Hillary Clinton Expected to Accept Secretary of State

Hillary Clinton is expected to accept the position of secretary of state in the Obama administration, FOX News has confirmed. A formal announcement is planned for after Thanksgiving.

Reports indicate that Sen. Clinton made her decision to accept quite recently, after persistent courting by Obama and his transition team.

ABC News reports that Clinton even was leaning toward rejecting Obama's offer, until his staff members flooded her with calls to convince her to say yes. Clinton had told the Obama transition team on Wednesday that she didn't want to give up her independence in the Senate, sources told ABC News.

The New York Times, citing two Clinton confidants, said that the former First Lady reached the decision to accept after further discussions about her potential role with President-elect Barack Obama.

Clinton said through a spokesman that discussions were on track for her appointment but no final arrangement had been made, according to the Associated Press.

Clinton, who has represented New York in the Senate for eight years, will have to give up her seat to join forces with her former rival, who beat her for the Democratic presidential nomination in a bruising contest.

The decision comes one week after Clinton and Obama met secretly to discuss the idea of Clinton becoming the nation's top diplomat.

One transition aide told FOX News that the two camps have worked out a plan to address financial disclosure issues involving Clinton's husband, former President Bill Clinton, and the complicated international funding of his foundation, which operates in 27 countries.

Some Democrats and government insiders have questioned whether Clinton is too independent and politically ambitious to be an effective secretary of state. But Obama is said to admire her talents and experience, as do many other Democrats.

Obama has moved with unusual speed to select officials for his administration. And one Democrat said John Podesta, a leader of the transition team, had told Senate aides on Friday that Obama hoped for speedy confirmation so the new administration could get to work quickly after Jan. 20.

Obama also is filling out the ranks of his White House staff.

He named Patrick Gaspard as his political director. Gaspard was Obama's national political director during the general election campaign, and has long ties to labor.

Hillary Clinton Expected to Accept Secretary of State