A Clinton Cabinet Guessing Game

WASHINGTON (Nov. 11) -- During his post-election, pre-vacation period, President Bill Clinton has been spending most of his time trying to create a new team for his second term.

White House officials say Clinton is seriously considering retired General Colin Powell as his next secretary of state.

They say no decisions have been made and it may still be a long shot. Powell's close friends insist they don't expect he'll get it. But the idea has been gaining some momentum since Powell openly suggested on Friday he might be interested.

Among other things, it would give the president an opportunity to recruit a high-profile moderate Republican.

Powell was chairman of the Joint Chiefs when Clinton first took office. The president had sounded him out for secretary of state two years ago, only to be rebuffed.

At a Veterans Day ceremony, the president directly reached out to Republicans -- singling out for praise Bob Dole, who as a 21-year-old second lieutenant was wounded during World War II. "But he refused to withdraw from the world and instead dedicated his life to serving the American people," Clinton noted. "I ask all of you here now to join me in applauding his remarkable record of achievement and patriotism to America."

But the president, of course, wants to be careful not to offend Democrats on his short list for secretary of state, which includes former Senate Majority Leader George Mitchell and United Nations Ambassador Madeleine Albright.

Clinton wants to name new secretaries of state and defense by the end of this week before leaving for a trip to Hawaii, Australia and Asia.

Atop his short list to succeed Defense Secretary William Perry is CIA Director John Deutch, retiring Georgia Sen. Sam Nunn, and retiring Maine Sen. William Cohen, a Republican.

The two frontrunners for CIA are National Security Adviser Tony Lake and Deputy Attorney General Jamie Gorelick. And if Lake moves on, insiders say Deputy Secretary of State Strobe Talbott, Clinton's pal from Oxford, could move to the National Security Council.

The shakeup at the White House continues. Aides say Deputy Chief of Staff Harold Ickes will also leave.

And others leaving include Special Assistant Rahm Emanuel, the first lady's chief of staff Maggie Williams, and legal advisers Mark Fabiani and Jane Sherburne, key players in the Whitewater damage-control operation.

Meanwhile, Deputy National Security Adviser Sandy Berger is said to be the frontrunner to succeed Laura Tyson at the National Economic Council, and Chicago lawyer William Daley is being considered to succeed Commerce Secretary Mickey Kantor.

Allan Lichtman, a professor of history at American University, noted, "No president in history has ever gone into a second term with this radical a change in the cabinet and the White House staff. It presents a tremendous opportunity and a tremendous challenge for the president."

As part of his quick start during this transition, Clinton will meet on Tuesday with the bipartisan congressional leadership. On the agenda will be cooperation on the budget, campaign finance reform, global issues and confirmation of the new cabinet.

This story originally appeared on CNN's "Inside Politics."

A Clinton Cabinet Guessing Game

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