National Survey of 1,000 Likely Voters
Conducted November 16-17, 2008
By Rasmussen Reports

1* How closely do you follow the Cabinet appointments made by a president?

48% Very closely

35% Somewhat closely

12% Not very closely

2% Not at all

3% Not sure

2* How important are a president’s Cabinet choices to the success of his administration?

78% Very important

19% Somewhat important

2% Not very important

1% Not at all important

1% Not sure

3* While every Administration has a mix of people, should Obama’s Cabinet include more people who served in the Clinton Administration or should he reach out and appoint more new people?

16% Include more people who served in the Clinton administration

70% Reach out and appoint more new people

15% Not sure

4* Who would make the best Secretary of State for President Obama – John Kerry, Hillary Clinton, Al Gore, Richard Lugar, Colin Powell or John McCain?

4% John Kerry

28% Hillary Clinton
6% Al Gore

5% Richard Lugar

33% Colin Powell

17% John McCain

7% Not sure

5* Which cabinet position is the most critical these days…..secretary of state, secretary of the treasury, secretary of defense, attorney general, secretary of energy or homeland security?

45% Secretary of State

16% Secretary of the Treasury

18% Secretary of Defense

6% Attorney General

1% Secretary of Energy

5% Homeland Security

10% Not sure

NOTE: Margin of Sampling Error, +/- 3 percentage points with a 95% level of confidence