When Sanford points to Repubs who are doing the right thing, for the most part he points to governors who are not ideological and reach across the aisle to work with the other side. Unfortunately for him, Obama has begun to take this bipartisanship mantle for the Dem brand. For the most part it seems that Repub Congress will be the ideological types like Brownback. Good luck in 2010.

Regarding diversity of his appointment, as Jarret says it's a zero-sum game. Unfortunately there are people looking at these top slots and counting which group snags what. Bush had some historic choices (Rice, Gonzales). Obama needs to be able to choose who he wants for that particular position. Over the course of his two terms (yes, he will win re-election) everyone will get their day in the sun.

I think Mr. Jealous' comment can be expanded to cover Obama's staffing decisions as a whole thus far: "So far, so good."

-- Cris
My site: Obama Wallpaper Archive

When are the Rs going to come to the conclusion that the problem is we heard their message, and after 10 years of being under their control, have seen it abused and fail miserably, and now have said a resounding NO to it. They have to change their spots, turn out the southern theicans (saying theocrats reminds me of religious Democrats run amok), and create a party with a positive, welcoming message, reflective of Republicans like Rockefellar. Until then, just go away, don't bother me.

General Jones not only speaks French but he also lived in Paris between the ages of 2 and 17, the formative years. How can we ever trust him?

"There are huge expectations on him because he's the first black president, the first civil rights lawyer, the first president with an Arab middle name."

Hmm...Here I was thinking expectations are high because he's the first competent President in a long time. I don't what being Black or Arab has to do with it anything.

It's pretty lame to assume all minorities or (even the majority) should be represented in the cabinet. I'd like a government which tackles minority concerns in its policy and couldn't careless about the hue or texture of the cabinet.

Having a black woman (Rice) or a Hispanic man (Gonzales) doesn't really do much to address the concerns of blacks, women or hispanics. It's the policies that count- that was the case the last time I checked anyways.

Reply to Beetlejuice (at 3:54):

The Mumbai attackers certainly were not "rank amateurs". These was a carefully prepared assault, preceded by excellent recon. They had CDs with detailed plans of the buildings. They were well trained in automatic weapons. (As one of the Indian commandos pointed out, "Not everyone can handle an AK-47.") They carried sufficient supplies of ammunition and grenades to sustain combat for nearly three days, despite high-expenditure rates. There are indications that they had also established pre-positioned weapons caches and reserve ammo in the hotels four days before the operation began. They established some sort of "command centers" within the Oberoi and Taj. The targets were carefully selected, and the timing and coordination of the attack was very sophisticated. They also used an unexpected sea infiltration route. That addresses the first point.

The second point is your implied description of them as not "a dedicated group." This was a one-way mission, with death waiting at the end of it. Certainly no one selected was under any illusions about surviving. Volunteering for a suicide operation is, to my mind, evidence of a highly dedicated group.

I don't think the discussion of terrorism or the future implications for the United States is well-served by glib and facile oversimplification.

Thank, jzap. I'm mostly a lurker who reads and seldom posts. I've generally enjoyed yours when I visit.

Yes, yes, oh, yes Governor Mark. By all means make the GOP tent smaller. And please get that Governor Sarah to help you. Please, please, please.

testing

A quick comment on Sanford's prescription for fixing the GOP: have at it buddy.

In two terms as South Carolina's governor, Sanford has done absolutely nothing for this state. We rank 46th in real per capita GDP (down from 43rd in 2004) and 42nd in per capita income.

Sanford went along with the legislature's signature fiscal "accomplishment," a property tax reduction that pandered to the wealthy and made a huge chunk of the state education budget dependent on sales tax revenue.

South Carolina is the only state that has failed to use money from the tobacco settlement to fund smoking cessation programs. I could go on, but I'm already so angry I'm afraid I'll write something I'll regret later.

Sanford's "libertarian" political philosophy appears to have two components: brain-dead tax policy and do-nothing government. I can't believe he continues to draw a taxpayer funded salary. What a loser.

Smaller tent, indeed.

In part, I think the guy had a chance to do an article, he had nothing intelligent to say or offer, so he talked about them getting down to their roots, usual shit. Usual shit, different day. Very safe things to say, by the way. "We need to be more like ourselves."