Grading the Obama Cabinet: Hillary Clinton, Secretary of State -- B

 Hillary Clinton is an interesting choice for the top Diplomatic spot -- a figure who has enough stature of her own around the world to be able to generate some favorable change on the Administration's behalf. And, despite having little or no international experience, she has a strong interest in doing well -- since it's the only path for her to rehabilitate her image among Obama partisans, should she ever hope to run again for president.

But there are two problems. The first is that she has no experience in running a bureaucracy and Foggy Bottom requires supervision -- though admittedly, if she has good deputies, she can leave that to others.

The main problem is that when something goes seriously wrong with Obama's policies -- and it's inevitable that they will, someday, because they do for every president --  she may be far more interested in protecting her reputation than protecting his. So, Hillary is a great choice if things are going well in the world -- as they are now. But when things turn sour, it may well be another story. She's a risk, to be sure.

Grade: B

Previous grades: Eric Holder -- Attorney General -- A