerships."

Obama said his appointees "share my pragmatism about the use of power, and my sense of purpose about America's role as a leader in the world."

In making his announcements, Obama emphasized the need to restore America's standing around the globe.

"In the 21st century, our destiny is shared with the world's – from our markets to our security; from our public health to our climate," Obama said.

Obama added that the dangers of terrorism remain as urgent as ever. He said the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, proved that "terror cannot be contained by borders, nor safely divided by oceans alone," and the attacks in Mumbai have emphasized this point.

Vice President-elect Joe Biden pointed out that he and Obama believe National Security must transcend partisanship.

"Each member shares our conviction that strength and wisdom must go hand and hand," Biden said at the news conference. "Each member believes as we do that America's security is not a partisan issue – witness the team."

When asked how he would ensure that his National Security team would function smoothly rather than clash, Obama said: "They would not have agreed to join my administration, and I would not have asked them to be part of my administration, unless we shared a vision of what's needed to keep the American people safe and to ensure prosperity here at home and peace abroad."

Obama also has settled on former Senate Democratic leader Tom Daschle to be his secretary of Health and Human Services and New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson to be Commerce secretary, but those announcements are not yet official. Last week, he named key members of his economic team, including Timothy Geithner, president of Federal Reserve Bank of New York, as Treasury secretary.

The decisions mean Obama has half of the 15-member Cabinet assembled less than a month after the election, including the most prominent positions at State, Justice, Treasury and Defense. With the world grappling with war, recession and terrorist threats that erupted this week during coordinated attacks in India, Obama was moving swiftly to try to bring reassurance and continuity in the federal government when he takes over in less than two months.

Clinton's nomination is the latest chapter in what began as a bitter rivalry for the Democratic presidential nomination. To make it possible for his wife to become secretary of state, party officials said, former President Bill Clinton agreed to:

--Disclose the names of every contributor to his foundation since its inception in 1997 and all contributors going forward.
--Refuse donations from foreign governments to the Clinton Global Initiative, his annual charitable conference.
--Cease holding CGI meetings overseas.
--Volunteer to step away from day-to-day management of the foundation while his wife is secretary of state.
--Submit his speaking schedule to review by the State Department and White House counsel.
--Submit any new sources of income to a similar ethical review.

Sen. Richard G. Lugar of Indiana, the top Republican on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said Sunday on ABC's "This Week" that he plans to vote to confirm Clinton.

Lugar said there would still be "legitimate questions" raised about the former president's extensive international involvement. "I don't know how, given all of our ethics standards now, anyone quite measures up to this who has such cosmic ties, but ... hopefully, this team of rivals will work," Lugar said.

(© 2009 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)

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