by Jayne Webb

Created on: August 27, 2009

Like the former Secretary of State Colin Powell, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on the surface seems to be disenfranchised from the inner circle. Special Envoy George Mitchell has the high profile role on leadership in the Middle East, and Vice-President Joe Biden, building on his foreign policy experience in the Senate, has been assigned to the essential task of political reconciliation in Iraq. In addition, the position of Secretary of State is not the most traditional path for someone with admitted ambitions for the top spot. But, for two reasons, Secretary Clinton should be very content with her role and opportunities, and has strong grounds for optimism in seeking to be the new President Clinton in a post-Obama era.

First, Clinton can play a major role in the U.S. relationships with the nations of the African continent. While Africa may not be as appealing to the mainstream media today as some other international issues, it is as essential as it is complex. The moral issues such as genocide in Darfur, atrocities in the Congo, extreme poverty, child soldiers in places like Uganda, human trafficking, women's rights, and so forth provide much meat for asserting values and human rights oriented leadership. Furthermore, the U.S. has a vested interest in curbing the spread of Islamic terrorism on the continent for strategic and security reasons. Lastly, African nations are resource-rich ranging from supplying a large portion of the foreign oil imported into the U.S. to components commonly used in cell phones. This multi-dimensional puzzle provides enormous challenge and ample opportunity for Clinton to earn truly historic foreign policy achievements, and sink her teeth into something that could demonstrate both intellectual horsepower and diplomatic finesse.

Second, the Secretary can assume a major leadership role in the Asian arena, specifically in the U.S. relationship with China. Clinton could help the U.S. actualize the potential to partially shift the trade imbalance as a by-product of diplomacy. China is dependent on the U.S. marketplace to sell its goods. When the U.S. stops importing a Chinese product for whatever reason, reportedly the very next day associated factories shut down and people are rendered unemployed. The Chinese are also very concerned about the U.S. economy given the notes the nation holds on the American national debt. In the U.S. right now, unemployment is rampant and the manufacturing base has been virtually eviscerated, with

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