Obama’s First Cuts: On Administration Team Building

In trying to make sense of the presidential election process (as it played out), I turned frequently to David Brooks of The New York Times.

Why?  He was/is a Conservative (and a Republican, I presume), and as such, wasn’t going to default into the Obama Love-Fest.  I favor objectivity. 

While he signaled early that his enthusiasm for Mc Cain was tempered at best, it was only after the Palin choice that he seemed irrevocably conflicted (see Why Experience Matters: On Palin, Putin and Prudence).

The bottom line is with Brooks, one gets a sense of moral clarity combined with reasoned analysis and crystallized truths.

With that backdrop, take heart in Brooks’ analysis of president-elect Barack Obama’s transition planning decisions so far:

And yet as much as I want to resent these overeducated Achievatrons…I find myself tremendously impressed by the Obama transition.  Believe me, I’m trying not to join in the vast, heaving O-phoria now sweeping the coastal haute bourgeoisie. But the personnel decisions have been superb. The events of the past two weeks should be reassuring to anybody who feared that Obama would veer to the left or would suffer self-inflicted wounds because of his inexperience. He’s off to a start that nearly justifies the hype.

Read the full piece ('The Insider's Crusade') HERE.