President Bush was at one time characterized as the CEO president. Bush was neither an academic nor a military man. He was also not a lawyer or a doctor. He was different from every previous President since he had been the Chief Executive Officer of several corporations and businesses before entering public service. If the Bush presidency has taught us anything it is that those who made poor business decisions are even less qualified to make decisions that affect an entire country. With the November election upon us in mid-economic crisis, its time to start making some picks. Politicians gamble with us, we should gamble with them in some fashion. Assuming Obama gets the nod here are our picks for Secretary of the Treasury, Secretary of Defense, Secretary of State, and Secretary of Energy.

Secretary of the Treasury:

Over the last few administrations, a particular type of Secretary of the Treasury has been emphasized. First of all they have usually been in favor of neoclassical economic theory and they have also been either former CEOs or Bankers. With the current state of the economy and the over emphasis on deregulation of the last thirty-two years, perhaps now is the time for change in the status quo.

The reason the economy is as much trouble is that it has been so deregulated and all effective safety measures that were in place to prevent the abuses committed by hedge funds, subprime mortgages and debt being were bought up then sold on wall street. This, more than anything, is the legacy of Jimmy Carter, Ronald Regan, Bush Sr., Clinton and Bush Jr. They messed up by not keeping an eye on the greedy and letting the reckless run the most important financial system in the world. The state of the economy is at the moment the most important issue facing the United States. Who ever takes up the mantle of the Secretary of the Treasury is in for the most difficult task of their lives. No longer will the theories of Monetarism, neoclassical economics and laissez-faire function. Now is the time to follow a Keynesian route as opposed to the theories of Milton Friedman. It is important to pick someone who actually know a little about business financing.

With the seven hundred billion dollar federal bailout going through, America is beginning to look a little socialist. The change from a Monetarist system to a Keynesian would hardly be noticed. The picks for the places are:

Paul Davidson – Macroeconomist – Post Keynesian – Founder of Journal of Post Keynesianism in 1978. Why he is a good choice: generally thinks outside the box and goes against mainstream economic theory. Why he would be a bad choice: really old. 34:1

Joseph E. Stiglitz – Former chief economist at the world bank, Former economic advisor to President Clinton. He is highly critical of IMF, free-market economists and purely profit driven globalization. Because of connection to World Bank may cause problems with more left wing elements of Democratic Party. 12:1

Secretary of Defense:

The only Secretary of Defense of the last one hundred years who had served with any success and came from a business background was Robert McNamara. McNamara may have been the brightest individual to ever serve as the civilian head of the Pentagon. Regardless of what those hippies say he carried out his duties while ensuring that the costs to American life remained minimal. When the Bush administration attempted to govern its defense department with another businessman, things fell apart. The expertise of the enlisted men were pushed to the side and the ideas of better men were ignored. One needs to know the stats, know the numbers, know to listen but also be a realist in the application of that information. Rumsfeld was no realist. Gates is no expert.

There are two main aspects of modern war which need to be understood in order to have victory. The first aspect is that one must empathize with one’s enemy. This is not a new concept; this idea dates back to Saint Aquinas. The second aspect is proportionality. War must be proportional. The level of response is dictated by either the level of threat posed by the opposition or the level of damage done by the enemy. These are both related to the just war theory.

Best pick for the job – Gen. Wesley Clark

Wesley Clark was a Rhodes Scholar; he was Supreme Allied Commander of NATO European Command and has a considerable level of insight into tactics, economics and actual battlefield experience. Clark has degrees in philosophy and economics. He was awarded two bronze stars, a silver star, distinguished service medal, presidential medal of freedom and a purple heart.

Clark’s best quality is that he is not afraid to tell people what they do not want to hear. One of the most insulting aspects of the war on terror is that the Pentagon’s refusal to show the return of dead soldiers. War costs lives on both sides. The pentagon’s refusal is not only disrespectful to the sacrifice made by the soldiers but also is the grand coddling of the American people. The citizenry must be aware of the price of war and Clark may be able to break it to them.

8:1

Secretary of State:

Along with Joe Biden, there is a strong need for the US executive to have not only intelligent but also experienced people. With the specter of the Bush doctrine haunting the halls of the state department already, Obama would need someone who is both known by the international community and has the experience and the know how to deal with problems on an international scale.

Best Suited For the Job – Bill Richardson

Richardson is a former ambassador to the UN under the Clinton administration from 1997 till 1998. Richardson then served as secretary of energy. Richardson was also governor of New Mexico and a congressman. He is also a member of Henry Kissinger’s Kissinger McLarty Associates which is a strategic advisory think thank that advises governments and other clients in strategic affairs and investment opportunities.

Richardson’s job would be to repair the United States’ reputation across Europe, South America and Asia. George Bush has given more money to Africa than any other President, so in that region things are going rather well. Why he is a good choice: good connections, business minded, a lot of experience. Why he might fail: his dislike of cockfighting.

10:1

Secretary of Energy:

Alright, hear me out hippies. Which governor in the United States has done more for the environment? Which governor has put more tax payer dollars in ensuring that his state remains clean and green? Governor Arnold; wait for it - Schwarzenegger. Schwarzenegger is still relatively new to the government thing but he has proven himself well-suited for the job and is highly capable of handling crisis as he demonstrated with the California wild fires last year. Governor Schwarzenegger has very strong green policies and may have the ability to actually push the needs of the department of energy forward. It is worth a shot anyway to pick Arnold. Otherwise you can always try Al Gore. It’s not like he is doing anything important right now.

Schwarzenegger - 57:1

Gore - 37:1