I just can’t remain cynical. Each time I get sucked a bit too deep into the Gang of Prog Obama crit, I read something that pulls me back. Something that reminds me that yes, this is what it looks like when we won and we have to put an administration together.
Obama’s emphasis has clearly been not on picking centrists, but rather picking good worker bees and folks who will implement his policies. And, as Al Giordano points out, the Gang of Prog isn’t paying enough attention. Obama is appointing progressives.
The most interesting news out of the press conference just concluded by President-elect Obama was the appointment of an unabashed progressive, Melody Barnes (in the photo, above), to head the Domestic Policy Council. Barnes will coordinate the mega-board of the Cabinet secretaries of Health and Human Services, Justice, Labor, Education, Housing and Urban Development, Commerce, Energy, Treasury, Agriculture, Transportation, Interior and Veterans Affairs. Basically, she’ll be domestic policy czar….
Melody Barnes, Domestic Policy Council served as chief counsel to Senator Ted Kennedy on the Judiciary Committee from 1985 to 1993. Want to get an idea of how progressive she is? Read this: In January of 2007, prior to President Bush’s state of the union address, Barnes wrote this essay for the Washington Post, What a Progressive President Might Say:
Here at home there is urgent work to do to fight the historically high — and growing — gap between our richest and poorest citizens. While the mean income of households on the low end of the income spectrum — the bottom 20 percent — is just $10,655 a year, the income of the top twenty percent of households averages almost $160,000. That’s 15 times as much. At the same time, according to the latest census figures, the middle class, beset with stagnant wages and mountainous debts, is shrinking. The sad fact is that one of our most cherished values as a society, namely equality of opportunity, is fading as a reality for far too many people…
No news agency predicted it or broke the story until two hours ago this morning when the Think Progress blog became the first – beating all commercial media at their own game – to do so.
Likewise, the nomination to head the Council of Economic Advisors, Christina Romer, went un-predicted and without leaks until just three hours before today’s press conference when Politico broke the story.
Note: All the great mentioners claim that New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson will become the next Commerce Secretary (clearly, that post will be part of the economic team). And that might still become so. But Richardson was not at the press conference today, nor was any such announcement made.
The lesson: When it comes to upcoming appointments, don’t believe the spin. Half the appointees announced today went totally unmentioned by the rocket scientists of the political press corps until just hours before the press conference. And the guy [Lawrence Summers] that almost all of them claimed, at first, would get the big job at Treasury didn’t get it.
I have a very strong sense that Obama knows what he’s doing, and that all is going according to plan. This could be better than I had hoped. This might be a President who will get things done, and done in the right way.
The current bailout shit I’m not so concerned about. Bush is a prick and I can think of no reason to believe he’d be open to Obama’s input. And in Obama’s case, there’s a lot to be said for keeping his cards close to his vest. The more advance warning Wall Street gets of any reforms or policy changes, the more time they’ll have to dig in, build their battlements, and put their sappers to work.
In the meantime, don’t expect any real news. That’s not what news companies provide, not for a long time now. Keep reading the progressive blogs, and don’t ignore the personnel changes on the other side.
Glenn Greenwald: Ideology vs. pragmatism
Think Progress: NRA still lying about guns (because they’ve always been shills for the gun makers)
Think Progress: More LIEberman bullshit
TPM Café: Truth and Reconciliation time?
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Count the recount stories:
MinnPost: Next key step in recount on Wednesday
MinnPost: Recount re-goo?
MPR: Q&A with the Lizard People voter
MPR: Coleman +195
MPR: How MPR found the Lizard Person
23/6: My Two Senators [video]
MnIndy: Have ballots gone missing?
MnIndy: 61 uncounted ballots turn up in Becker Co.
PiPress: Pawlenty doubts he’ll get to appoint next U.S. Senator (note: this would only happen if Coleman wins, then gets booted for corruption)
MnIndy: Is Norm a wiener or a whiner?
City Hall Scoop: Family feud over rejected absentee ballot?
City Pages: Klobuchar’s advice in recount
City Pages: Coleman vs. Franken: Hebruise Deathmatch ‘08
City Pages: Lizard Person voter loves attention
City Pages: Former Franken worker participated in ballot recount
City Pages: Lizard People voter comes forward
Cucking Stool: Recount progress map
Twin Cities Liberal: Senate recount graphs – Day 4
The Weekly Standard: Lecturing Mark Ritchie on Mn law
Kevin Drum: 27 votes
Rochester Post-Bulletin: Mower auditor humiliates Franken observer
Groh acknowledged that he questioned one of the Franken campaign’s challenges and, because he wanted to make it a learning experience for the entire room, he required the woman to state her challenge to the room and read the rules, Gelbmann said.
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From Kevin Drum:
A MAVERICK Thai general who has threatened to bomb anti-government protesters and drop snakes on them from helicopters has been reassigned as an aerobics teacher, the Bangkok Post said on Friday.
What is it with the Thai and snakes? My restaurant owner friend told me when she was young there was a big anti-Vietnam War rally in Bangkok. She and her school girl friends took buses to the capitol to the peace rally being held in the city’s biggest sports stadium. It was packed and everyone was hugely elated at this show of “force.”
Then the police and army arrived. The first thing they did was to use bullhorns to threaten the students. Then an army officer said that they had no time for this nonsense and if the students didn’t disperse, the army would release thousands of cobras into the stadium.
It was an absurd threat but the younger students like my friend panicked and ran out of the stadium, got back on their buses and returned to their homes.
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An eagle poacher
Wildlife smugglers
Perjurors
Medical fraud
Food stamp fraud
Pot [2] and coke [2]
Income tax evasion
Bank embezzlement
Bank fraud [2]
Unlawful use of phone
Hazmat scofflaw
Theft of goverment property
And there you have round one of Bush’s pardons. Each and every one of ‘em a Republican or on the hook for some hefty legal fees to a Republican. That’s my guess. Good lord, how many ex-cons have rap sheets like these? And 14 get pardoned?
Justice, American style.
Justice, Georgia style.
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[stolen from Schmelzer, who explains the wtf?]
For awkward, check out Paul Krugman standing next to George Bush.
But for something truly disturbing . . . check out Mediation. And for disturbing reading, more on Turkey Gate from Mudflats.
Still, the most disturbing stuff of all is all about Saxby “whites only” Chambliss, the draft dodging swift boater from Georgia.
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Day Six of no new news about Nasser Kazeminy.
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“Man , the dope’s that there’s still hope”
-Brutal S.-
Obama knows what he’s doing. It’s not surprising to hear that the furthest left Obama backers will have some problems with some of his picks. That’s national politics at work.