President-elect Barack Obama’s designated cabinet will line to begin a series of confirmation hearings, with Sen. Hillary Clinton's hearing to become Secretary of State scheduled for Tuesday.

There may be a few fireworks this week, according to some political analysts, but all Obama’s nominees are expected to be confirmed.

Masschusetts Sen. John Kerry will chair the hearing on Obama's pick for the top foreign policy post, and both Republicans and Democrats say they expect no serious objections to Clinton's confirmation.

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Still, Clinton has spent the past few days huddling with a small group of advisors preparing for tough questions and planning her straight-forward responses to a range of issues she's expecting.  

"It's never smooth sailing, no matter how pristine the record might be," Paul Light, a professor of government at New York University, told William Douglas of McClatchy newspapers. "Sometimes the most innocent nominee, the most harmless nominee, is the perfect hostage for concessions from the administration."

Media observers say the most contentious hearing may happen on Jan. 15 during Eric Holder’s confirmation questioning for attorney general. Holder, a former deputy attorney general under President Bill Clinton, is expected to be grilled on his role in Clinton's pardon of fugitive financier Marc Rich in 2000.

Charles Ellison, chief advisor and senior fellow with the Center for New Politics and Policy at the University of Denver and a political analyst for Sirius/XM Radio, evaluated the key confirmation hearings for BlackAmericaWeb.com.


Eric Holder, Attorney General: "Despite the celebrity spotlight on the Hillary Clinton hearings, the hearing to watch is Eric Holder's for a number of reasons," Ellison said.

"The Judiciary Committee's ranking Republican, Pennsylvania Sen. Arlen Specter, is looking to reassert himself, both on the Hill and back in his home state where he will face stiff opposition from Democrats looking to maximize gains made in the Keystone State in 2008," Ellison said. "In the addition, any major judicial appointment or nomination, whether Supreme Court or AG, is an ideological lightning rod for conservatives. Holder's tainted tenure in the Clinton administration is an opening for Republicans."

Tim Geither, U.S. Treasury Secretary: "Look to Tim Geithner's hearing as another intense battle," says Ellison, "as senators will use it as an opportunity to promote their individual economic agendas, as the country is faced with fiscal crisis. But, the real issue should also be the extent of Geitner's relationships with Wall Street bankers and brokers - and what was happening on his watch as president of the New York Federal Reserve as the sub-prime mortgage bomb exploded.

Leon Panetta, CIA Director: "Leon Panetta's hearing should be fairly uneventful, since the focus is on the economy more so than national security on the moment, Ellison attests. "However, Sen. Feinstein is looking for a stage in the absence of Hillary Clinton - still, Panetta is being picked because there is a sense that the CIA needs a management overhaul. "

Hillary Clinton, Secretary of State: "Hillary Clinton's confirmation will sail through committee, although tough questions will arise concerning her primary differences with then-candidate Obama and the extent of her husband's global fundraising efforts. When looking at $10-$25 million donations from Saudi Arabia to Clinton's foundation, senators will sniff about for a quid pro quo, especially since we're faced with renewed conflict in the Middle East."

Overall, Ellison said, "Much of the speculation surrounding confirmation hearings is always a bit of gossip-page melee that political hacks can't seem to shake."

Ellison said the confirmation hearings are part of a "vicious tradition" that is ingrained in the American political psyche - ripping .....

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