The Powers that Be

The Associated Press says that Samantha Power, a top Obama foreign policy advisor who was dismissed during the campaign for making remarks about Hillary Clinton is back in a foreign policy job. She expected to play a major role in diplomacy and will probably interact with Hillary, a woman she called a “monster”.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Samantha Power, the Harvard University professor and Pulitzer Prize-winning author who earned notoriety for calling Hillary Rodham Clinton a “monster” while working to elect Barack Obama president, will take a senior foreign policy job at the White House, The Associated Press has learned.

Officials familiar with the decision say Obama has tapped Power to be senior director for multilateral affairs at the National Security Council, a job that will require close contact and potential travel with Clinton, who is now secretary of state. NSC staffers often accompany the secretary of state on foreign trips.

The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because Power’s position, as well as that of other senior NSC positions, have not yet been announced. One official said the announcements would be made in the near future.

White House officials would not provide details of Power’s new role.

The rehabilitation of Samantha Power now that it is no longer necessary to maintain appearances was an inevitability waiting to happen. The President’s qualms about her suitability for a responsible position, if ever he had them, lasted only as long as it might cost him votes. They do not seem to be rooted in any reservations about Power’s character or competence, since neither have changed materially in the last few months. Power was acceptable before her remarks about Clinton; she became unacceptable for a brief period, and is now eminently qualified again to bring Hope and Change into the world.

There is almost no one to feel sorry in this affair for except for those who genuinely believed that the expressions of regret, outrage and banishment were anything but feigned. Hillary Clinton might well be what Samantha Power described her as; and Power ought to know. Barack Obama for his part, has managed to out Hillary Hillary and out Power Power. They deserve each other. The only question is whether the voters deserve them.