So far, the nomination of Sonia Sotomayor for the Supreme Court has produced the expected reactions from political commentators.
On the right, Sotomayor is being positioned as a liberal activist and an identity-politics hack who indulges leftist policy preferences rather than ruling fairly. On the left, Sotomayor is being praised and her critics positioned as desperate [...]

The Obama Administration has announced the Car Czar is out and an automobile task force is in. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner and National Economic Council Director Lawrence Summers will oversee a new panel charged with overseeing the government bailout of GM and Chrysler.
This move comes a day before the two car companies are scheduled to [...]

Senator Judd Gregg’s sudden withdrawal as the Commerce Secretary nominee raises some disturbing questions. If, as reports indicate, he was soured by the stimulus bill, we have to ask whether President Obama has killed his hopes for bipartisanship before his presidency is even a month old.
By allowing the Democrats, particularly the House Democrats, to all [...]

Tom Daschle has asked President Barack Obama to withdraw his name from consideration for Secretary of Health and Human Services. This is the second Obama nominee today to withdraw from consideration. Earlier, Nancy Killefer stepped away from the nomination to be Obama’s chief performance officer.
Both nominees had issues with unpaid taxes. Not a good day [...]

When the important matters of our day are all but forgotten, I think the Clintons will still be remembered, if not accurately, then at least as meaningful figures of their time. Inside that couple is a Shakespearean play. Too bad all we have so far is Primary Colors.
As you all know, today marked Hillary Clinton’s [...]

O.k., enough with the flowers and rainbows. Let’s look at why there’s reason to be skeptical about Barack Obama and his team. Politico lays out seven worries about Obama’s presidency. I summarize those concerns and comment below:
1. Teams of geniuses don’t always produce genius results.
Of course, teams of fools aren’t known for their great results [...]

In one of the more, forgive me, torturous staffing processes, it looks like Barack Obama has finally settled on the last major appointment he had left to make, that of CIA director. Given that the Bush administration has done so much long-term, institutional damage to our intelligence superstructure, basic tenets of human rights and [...]

This isn’t going to make gay rights activists happy.
Barack Obama has selected evangelical pastor Rick Warren to deliver the invocation at his inauguration. Once again, Obama seems more interested in reaching out rather than reaching inwards towards his base.
While Warren is not of the fire-and-brimstone mold, he did play a prominent role in the [...]

Later today, President-elect Obama will announce his nomination of fellow Harvard grad, Hyde Park neighbor, and basketball enthusiast Arne Duncan as Secretary of Education, according to numerous press reports. 
Superintendent of Chicago’s public schools for the past seven years, Duncan has been a reformer, supporting merit pay for teachers and charter schools, for example, while also earning respect from teachers’ unions.  As [...]

After all the lead up, Barack Obama has officially announced Hillary Clinton as his choice to be Secretary of State. Said Obama of Clinton:
She possesses an extraordinary intelligence and toughness, and a remarkable work ethic. … She is an American of tremendous stature who will have my complete confidence, who knows many of the world’s [...]

This had been the rumor for awhile. Now, it’s apparently close to being official. Robert Gates will stay on as Defense Secretary in Barack Obama’s administration. Reports are Gates will stay for at least a year.
Well, Obama promised to have some Republicans in his administration. This certainly counts. And it’s a good move because it [...]

William Greider of The Nation wonders if Barack Obama’s recent appointments indicate he won’t be the progressive savior many of the left hoped he’d be.
Obama’s choices have begun to define him. His victory, it appears, was a triumph for the cautious center-right politics that has described the Democratic party for several decades. Those of us [...]

According to current reports, this could be Barack Obama’s national security/foreign affairs team:
Secretary of State: Hillary Clinton
Secretary of Defense: Robert Gates
Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security: Janet Napolitano
National Security Advisor: Gen. Jim Jones, a retired 4-star Marine Corps general who actually supported John McCain but is considered pragmatic and very well-qualified.
Director of National Intelligence: [...]

Word has leaked that Barack Obama has selected New York Federal Reserve President Timothy Geithner for Treasury Secretary. Wall Street liked the news. The Dow rose nearly 500 points after news broke of Geithner’s forthcoming appointment.
Geithner seems in line with many of Obama’s other selections: experienced, intelligent and respected by colleagues. Geithner served in the [...]

As previously reported, Barack Obama has chosen Tom Daschle to head Health and Human Services and serve as the point-man on health care reform. So, is he up to the task?
Well, he’ll definitely come prepared with some ideas. In fact, he’s written a book on the issue. And, he’s written numerous articles advancing his ideas, [...]

The will-she-or-won’t-she questions surrounding Hillary Clinton and the State Department took yet another turn this morning. Seems like Bill Clinton is willing to make some concessions to help his wife land the job:
Clinton has agreed to release the names of several major donors to his charitable foundation and will submit future foundation activities and paid [...]

The air-tight campaign of Barack Obama has turned into the leak-a-minute transition of president-Elect Obama. Floating names is obviously important but, if things don’t work out, it can make Obama’s team look sloppy. Is that what’s about to happen with the whole Hillary Clinton at State scenario? Apparently, she may not be interested.
Hillary Rodham Clinton [...]

During the campaign, Barack Obama promised to curtail the power of lobbyists if he was elected president. Now, he’s apparently tyring to live up to that promise:
President-elect Barack Obama will bar lobbyists from helping to pay the costs of his transition to power or working for it in any area in which they have represented [...]

Hey, this is Danielle Ivory from the American News Project, with our first report on the Obama transition.
Here’s a first look at Jay Inslee, who appears on the shortlists for Prez-Elect Obama’s Secretary of the Interior and Secretary of Energy..

The AP has put together a list of names of those being considered for cabinet positions within the Barack Obama administration. There are too many names to list and go into here. But take a peek. It’s an interesting selection of Obama loyalists, Democratic retreads and outside-the-box considerations.
The one I’d like to see the most? [...]