John Kerry

I would be unhappier with the article if I were a Clinton supporter than I am as a Kerry supporter.

To me, the positives they cite for Clinton are all about her popularity and her superstar status - and her career arc, which could as easily as Kerry's be called up and down. (After all, she lost the primary to Obama and without his wise (for political reasons) gift of SOS, it is not clear that she would have ended up where she is now.) Then look at thier comments on her role as SOS. She is said to not have had much policy input - which is untrue as she was instrumental in pushing for the bigger Afghanistan surge. It is said that she avoided big issues as SOS and leads with how much she traveled. Nothing said on what she accomplished. Only time will tell how history will rate this. Obviously our status in the world is up, but is this just because Bush was gone, Obama or partly what the SOS did? I suspect that she deserves at least some credit. I suspect that more than Kerry needed the SOS position for his legacy, HRC might need the Presidency. Without it, she may pale beside two dynamic Presidents. (ie I think that just as in the 2005-2008 period, her importance was based on her potential, not her accomplishments.)

The comment that Kerry is will be judged more harshly is likely true if what is meant is that he will not be judged through rose colored glasses as HRC was - where she was praised for very routine things and errors were ignored. The media has always and likely will always hold Kerry to a higher bar than HRC was - and maybe more than anyone else. I wonder if part of the reason is that he holds himself to higher standards as well as the obvious fact that he has never been a media favorite. However, when they speak of HISTORY judging him harder, I think they are wrong. From a distance of time, where you can see across time, I think the accomplishments that he already has will stand him well - and if he accomplishes even one big thing as SOS, he could well be in that short list of powerful SOS. He already is seen as one of the best chairs of SFRC. Though there are HRC fans calling her the best SOS ever, there are no serious articles making that case based on accomplishments.