Another baller joins the cabinet
What does Barack Obama’s just-named Education Secretary Arne Duncan have in common with National Security Advisor Jim Jones, Attorney General Eric Holder, U.N. Ambassador Susan Rice, and Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner? Professional accomplishment? Certainly. Sound judgement? Possibly. Most importantly, they’re all great basketball players. Even 81-year-old economic advisor Paul Volcker used to play at Princeton. ...
What does Barack Obama's just-named Education Secretary Arne Duncan have in common with National Security Advisor Jim Jones, Attorney General Eric Holder, U.N. Ambassador Susan Rice, and Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner?
What does Barack Obama’s just-named Education Secretary Arne Duncan have in common with National Security Advisor Jim Jones, Attorney General Eric Holder, U.N. Ambassador Susan Rice, and Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner?
Professional accomplishment? Certainly.
Sound judgement? Possibly.
Most importantly, they’re all great basketball players. Even 81-year-old economic advisor Paul Volcker used to play at Princeton.
Duncan has a good shot at being the team’s MVP. He was co-captain of the Harvard basketball team and played professionally in Australia:
“I did not select Arne because he’s one of the best basketball players I know,” Mr Obama said yesterday. “Although I will say that I think we are putting together the best basketball-playing cabinet in American history.”
Forget engagement. Obama should just bet Iran’s right to a nuclear program on a game of half-court with Ahmadinejad’s cabinet.
Photo: Mark Wilson/Getty Images
Joshua Keating is a former associate editor at Foreign Policy. Twitter: @joshuakeating
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