But Obama will have "a more diverse Cabinet than people have realized," Paul Light of New York University, a close student of the transition, said in an interview. "They come from very different destinations and they share one characteristic: They're damn smart, and they know how to make decisions."
Similar words of praise once were directed toward Kennedy's brain trust, whose seeming intelligence did not keep them from recommending disastrous choices that led to a tragic war in Vietnam.
When Kennedy took office, foreign policy was his focus. The Russians had taken the lead in the space race, and there was anxiety in America about the progress of the Cold War.
Shortly after being sworn in, Kennedy decided to back an ill-advised plot to overthrow the Communist government of Cuba's Fidel Castro. The CIA-planned invasion of the Bay of Pigs became an early, and devastating, embarrassment for the new president.
On April 19, 1961, bad news was streaming into the White House from the beachhead. JFK's brother, Robert Kennedy, the attorney general, cast his eyes over the men seated around the table in the Cabinet Room. Finally, he lashed out in frustration. "All you bright fellows," he said, "have gotten the president into this."
That experience could be a cautionary lesson for Obama. His new economic team, widely praised for its brilliance, is already grappling with the worst domestic economic crisis in decades. Responsibility for the problem, at least in the public's eyes, will soon be his alone.
