Want to know just what Obama has to look forward to when he steps into the White House? Mother Jones summarizes a new GAO report, detailing problem after problem after problem in federal agencies. And these are just the management-related screwups - the full list would be much longer.
Also, reaction to Obama's pick of Eric Shinseki to head the VA Department.
And, Joe Conason thinks Obama should immediately get money to the states, while Bill Kristol scoffs at spending money on "make-work civilian jobs" and "fanciful green technologies." You know he's always good for a laugh.
Jonathan Stein at Mother Jones looks at all the problems Obama has to look forward to. Seriously, it's depressing:
The Department of Homeland Security and Department of Agriculture have no plan to work together in the event of a food-borne disease outbreak or terrorist attack. The Department of Defense's security clearance process takes so long it jeopardizes classified information. The EPA's chemical risk assessment program is improperly influenced by private industry.
When Sen. George Voinovich (R-Ohio) requested a report from the Government Accountability Office (GAO) listing questions his fellow senators might ask President-elect Barack Obama's political nominees at their upcoming confirmation hearings, he probably didn't expect a 150-page list of Bush administration screwups. But that's what he got.
The report is limited to management issues, so don't think this is an exhaustive list of Bush administration screwups. That report would be much, much longer:
But this report serves as a peephole into the myriad internal problems of the executive branch, depicting a federal bureaucracy that is rife with mismanagement, inefficiency, and faulty communication practices—all of this combining to jeopardize both the nation's health and security.
Oy. The full report is linked from the Mother Jones article. I skimmed through it for a little bit, but then I went cross-eyed and got a headache. While the majority of the report consists of questions Congress could pose to potential nominees, it reads like "a catalogue of hundreds of unresolved issues that the Bush administration is leaving behind for Obama," as Stein puts it.
Reading Stein's article got me thinking about whether or not anyone is keeping a running track of Bush mistakes and screwups. I did a quick search and didn't come up with much. Do you know how many pages come up when you google "Bush" and "mistakes"? About 11.5 million. So if you know of any lists out there, let me know.
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Thomas Defrank of New York Daily News argues that Obama's appointment of Eric Shinseki sends a strong signal:
By restoring to grace a retired four-star general whose career was vaporized by former Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld for daring to tell the truth, Obama has delivered a powerful symbolic statement that his government will indeed be different from the last.
Shinseki's treatment at the hands of Rumsfeld and his deputy Paul Wolfowitz is a classic of petty, meanspirited retribution.
and:
Obama has made a smart political choice. Mostly, though, he's done the right thing.
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Paul Rieckhoff, director of Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America and a frequent guest on Rachel Maddow's radio show, thinks Shinseki is a bold choice:
General Shinseki has a record of courage and honesty, and I believe he is a bold choice to lead the VA. As a wounded and decorated combat veteran and the first Asian American in U.S. History to be a four-star general, General Shinseki has the potential to be an effective and dedicated advocate for veterans of all generations. He is a man that has always put patriotism ahead of politics, and is held in high regard by veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan. IAVA looks forward to supporting him to implement the historic change that is needed at the VA.
I'll bet you anything Rieckhoff will be on the Rachel Maddow radio show today discussing the pick!
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James Fallows at The Atlantic describes the email reaction he's received from his readers on the Shinseki pick:
I am grateful for a flood of mail from active-duty and retired military people, and their families, expressing admiration and excitement about Barack Obama's choice of Eric Shinseki as his Secretary of Veterans Affairs.
Earlier yesterday, Fallows noted the political symbolism of this particular nomination:
The nomination is like a hyper-precision missile, or what is known in politics as a "dog whistle." The people for whom this is a complete slap in the face don't need to be told that. They know -- and know that others know it too.
What do you think of Shinseki at the VA?
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The Los Angeles Times reports on the bind Nancy Pelosi is in over Charles Rangel:
Rangel, 78, is poised to be a highly visible player in rushing the stimulus package through the House. The committee he leads considers tax legislation, and the stimulus plan is expected to include some form of middle-class tax relief.
But Rangel could be assuming the limelight just as the ethics committee issues its report, risking political embarrassment for Pelosi, who had decried the corruption scandals that plagued congressional Republicans such as Reps. Bob Ney of Ohio and Randy "Duke" Cunningham of Rancho Santa Fe while the GOP controlled Congress.
Rangel has strongly denied that any legislative action benefiting the oil-drilling company came in return for a donation to a school named after Rangel at the City College of New York. The 37-year House member with the trademark rasp has challenged the New York Times story in a letter to the newspaper, and House leadership aides say they fear a rush to judgment before the facts are clear.
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Eve Fairbanks looks at the "interesting" challenges Joseph Cao will face in representing his constituents in Louisiana's 2nd district:
And Joseph Cao has some ... interesting times ahead of him, trying to maintain his status within the House Republican conference while pleasing his constituents: They voted 76% for John Kerry in 2004.
Meanwhile, Cao told reporters the day after his victory that he is "here to represent everyone." As Fairbanks mentioned, it will be interesting to see how he reconciles his conservative beliefs with the needs of his district, which is overwhelmingly Democratic!
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Sources in Gov. David Patersen's office tell the New York Post that the odds of Caroline Kennedy stepping into Clinton's Senate seat are 20-1. Andrew Cuomo, Carolyn Maloney or Kirsten Gillibrand are considered more likely choices. Still, this is all "unnamed" sources and this is the New York Post, so take it for what it's worth.
What would the media do without unnamed sources? Other anonymous leakers tell the New York Daily News that Kennedy still "needs convincing" on whether she should really push for the seat.
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Joe Conason thinks Obama's first priority on the economic front should be direct assistance to the states:
So when the president-elect spoke at the National Governors Association meeting last week, he pledged swift action to help the states but offered no specific response to the governors' plea for at least $160 billion in aid for the coming fiscal year.
Together with Congress, he should provide that much and more - because it would be the best single investment that the federal government could make right away - and because the states and cities can do so little in this climate to help themselves.
However, mayors - particularly of large urban areas - would like Obama to bypass the state governments and spend money at the local level, the WSJ reports:
A delegation of mayors, including Michael Bloomberg of New York and Antonio Villaraigosa of Los Angeles, plans to ask the federal government to distribute funds directly to cities instead of going through state governments. The group is set to present a list of more than 4,600 infrastructure projects that they say are "ready to go."
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Bill Kristol has his own ideas about spending. I laughed out loud reading his op-ed in the New York Times this morning, where he suggests - if money must be spent - that Obama should focus on the "underfunded" defense sector instead of "fanciful green technologies" or "make-work civilian jobs." Seriously, is the Times not embarrassed by the drivel that Kristol spews onto their pages on a weekly basis?
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Happy holidays! Thousands of homeowners are due to be evicted this month because they have fallen behind on their mortgage payments. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have placed a moratorium on foreclosures and evictions through the end of the year, but that only applies to loans that they own or guarantee. Other homeowners face a different story:
Rose and John Law got their eviction notice last week. After a year of trying to renegotiate a mortgage they can no longer afford, they were told they would be locked out of their home in Stockton, Calif., at 6 a.m. next Tuesday.
"It is hard to hold back the tears," says Rose Law, who is 57 and suffers from a neurological disease and fibromyalgia, a condition characterized by muscle pain and fatigue. "Every time I move something, or try to pack something, I cry. Especially at my age, having to make these changes, that's the hard part."
Tuesday, the couple received a reprieve after USA TODAY asked GMAC, the company that services the Laws' mortgage loan, about their situation.
There were 279,561 foreclosure fillings sent in October. What about all those people who don't have USA TODAY inquiring about their situation?
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The Hill reports that Congress will likely vote on a $15 billion loan package for the automakers this week. Some Republicans have voiced their support already, including Senators Voinovich, Bond, and Specter. According to The Hill, the Dems in Congress will need at least 12 Republican votes since Biden and Clinton will "likely abstain."
The Detroit News editorial board asks Republicans if "they want to be responsible for the government standing by and doing nothing while the domestic auto industry collapses."
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Monday, Monday. So what's on your mind this morning?