we asked americans how they feel about john kerry as secretary of state, but first, kerry's nomination hardly a surprise. people close to him already calling him mr. secretary. here's a little bit about him from kate bolduan. >> thank you very much, mr. secretary. >> reporter: his senate colleagues have joked about his ambition, what many regarded as the worst-kept secret in washington, even in recent senate hearings john kerry sound like he was looking ahead to the future job and the anticipated battled over the state department budget with with congress. >> that must change and in the next session of the congress i hope it will. >> reporter: he wasn't the president's first choice. u.n. ambassador susan rice took herself out of the running after republican backlash. >> it was unjustified to give the scenario as presented by ambassador rice. >> reporter: senator kerry knows himself about being torpedoed by attacks. accused in his 2004 presidential run of lying about his military record in vietnam. >> john kerry has not been honest about what happened in vietnam. >> reporter: and critic

let's talk about the pick of john kerry. we knew it was coming. the timing is interesting. anted to do this before christmas, but then we thought it was going to be after christmas, even from the kerry people. how did this all come together for today? >> i think the white house, andrea, wanted to get one of these announcements out the door before the christmas holiday and given that this was the worst kept secret in washington, it seemed the right day to do it. what's interesting is it is only senator kerry. there's no announcement for secretary of defense or the pentagon. there are short lists for both of those jobs, but the fact that he is only going out with senator kerry suggests that there may be some questions surrounding the candidates for those other posts. the intrigue continues. >> the intrigue, indeed, and chuck hagel, of course, is the name that has become controversial again. we are in a situation, jeff goldberg, where someone's name is put out there. it's floated, and surrounding opposition piles on. can the president -- can this president afford to bail on a s

we've heard an endless stream of republicans come forth and endorse john kerry. as a matter of fact, i just saw john kerry coming out of a briefing on, guess what? a closed briefing from the dni, james clapper, on benghazi.

senator john kerry would replace the current secretary of state, hillary clinton, who will step down early next year. this afternoon, president obama calling senator kerry an exemplary public servant. >> we turn the page on a decade of war he knows we have to harness american power and ensure they work telling, diplomatic and development, economic and political, military and intelligence, as well as the power of our values which inspire so many people around the world. >>gregg: john kerry has chaired the senate foreign relations committee for six years after his failed presidential bid in 2004. wendell is like at the white house. any sign of a fight over senate confirmation or is this a foregone conclusion? >>reporter: you are right, it is a foregone conclusion. the senate is a close knit group and he has been there 20 years. he will not need on the job training and he called on lawmakers to confirm him quickly. >> he has earned the respect and trust of senate colleagues democrat and republican. few individuals know as many presidents and prime ministers, or grasp our foreign policies

. >> and john kerry biographer douglas brinkley on the senator's big nomination. >> good to have you with us tonight, folks. thanks for watching. it's home for the holidays with no deal. house speaker john boehner only has himself to blame. boehner's plan b gimmick failed big time last night at this point a fiscal cliff deal with boehner's members would probably require divine intervention. >> how we get there, god only knows. but all i've done is -- eric and i and our team here are committed to working with our colleagues on both sides of the aisle, both sides of the capitol and the white house to address it. >> after a day with dealing with humiliation, boehner hit the gavel and sent his members home for the holidays. there will be no deal this weekend. then boehner took the walk of shame out of the capitol. it's unclear whether he will be the speaker in the new year. it was the same sad walk many house members took last night when they couldn't get their own folks to vote on boehner's plan b. republican leaders can't strike a deal with their own members. how will they strike one wi

i like john kerry like she said. john kerry is weak, i'm sorry. i voted for him. the strongest person against the republicans. and we need to pick our battles and start now. i'm sick and tired of being told by republicans who blankety blank we can pick and who we can choose while they think this is the reason why they're the way they are now because this president gave gave, gave. i'm sick of the give. i worked my butt getting people out to win ohio. i've been writing him. do not pick john kerry. i'm sorry. i don't care how many battles he has to fight. he ain't got no more time to run. fight him off. i'm here to help fight against all of those people in michigan, too. i'm sick of this. oh, we have to do this because of the republicans. >> rack her. >> bill: brenda, you're my baby! i love you! interesting, that spirit, right? i think if the president went with susan rice, it sounds like he would have a -- make a lot of people happy and have a lot of people fighting with him. >> doesn't mean he wins. >> bill: fight the fight. >> it seems there are a lot of presiden

also making the headlines -- former presidential contender john kerry nominated to be the new secretary of state. keeping his promise, italian prime minister mario monti steps down. could silvio berlusconi make a comeback? and apocalypse not. we're all still here. >> america's powerful gun lobby wants armed guards at every school in the u.s. the national rifle association came a week after 20 young children and six duments were killed. >> 26 bell tolls for the moment the shooting happened a week ago. washington, d.c. protestorses toled with security outside the national rifle association event. inside two protestors disrupted proceedings twice. the n.r.a. is a powerful lobby inner the constitutional rights to bear arms. n.r.a. speakers marked the start of a serious national conversation to prevent school shootings. their main idea, more guns in schools. >> the only way -- the only way to stop a monster from killing our kids is to be personally involved and informsed in a plan of absolutely protection. the only thing that stops a bad guy with a gun is a good guy with a gun. >> the n.r.a.

the new world order john kerry for secretary of state. mr. cted to make the announcement any moment at the white house. with kerry at his side, but without hillary clinton. the secretary of state is still

>> keep in mind john kerry is barack obama's first choice. susan rice wasn't a choice. tied up into the politics of again gazi. but this is who the president like, believes in. kerry gave bohm that great nominating speech slot in 2004. but kerry has been able to be bipartisan in the true sense. he has been able to cut deals and work with senators -- senator mikulski is a friend of his from alaska. this is going to be one of the best appointments, selections that the president could have made. and most people on capitol hill feel the same. >> quickly, will he go through confirmation easily? >> he will go through. i think vicki kennedy will come in and be the senator for that trim period. it's 145 to 160 days until governor duval patrick is going to set that up. i think is probably going to run for senate. >> great to havious you've with us, professor. thank you so much. >>> coming up, the owner of some big-name chain restaurants sees profits plunge. after they attempt to skirt obama care. stay tuned. that's next. aby, looks like you need a little help there ♪ ♪ ooh baby,

senator john kerry not someone the president was necessarily close to heading into his administrationthat piece, he has sent kerry overseas to meet with world leaders during crisis points, especially after the afghanistan elections when it was a very tricky situation. he had to convince president karzai to agree to runoff elections and in a delicate situation senator kerry did it. after the osama bin laden raid, senator kerry was dispatched to pakistan to try to smooth relations there. and then, of course, in the debate prep, senator kerry played mitt romney very effectively according to all sides, and that was a bonding experience for the two men, and so they've come to know and respect one another, and i'd also point out he's won the bronze star, the silver star, the purple heart. he has a history working in the military and foreign affairs, so he has real credibility on these issues and it's something he has personally aspired to for many years in his life. so this is a real, i'm sure, satisfying moment for him. one thing i can add on the news front, carol, i am told that john kerr

john kerry cannot be trusted. >> since the swift boating of john kerry eight years ago, there has nowy, a change of heart from those on the right. >> i think john kerry would be an excellent appointment and would be easily confirmed by his colleagues. >> if the president wants an easy confirmation hearing and an easy confirmation process, what he would do is nominate john kerry, who is eminently qualified to be secretary of state. >> of course, these same senators were the ones to torpedo u.n. ambassador susan rice's nomination, but their kerry love fest isn't based solely on the fact that he happens to not be susan rice. if kerry moves on to the state department, republicans will have a shot at picking up another senate seat. a special election would be held for his replacement opening the door for scott brown who made sure to leave the door open for himself on the way out. >> as i have said many times before, temporary victory -- defeat is temporary. depending on what happens and where we go, all of us, we may meet again. >> the washington post reports that barring any unforeseen de

john kerry can help barack obama be just that.oining me now is nbc news chief white house correspondent and political director chuck todd and "the washington post's" nia malika henderson. do you know when the president decided with or along with ambassador rice to decide that she should formally remove herself from consideration? >> well, this is not just the story, but it was my understanding the president was never -- never asked her to do this. she came to this conclusion on her own sometime in the last 24 hours and decided it wasn't worth it, that this was causing the president a share of political problems. this was causing extra headaches that weren't necessary, so she made this decision on her own. i can tell you, the president has been conflicted on this for some time, and he'd been getting conflicting advice. some of his -- some of the political advice he had been getting is, you know, mr. president, how many fights do you want to have on the hill? democratic senators were quietly sending word to the white house, we've go

john kerry occasionally committed verbal gaffs in the past.r i voted for it when before i voted against it. he is proud of fact that he speaks language of diplomacy which is french. you don't want to him to go up to the microphone and laps lapse into french. lou: kt mcfarland joined us. ambassador boltons beside himself. he had run out of countries that kerry was going to mess up. what areyour deepest fears? >> look, i mean for the obama administration i think john kerry is fine choice. he will do exactly what the president tells him to do. he will help the united states pass what he once famously called the global test. this is what john kerry was made to do. i agree with judy. this is it sort of the perfect. lori: job for him. he is looking to have a job for this if not years but for decades. he will carry out the president's wishes. he will consult with the president. i don't think he will be driving u.s. foreign policy in any sense of that word. lou: presumably he will not be easily concussed and therefore not available for the congress fo

john kerry worked his way up to the political ranks.usan rice has done every job you need to have done in unelected politics, if you will, to be qualified, to have the resume, to have the experience to be secretary of state. and, by the way, don't forget there was also the fact that kerry and rice in some ways some could argue see the world a little bit differently. susan rice is somebody a little more of an interventionist. wants to get involved. look at libya. she was somebody that was strongly there. john kerry is somebody who has seen war firsthand and is somebody who is very much hesitant as an interventionist when it comes to things. voted against things. so there was a lot here i think that was more than just am i going to do something with my friend or do something to reward the party. more complicated than that. >> i guess that's why as a commentator i feel more comfortable with kerry, just that's my opinion. let me go to our other great correspondent, andrea mitchell, on foreign relations and 9 white house intrigue here. i sai

>> well, first of all, do i think that john kerry will probably be nominated by the president. i do think that he will sail through.one thing, as you pointed out, there's another advantage for republicans because it opens that senate seat in massachusetts and they have a strong candidate, scott brown. in terms of the chuck hagel appointment, from the outside looking in this looks like a very smart, shrewd, perhaps even wise move. hagel is a republican, fairly long-time republican senator. he was in the service during vietnam. he knows what it was like to be in military uniform during that -- during jungle hell. >> absolutely. >> so that could be a very good appointment for him. but you make a good point that digging around on kerry and hagel because many republicans are in the more, quote, conservative wing of the party consider hagel not a real republican. he was too moderate, too willing to compromise, quote unquote, in their words. so they'll be poking around. and if they can find anything on which to attack they probably will. >> dan rather, anchor and managing editor of "d

mccain sort of gigged john kerry and kerry teased him back. >> thank you very much, mr. secretary. >> thank you very much, mr. president. >> and there was a lot of joking after that. a lot of laughing. >> we should have showed. >> two of them have been close. people forget that the vietnam caucus, as strained as things have gotten in washington. >> they worked hard on that. >> what remains of it. >> with kerry and jack reed and the guys that are left, they're all -- they all look out for each other. >> where do you think it stands? there are some suggesting the president should let the susan rice issue quiet down and let her withdraw. >> there are aides in the white house a little frustrated saying hey, mr. president, you got to make a decision. the fact of the matter he hasn't made a decision between susan rice or john kerry. the argument being made, they're sort of hanging in the wind. john kerry has been very -- he has really kept a low profile. susan rice chose the opposite, a decision to say i have to save my skin here. maybe prove or disprove whether i'm worth the

. >> now is john kerry a lock for state? >>> and the other big late story in washington, speaker boehner goes to the white house. how close are they now to a deal? rudolph giuliani is here to say a lot about these things. i'll ask him if america is getting more dangerous in the wake some of very shocking high-profile gun crime. >>> he was known as one of the west memphis three now damian ekles is adjusting to life as a free man. >> i was in a state of extreme shock and trauma. >> and how he survived 18 years on death row. >> it's absolutely nightmarish. >> this is "piers morgan tonight." >>> good evening, you're looking live at the white house where president obama has had one of those win some, lose some kind of days. the president and john boehner met for 50 minutes in a meeting being called frank. when basically translates to no deal yet. but the good news was, quote, the lines of communication remain open. the bad news, ambassador susan rice was withdrawing from the short list to replace hillary clinton as secretary of s

a nice statement from john kerry.all account, until there's something we don't know, he's going to be nominated for secretary of state. >> yes, i think he will. what is interesting about john kerry is he has been out there publicly defending susan rice, saying that she would be a terrific secretary of state even as everyone knew that it's a job that he's coveted forever but being a statesman and someone who is a team player and someone who knows, likes susan rice, he went out of his way on capitol hill to defend her should she be nominated for that job. >> do you have any idea what is is going to happen for nomination as far as secretary of state is concerned? >> there hasn't been anyone else discussed. susan rice -- the main opposition was from the right but a little bit of drumbeat on the left from her record in africa that was an interesting development towards all of this. all of the signs are that senator kerry could sale through the one concern has been, can you hold his seat in a special election without that b

we've got to compare john kerry with john kerry, not with somebody else. >> what do you think his biggest hurdle will be in his upcoming confirmation hearings? >> i do not think will have much of a hurdle. the senators know him. there has been a tendency for the senate to easily confirmed one of their own. he is knowledgeable. no one is going to deny that. he has all the credentials necessary to be a good secretary of state. >> mr. rogin? >> the senate usually does confirm members -- we know there is a huge opposition to the nomination of chuck haverhill to secretary of defense. he referred to the pro-israel lobby as the jewish lobby. do think it is fair to hold chuck hegel to account for that remark. >> i think that remark is troublesome. it shows at the best lack of sensitivity. at the worst, prejudice. i am concerned about the nomination. obviously chuck hegel has been at the center for many years and has good attributes. there's a lot of controversy not only with that remark, but with some of his votes. it is troublesome. i've been hearing a lot for my constituents, mainly in oppositi

the white house. >> i am very proud to announce my choice for america's next secretary of state, john kerry. in a sense, john's entire life has prepared him f this role. having served with valor in vietnam, he understands that we have a responsibility to use american power wisely, especially our military power. and he knows, from personal experience, that when we send our troops into harm's way, we must give them the sound strategy, a clear mission, and the resources that they need to get the job done. in an extraordinarily distinguished senate career and as chairman of the foreign relations committee, john has played a central role in every major foreign policy debate for nearly 30 years. as we turn the page on a decade of war, he understands that we've got to harness all elements of american power and ensure that they're working together-- diplomatic and development, economic and political, military and intelligence-- as well as the power of our values which inspire so many people around the world. he is not going to need a lot of on-the-job training. he has earned the respect and trust o

if the president wanted john kerry, i see no reason to stand in the way of john kerry as secretary of stat yes ts aacptle choice. >> let's move to the fiscal cliff, because it's become a real pain in the back side for everybody really and everybody is waiting for what they believe to be an inevitable deal. it would seem today that john boehner and president obama met at the white house. that's a good move. they haven't come out attacking each other, that's encouraging. are you looking at this as a pre-christmas done deal, rudy? >> i think so, because it seems so obvious that you have to do it. i didn't like the comment that they had a frank talk. that reminds me of the cold war. that's when kruschev and kennedy would meet and the next thing after you said they had a frank conversation, everyone went into shelters and said oh, my god, what's going to happen next? to me a deal is doable, but you've got -- you have to recognize what both sides -- obviously the president needs a hike in taxes. >> and that's going to happen, isn't it? let's be honest, the republicans have lost that argumen

we expect him to talk about john kerry being the next secretary of state. >> john mccain just put outtatement. >> great. here is president obama. >> -- took office, we were in the middle of two wars and al qaeda was in its safe havens. america was standing in a world of suffering. we began a new jer yaf leadership. we entered the war in iraq, put will al qaeda war on the path to defeat and we are winding down from the war in afghanistan. we have global challenges and stood up for human dignity. we still of course face great challenges. but today, i can say with pride that the united states is safer, stronger, and more respected in the world. in this work, i've been grateful for an extraordinary national security team. toml don lan has been part of that and one of the most important people is our outstanding secretary of state, my friend, secretary hillary clinton. hillary wanted very much to be here today. but she continues to recuperate. i had a chance to talk to her earlier today and she is in good spirits. and could not be more excited about the announcement that i'm making. over t

minus one is one. >> in other words, senator john kerry is virtually certain to be nominated secretary of state. here is senator kerry tonight. >> and i'm going to continue to do my work. >> senator kerry's statement red are in part as someone who was weathered my share of political attacks and understands how difficult politics can be. >> i know that she will continue to serve with great distinction and passion. >> today i made the decision that it was the best thing for our country, for the american people that i not continue to be considered by the president for a nomination of secretary of state. i didn't want to see a process that was very prolonged and distracting and disruptive. because there are so many things we need to get done as a country. >> ambassador rice said this. >> did you want the job? >> i would have been very honored to serve in that job. yes, sure. how can you not want to serve at the highest possible level? >> republican senators have resisted the nomination but they have welcomed the possible nomination of senator john kerry the current chairman of the committe

john kerry can help barack be just that. joining me now is nbc news chief white house correspondent chuck todd. chuck, this has been fascinating chlts do you know when the president decided with or along with ambassador rice that she should formally remove herself from consideration? >> this is my understanding, the president never asked her to do this. she came to this conclusion on her own in the last 24 hours and said this is not worth it. it was can causing the president a fair share of problems. so she made this decision on her own. i can tell you, the president has been conflicted on this for some time. he had been getting conflicting advice. democratic senators were quietly sending word to the white house. we've got a lot of heavy lifts to do for the president. a heavy lift on whatever the fiscal deal ends up being or not being. a heavy lift on immigration. don't add to the angst. don't add to the anxiety. look, i think that she's a victim of an old fashioned media feeding fren si that we're going to look back on and

now, assuming john kerry wins confirmation, we'll talk about the process in a minute, does it matter retary kerry is sitting down with a foreign adversary and negotiating this treaty or those sanctions or something like that? is that sort of a tactic a foreign power could use against him in a negotiating session? >> i really don't think so at all. senator kerry has been there negotiating and representing or country as a u.s. senator and goes over, the secretary of state with the full power and confidence of the united states and the president. and i think any foreign leader who thought that somehow his stature was diminished because he was second choice would be completely missing the point. if anything, you know, john kerry will come in absolutely unscathed. with incredibly powerful relationships, throughout washington and the administration. and, i think he has the full power, you know, you look at susan rice, he has been loyal to obama and i have known her since she was a kid. she was the attack dog against john mccain, in the, you know, 2008 election and, i think that that is what

john kerry has other problems of his own. for instance, if you're john mccain and you're hawkish about interventi intervention, you might not like the idea of a john kerry. on the other hand, they're friends. i'm not saying anything is smooth sailing but john kerry is certainly the front-runner. there aren't any other strong candidates. >> you'd be surprised if it wasn't him. >> i'd be astonished. >> we'll hold you to that. >> thank you. >> we'll need you to weigh in on another story. >>> today on this show, let's call it the budgetary boondoggle. both sides met last night in what they'd call a frank conversation. boehner earlier in the today accused obama of dragging this out. >> i've been pushing all year for us to address this problem. here we are at the 11th hour and the president still isn't serious about dealing with this issue right here. it's this issue. spending. >> if we go over the cliff will you permit a vote to decouple that and fight again on the -- >> ifs and ands and buts are like candy and nuts. if that were

john kerry were the logical choice. susan rice and he were the only two names mentioned. after the benghazi scandal and controversy too great and rice had to pull herself out it really left kerry as the lone person for that seat. jon: there are questions about benghazi swirl around secretary of state clinton. how much longer is she in the job and will she testify before congress before she leaves that post, do you know? >> that is good question. another good question, wendell said he didn't know for sure, the president would come out, usually the way it is for the senior job in his cabinet and announce it today. generally speaking, traditionally, when the president is announcing he has somebody to replace an earlier person in that place, that person is there too. incumbent secretary of state. it gets a little delicate for hillary clinton because of course she did not testify yesterday before the senate foreign relations committee because she was suffering the effects of a flu, stomach virus and concussion she suffered. it would be a little funny if she were to appear today

you worked for john kerry for a period of time. >> bring it on.t on. >> he went on bob schieffer's program and accused our troops of killing innocent civilians and old people in the dark and night during the iraq war. >> what are we talking about here? >> i'm asking john kerry and whether or not he's qualified to be secretary of state. he said our troops, bob, are going in the dark at night and committing these atrocities. that was during the iraq war. very similar to what he said about our troops after vietnam when he accused them of cutting off limbs and tying electric wires to people's testicles. >> yeah. okay. i will say that -- >> should that be an issue? >> i think john kerry is imminently qualified to be secretary of state and a lot of republicans senators agree with me on that and a lot of republicans in the house agree as well. >> so he accuses of troops of atrocities and that shouldn't be an issue? >> the totality of john kerry's record as war hero and fearless advocate. >> war hero? >> listen. when it comes to defense, there's nobody wh

and john kerry is certainly not a new face. in a way, it's a throwback to foreign policy of past decades. >> brown: ba kind of new ideas, or what are you referring to that he would lack in terms of experience or ideas about how to cope with current problems or future problems. >> no, he-- as a matter of experience he certainly has lots of experience. and in that sense, that is a strength for him. but i think he hasn't over the years been an originator of new kinds of policies. if you take, for example, china policy i think that he may be reluctant to react to a china which is very different from the way it was in the past. >> brown: let me bring david ignatius back. i guess it depends on what you think is needed right now, right? >> i think the world's a mess as kerry believes. he's right. and needs a strong american voice. needs the sort of steady hand that some of these experiences can bring. i point i would make about kerry is that although he often comes across as a stiff, as an establishment figure very form layic, in term

how effective will john kerry be? >> he has great spirits. in a sense, the obama administration has used him very effectively in the past four years. he was first on the ground in copenhagen with the climate change negotiations. he was inserted into the troubled relationship the united states has with pakistan. he has had effective conversations with president karzai, and he did some yeoman's work when it came to negotiations with south sudan. he has made his mark already in terms of conflict reduction, crisis mitigation. i think he will carry that experience into his new position. >> nevertheless, some would say he has enormous shoes to fill. hillary clinton has almost got a cult following among some people. how is his style going to be different to hers? >> you are talking about a man who ran for president in 2004. >> she tried to do that, too. >> he has his own persona, but he is quite experienced on a national stage, on a global stage, so i do not think he will shrink from the spotlight. >> but does he have that sort of personality, the c

he's next. >>> senator john kerry was always on the short list to replace hillary clinton as secretaryf from the running, kerry became odds on favorite. now you see the video here, happening not too long ago, official, the president today nominating kerry for one of the highest profile posts really in the world and wolf blitzer, let me bring you in. you were watching this. you were covering it when it was happening live. before we chat let's look at a poll. cnn, we asked americans whether they thought senator kerry would be quote/unquote good for the country or bad for the country. 57% say good. he has support. is this pretty much a done deal here? >> i think it is. i think it is pretty much a done deal. there may be a few handful of senators that might not like john kerry, might vote not to confirm his nomination. but i think he'll sail through. it will be his committee that has to approve him and then a full vote on the floor of the senate. but i think he's going to get through. usually the senators are pretty collegial as far as senators are concerned. i assume he won't have much tr

>> look, i mean for the obama administration i think john kerry is fine choice. ly what the president tells him to do. he will help the united states pass what he once famously called the global test. this is what jn kerry was made to do. i agree with judy. this is it sort of the perfect. lori: job for him. he is looking to have a job for this if not years but for decades. he will carry out the president's wishes. he will consult with the president. i don't think he will be driving u.s. foreign policy in any sense of that word. lou: presumably he will not be easily concussed and therefore not available for the congress for discussion of policy and of events taking place on his watch. isn't it a bit, just a little, i don't know, callous for the president to name the successor of thh secretary of state before she really resigned while convalescing? seems somehow cold to me. unmeggsal. >> perhaps, lou, i know you're a very sensitive soul. lou: thank you, screwed did. what are you laughing about, hayes? >> perhaps he wants her to step down so when she is being grilled

john kerry did not stop. there's no medimmediat -- anoth scrum waiting to see what his reaction might be. i think the red flag that was raised here and talking about what chuck was talking about, having seen that cabinet meeting last week or was it the week before, martin, when president obama led a round of applause and gave a hearty endorsement to susan rice as she sat at the end of the cabinet room. i don't think there was any secret that this was very visceral for the president. any evidence you need of that privately or publicly you can look at his reaction in that post election press conference when he essentially said come after me if you're going to come after susan rice. but one of the red flags and this was mentioned earlier is when after one of those closed door briefings that we have here in the senate, susan collins, the very moderate senator from maine emerged to express her own reservations. she said she wouldn't put a hold or filibuster the nomination, i think that raised a red flag. and final

as you look at the choice of john kerry, if he is in fact, selected, would he bring to our nation's safety and security and our relationships with other nations? >> i mean, look, the kerry appointment is safe. it's centrist. he's going to be loyal to the president and he's confirmable. beyond that, i think the central question is, how much influence will he really have? barack obama is the most withholding foreign policy president since richard nixon, all power flows in and out of the white house on most of the cons quential issues with war and peace with regard to the nation. so i think the question is, if barack obama decides to delegate, rather than dominate, which he did not do to his quite talented current secretary of state, then i think the appointment of john kerry will be cons quential, tell matter f. he doesn't, then john kerry will implement the president's foreign policy. that's what the secretary of state is charged to do. but usually, when we have had truly cons quential successes of state, henry kissinger, george schulz, james baker, the secretary had a lot of leeway to crea