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The case for Sebelius at HHS
From today's Wichita Eagle;
A potential Obama cabinet projected in June on the Daily Kos Web site slotted Sebelius in at secretary of Health and Human Services.
It's not a bad guess, said Mel Kahn, a professor of political science at Wichita State University.
Health care reform is expected to be a key goal of the Obama administration and Sebelius has strong credentials in that area, he said.
Kahn said that in her previous role as Kansas insurance commissioner, Sebelius established herself as someone who could stand up to powerful insurance interests.
She blocked a planned merger between the for-profit Anthem Insurance Co. of Indiana and the member-owned Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas. Sebelius also has fought for universal health coverage for children, a prime goal of Obama's health plan.http://www.kansas.com/topstories/story/587426.html
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Just want to add that, if you look at the last sentence of this excerpt, there is the encapsulation of our impending health care struggle in the next administration.
Sebelius has considerable experience dealing with the issues that are at the crux of the health care maelstrom. As our governor, she has protected the general public, and our children in particular, from a mean-spirited, extremist-Republican-dominated state legislature in many ways, but as insurance commissioner, she
showed where her talents would best be applied.
Kathleen Sebelius has been a top-notch governor, and we don't really want to lose her in Kansas. But the Obama administration will need the best and the brightest to fulfill it's lofty mandate, and she belongs on that list in her best capacity.
We will hate to see her go, but we are glad to know she does so for the most noble of all purposes.
November 6, 2008 9:49 AM | Reply | Permalink
I like Sebelius. I don't know if her health related talents are unique.
This seems like taking a democratic Senator out of Virginia to run as VP. Do democrats really want give up her current position? winning anything is Kansas seems so difficult for democrats in the first place! Wouldn't there need to be a special election or something? What are the chances that a different democrat will win that election?
I don't think democrats should move people into the administration at the expense of the democratic infrastructure of elected officials. I hope Obama doesn't decimate the senior levels of congress too badly. The early public snap call for Emanual was poorly handled IMO - hopefully Obama doesn't spaz out now that he's not trying to win an election.
November 6, 2008 10:52 AM | Reply | Permalink
With our Kansas Treasurer Jenkins(R) beating freshman Boyda(D) for the 2nd District Congressional seat, Sebelius will fill that statewide spot with a Dem, then if she gets tapped for the cabinet, it is all Dems moving up, with no special elections required.
We need a watchdog in Washington like Sebelius at HHS, who has seen the arm-wrestling between the private sector and the public good, and the political arm-twisting the corporations use when they can't get their profits prioritized.
This is such an important issue, we need the best minds and proven leaders to approach it as a priority.
November 6, 2008 11:57 AM | Reply | Permalink
Just a thought... Boyda could step into Jenkins' old job quite graciously...IF Sebelius were of a mind to appoint her, and Boyda wanted the job.
November 6, 2008 1:45 PM | Reply | Permalink