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Only one real question hangs over Clinton confirmation

Dan Janison | dan.janison@newsday.com

January 14, 2009

WASHINGTON

Sen. Charles Schumer, in the kind of rousing tones used to introduce presidential nominees, sat for a while by his junior partner from New York and, among other accolades, introduced her as "the right person at the right time."

From the dais, Sen. Bob Corker (R-Tenn.) said, "We're always glad to see when one of our own does well, has a real job." Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) said the nomination by President-elect Barack Obama means "world peace and stability trumps politics and ego."

On it went, senator after senator, in a somewhat unbearable quasi-tribute that made even state and local elected officials back in New York - who habitually thank each other in public forums for their "leadership" - sound less gushy by comparison.

Chelsea Clinton was close by. In fact, the path to Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton's confirmation as U.S. Secretary of State seemed so smoothly paved in advance that only one real question loomed throughout her testimony before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee yesterday.

The question: How much would the acclaim and deference of her upper-house colleagues be marred by conflict-of-interest questions concerning those big foreign contributions to her husband's famous nonprofit entities?

The answer proved to be: Very little.

But the conflict debate did provide a unique sticking point. In the end, both sides probably got what they wanted. Sens. Richard Lugar (R-Ind.), the ranking minority member, and David Vitter (R-La.) pushed for broader disclosure of the contributions. Ever so politely, they put it on the record that perception problems could arise involving Bill Clinton, who wasn't there. Lugar also made it plain he will vote for her confirmation regardless.

John Kerry (D-Mass.), who in opening remarks expressed delight at Clinton's appointment, did not seem put off by Lugar's point, however.

Clinton stood by her argument that Bill Clinton's ad hoc disclosure deal went above and beyond what the law demands. She basically said no to changes, adding that ethics officials saw no conflict. Extra point: She even expressed her own pride in the work of the Clinton Global Initiative and his charitable foundation.

"No matter what we do," she said, "there are those who will raise conflicts."

None of the foreign policy questions she fielded about U.S. entanglements, from the Arctic to Somalia, aroused as much visible tension.

The entire event had an inside-the-Senate feel. Kerry, the Democrat who lost the 2004 presidential race, became committee chairman in the wake of Sen. Joseph Biden's ascent to vice president. Lugar is known to be friendly with Biden. Sen. Chris Dodd (D-Conn.) also ran for president last year. And of course, Obama was the senator who first beat fellow senators Clinton, Biden, Dodd and others in the primaries.

Kerry at one point said it was a shame Chelsea was positioned behind her mom and couldn't see her testify. Noting Bill Clinton was once an intern on the committee, Kerry said - apparently innocently - that perhaps he [Kerry] could assign her [Chelsea] as intern for the day so she could better view the proceedings.

Later, Sen. Clinton accidentally started to address Kerry as "president" rather than "chairman."

"I'll take it," he said.

"It was a Freudian slip," she said.

"We're both subject to those," Kerry replied.

After adjournment, Clinton and Chelsea exchanged pleasantries with some Senate staff in what are assuredly her final hours in the body and went out the back way.