WHEN President-elect Obama rolls out his national security team
today, the surprise will be dimmed by the small hurricane of
leaks that preceded the introductions: Hillary Clinton at State,
Robert Gates staying on as secretary of defence, James Jones as
national security adviser. The only piece of real news concerns
the incombing ambassador to the United Nations, Susan Rice, the
youthful Clinton era vet who advised Mr Obama during the
campaign. Her job will be restored to cabinet level, as it was
in Mr Clinton's administration.  The New York Times gets a
typically prickly quote on this out of John Bolton, George
Bush's old, lightning-rod ambassador: "You shouldn’t have two
secretaries in the same department." Mr Obama may have wanted to
do this for Ms Rice from the get-go, but the Hillary Clinton
nomination forced his hand. As we've noted, Mr Obama lured Mrs
Clinton to her post by giving her the right to appoint her old
foreign policy hands to State Department posts. That was a
bitter pill for Mr Obama's own