Adviser who insulted Clinton has new role

If tapped as U.S. secretary of state, Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton could end up working with a Harvard professor who called her a monster, observers said.

President-elect Barack Obama within the next few days is expected to officially name Clinton as his pick for secretary of state, The Washington Post reported Saturday.

Obama's transition team for State Department matters includes Samantha Power, who resigned from Obama's campaign last Spring after calling Clinton a monster who stooped to a unattractive amount of deceit in her failed bid to become the Democratic presidential nominee, the Post reported.

Transition officials have declined to comment on how closely Power and Clinton would be working together. Privately, however, those officials say Clinton has accepted an apology from Power, which could allow Power to emerge as a key adviser on foreign policy despite the awkward relationship between the two women, the Post reported.