Hillary best-suited for her new job as secretary of state

Her scheduled appearance was at 11 a.m., but supporters began lining up around the gym at 6 a.m. in the chilly, wintry morning to wait for the gates to open at 9. The turnout was estimated at 7,000, filling the gym to full capacity. The rally was an unannounced event; fans and supporters got wind from Hillary’s Web site. The spontaneity and enthusiasm was impressive, glaringly different from Taiwan’s rambunctious campaign rallies with flags, banners, sound trucks and chartered buses.

The gym was virtually a sea of blue-colored placards and slogans, “Solutions,” “Hillary for President” waved by supporters. I could still remember that she addressed the cheering crowd with promises such as “I’ll bring back our troops from Iraq in 60 days,” “health care for everybody.”

There is no doubt that Hillary is a gifted speaker, a great orator and consummate communicator. Watching her speak makes you fascinated by her broad knowledge, graceful poise, and irresistible charm. You feel her warmth and her care about the ordinary people.

Above all, she is tough. If Alaskan Governor Sarah Palin is a “pitbull with lipstick,” then Hillary Clinton is “Rocky in a skirt.” Hillary never gave up, as she showed throughout the campaign. “I know how tough she was,” Obama would often describe her in awe. Even on Monday at his official announcement in Chicago of his national security team, Obama praised his formal rival as “tough, smart and disciplined.”

Her traits, to be sure, are more than that; good and otherwise. Her experience seems unparalleled, especially compared with Obama’s. Remember her infamous campaign ad about a 3 a.m. call to the White House?” And Obama was not qualified to be commander-in-chief? That’s probably true, at least when compared with her experience as co-president with Bill Clinton for eight years and her extensive foreign travel to 82 countries. Who else could be more qualified to be America’s top diplomat?

The 47-year-old president-elect deserves kudos for his courage, wisdom, and magnanimity to invite such a strong personality to take part in his administration. You are always taking chances when you allow a bear into your tent. In making the appointment, Obama is showing confidence in his leadership. He is showing that he places the national interest above everything else, and is eager to put the right people on the right job. He is showing he is not afraid of tough and smart people, but instead welcomes them to work with him at a critical time.

While It’s too early to say what will be in store after Jan. 20 — with Hillary at the State Department, Robert Gates in Pentagon, Tim Geithner at Treasury, James Jones as national security adviser — the new president will still be surrounded by competent people transcending party and ideological lines. Well begun is half done, as the saying goes. As for Obama and Hillary, their bitter rivalry is now history. They are now united by a common and single purpose — saving their country from financial crisis at home and two costly wars abroad.

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