It suddenly began to sink in how different things might be, and I felt like putting my head down on the table and crying from relief. We might actually have a president who believes in science, takes action on the environment, cares about the loss of biodiversity, habitat destruction, and so many other problems. We have verily been in the wilderness on these issues for such a long time that it's hard to believe things might really be different now.

I think she really liked being Senator and was content to get to work.  She was not expecting SoS at all.  A reporter on Washington Week (I really have to stop being such a political junkie :( )  said Obama was already thinking about Cabinet appointments, namely SoS Hillary, 2 months before the election.

As the economy continues to crash, and Paulson essentially is acting as if he got the deal from congress he asked for in the first place.  Because, basically, he did.

All of Obama's appointments have been centrist Dems or worse.  And Obama himself has been quiet as a church mouse.

You can't blame Obama for this - he saw an opportunity and he took it. And I still believe in his heart he's a left-of-center progressive who will ultimately demand that his appointments respect that vision

Rivalry games galore.  Playing for Old Oaken Buckets, Axes, bronzed pigs, etc., etc.

Poor seasons salvaged with last game glory, great seasons crowned with icing on the cake.

Everyone's talking about a new New Deal, for obvious reasons. In 2008, as in 1932, a long era of Republican political dominance came to an end in the face of an economic and financial crisis that, in voters' minds, both discredited the G.O.P.'s free-market ideology and undermined its claims of competence...There is, however, another and more disturbing parallel between 2008 and 1932 -- namely, the emergence of a power vacuum at the height of the crisis.

It would appear that it's currently up to Congress to keep the economy from going over a cliff. But..

nothing is happening on the policy front that is remotely commensurate with the scale of the economic crisis. And it's scary to think how much more can go wrong before Inauguration Day.

Still need to do some shopping for the big feast? Check your local farmers market this weekend and support your local family farms and businesses. Buy single ingredient items and enjoy some cooking from scratch! There is nothing like eating good fresh local food and making a point ta boot ;) It's a nice and healthy way to say no to unsafe imports and big processed brands loaded with crap ingredients. Makes for GREAT leftovers also :) And no need to get too fancy, local fresh flavor rules.

Where the average American worker is concerned, I am still really worried.  I'm not seeing either administration putting this at the high priority right now.  Lots of talk, and lots of billions flying out of the Treasury, but no real progress.  It's clearly a swindle.  If you watched the hearings this week, Paulson was asked if he'd use some of the bailout money to give to FDIC Sheila Blair who obviously knows exactly what to do with mortgage modifications and Paulson basically told them to take a hike and use money from other programs.  The man was an absolute moron in the questioning.  And that's just one example.

Where accountability is concerned, I'm really worried about Obama's direction.  I see no hope for any real accountability for the unprecedented abuse of power and crimes that were committed during the past eight years, and during the "reign" of modern conservatism.  This is the thing that gives me that feeling in the pit of my stomach that we will not really have true change in this country.

With that said, I do think Brenned should be ruled out if, as some like BTD have said or implied, it came out that Brennan is "an ardent supporter of torture."  I don't think we know enough about Brennan yet, as there seems to be a credible other side to the story.

Reasons for pessimism: Obama goes for safety over boldness, he doesn't talk about Detroit or any economic issue and the vacuum consumes the country; these aren't regular administration changes and the the time for "there is only one president," especially if the the outgoing a-hole is W.