With Barack Obama bringing an unprecedented level of color to the Oval Office – that is, any at all – many people were hoping his cabinet appointments would reflect the president-elect's diverse background. Those people are going to be disappointed.
Welcome to the real world, where change takes time and straight white men still wield a large share of the power.
| Race | Sexual Orientation | Religion | Education | Controversy | |
 Tom Vilsack, Agriculture |
White | Straight | Roman Catholic | B.A. Hamilton College, J.D. Albany Law School of Union University | The Iowa Values Fund, a Vilsack brainchild that wasted millions on corporate welfare |
 Robert Gates, Defense |
White | Straight | Unknown (WHAT IS HE HIDING??!!) | B.A. William & Mary, M.A. Indiana University, Ph.D. Georgetown | Rumor has it that Gates' early interest in medicine found him boiling cat carcasses |
 Arne Duncan, Education |
White | Straight | "He’s not beholden to any one ideology…" -Barack Obama | B.A. Harvard | He's squeaky clean |
 Steven Chu, Energy |
Asian | Straight | Unknown | B.A. University of Rochester, Ph.D. Berkeley | Went to lowly Rochester: "I applied to a number of colleges … but because of my relatively lackluster A-average in high school, I was rejected by the Ivy League schools" |
| Race | Sexual Orientation | Religion | Education | Controversy | |
 Tom Daschle, Health & Human Services |
White | Straight | Roman Catholic | B.A. South Dakota State University | Despite owning a $2 million mansion in DC in 2003, Daschle paid his taxes in South Dakota, which has no income tax |
 Shaun Donovan, Housing & Urban Development |
White | Straight | Um, Irish Catholic(???????) | B.A. Harvard, M.A. Harvard | At Prudential Mortgage Capital Co., Donovan was in charge of the company's portfolio of investments in affordable housing loans, including Fannie Mae |
 Janet Napolitano, Homeland Security |
White | straight (small "s") | Methodist | B.A. Santa Clara, J.D. University of Virginia | Many people believe Napolitano is a closeted lesbian |
 Ken Salazar, Interior |
White (Spanish) | Straight | Roman Catholic | B.A. Colorado College, J.D. University of Michigan | In 2004, Salazar accepted campaign funds from people and firms connected to Joe Ferriero, a Democratic party boss facing federal corruption charges |
| Race | Sexual Orientation | Religion | Education | Controversy | |
 Eric Holder, Attorney General |
Black | Straight | Unknown | B.A. Columbia, J.D. Columbia | While working for the NFL, Holder spearheaded a refusal to accept serious reforms in steroid use investigations |
 Hilda Solis, Labor |
Hispanic | Straight | Roman Catholic | B.A. Cal Poly Pomona, M.P.A. USC | The Communists love her |
 Hillary Clinton, State |
White | Straight | Methodist | B.A. Wellesley, J.D. Yale | Whitewater! Also, she's married to an admitted philanderer |
 Ray LaHood, Transportation |
Arab | Straight | Maronite Catholic | B.A. Bradley University | LaHood's probably not qualified to be transportation secretary; it's thought that the Republican has only been nominated for the sake of bipartisanship |
| Race | Sexual Orientation | Religion | Education | Controversy | |
 Timothy Geithner, Treasury |
White | Straight | Raised Episcopalian | B.A. Dartmouth, M.A. Johns Hopkins | Nothing; this from the Economist: "[Geithner] has spent 'more time on financial crises, from Mexico and Thailand to Brazil and Argentina, than probably any other policymaker in office today'" |
 Eric Shinseki, Veterans Affairs |
Asian | Straight | Unknown | B.S. West Point, M.A. Duke | After Shinseki stated in 2003 that hundreds of thousands of troops would be needed to stabilize postwar Iraq, everyone laughed him into retirement. Time has proven him right |
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How about we focus on whether these people are the best persons for the job and not there skin color okay?
I'm confused. Isn't there clear diversity in this list? 3 women, 2 asian men, 2 hispanics and an african american? I don't understand the frustration. Cord, I really dig ur writing, but I think u're reaching here.
Wow… this post annoys me. To list the (straight) sexual orientation of a person in an attempt to discredit said person… not the best way to make homosexuality too normal to care.
Also the "Controversy" column is way off. (eg. Shinseki was obv. right, so why mention this? And H. Clinton is married to B. Clinton and the biggest problem you can come up with is his philandering? Janet Napolitano may be gay, this is listed from as a controversy from YOU?) Have you even read this or copy-pasted this from somewhere.
6 white men vs 8 women and non-white men? You don't even have a point.
Cord: what is wrong with you? All this angry young man ado? You used to be sarcastic and funny und sometimes a little bit over the top with you righteousness but your jossip work just seems so biased it is almost "blind". Are you so extremly disappointed with Obama because a lot of things after the election campaign have been watered down?
Welcome to political realism.
@ coexxi
Uh, a controversy occurs when parties have a disagreement. Shinseki's statement about the war drew a lot of criticism and followed him into retirement. Just because he's been proved right in the end doesn't mean he didn't cause controversy.
"And H. Clinton is married to B. Clinton and the biggest problem you can come up with is his philandering?"
No, the biggest problem I could come up with was Whitewater, which I said and which you ignored.
Also, there are seven straight white men on this list.
Welcome to editorial realism.
I didn't count Ken Salaza to the white man. Isn't he hispanic but just with a white teint? Even so it would be a 7:7 which is a tie.
Tom Vilsack
Robert Gates
Arne Duncan
Tom Daschle
Shaun Donovan
Timothy Geithner
And I didn't just ignore Whitewather. My problem was not about Whitewater - which is controversial. But why her marriage to an unfaithful husband is a discredit to HER I cannot so easily grasp.
About Shinseki: so the controversy list is not about things YOU think are controversal but which are just overal controversal.
And you also conveniently ignored my grumping about the the listing of sexual preference on this sheet….
Haha. Nice work! That's funny!