Some headlines require no story, as they tell the story. Today we see confirmed the fear that the Obama Administration would be staffed with inexperienced liberals, whose only qualification are diplomas from elite schools, fine connections in the power structure, and sound ideology.
Of course, it does not matter. We’re sheep, and will accept this unqualified new addition to our shepherds without protest. Get into the spirit of our nation: while reading this say “baa baa baa“.
Are we capable of self-government? Are we worthy of the privilege of self-government? If you believe the answer is yes, I suggesting getting angry soon. The situation is sliding downhill fast, and we cannot count on the Blue Fairy to fix things.
Today’s example: “The 31-Year-Old in Charge of Dismantling G.M.“, New York Times, 1 June 2009 — Opening:
It is not every 31-year-old who, in a first government job, finds himself dismantling General Motors and rewriting the rules of American capitalism. But that, in short, is the job description for Brian Deese, a not-quite graduate of Yale Law School who had never set foot in an automotive assembly plant until he took on his nearly unseen role in remaking the American automotive industry.
Nor, for that matter, had he given much thought to what ailed an industry that had been in decline ever since he was born. A bit laconic and looking every bit the just-out-of-graduate-school student adjusting to life in the West Wing — “he’s got this beard that appears and disappears,” says Steven Rattner, one of the leaders of President Obama’s automotive task force — Mr. Deese was thrown into the auto industry’s maelstrom as soon the election-night parties ended.
“There was a time between Nov. 4 and mid-February when I was the only full-time member of the auto task force,” Mr. Deese, a special assistant to the president for economic policy, acknowledged recently as he hurried between his desk at the White House and the Treasury building next door. “It was a little scary.”
But now, according to those who joined him in the middle of his crash course about the automakers’ downward spiral, he has emerged as one of the most influential voices in what may become President Obama’s biggest experiment yet in federal economic intervention. While far more prominent members of the administration are making the big decisions about Detroit, it is Mr. Deese who is often narrowing their options.
I recommend reading this in full. It gets worse. Here is Deese’s Wikipedia entry.
The Bush Administration did the same, but at least sent them overseas to screw-up Iraq.
Don’t count on the Obama Administration getting useful feedback from the liberal intelligentsia. Just as most conservative intellectuals followed Bush Jr. off the cliff — cheering wildly — their liberal peers are doing the same with Obama. Exhibit #1 is Matthew Yglesias. An insightful critic of the Bush Administration’s follies, he appears to have lost his mind when writing about Team Obama. He has this to say about this key appointment:
Meanwhile, it seems that the man now running the auto industry is Brian Deese who got his start right here at CAP/AF working for Gene Sperling.
You tell them, Yglesias! Speaking truth to power!
I expect that during the Obama Administration the US government will expand its reach deeper into American society, growing in every dimension of power. This crucial appointment suggests that its expertise, effectiveness, and efficiency will not increase.
Afterword
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For more information from the FM site
To read other articles about the Obama Administration, see the FM reference page (on the right side menu bar) about Obama, his administration and Ameican policies today. It has these 4 sections:
- About President Obama
- About Team Obama
- About change
- About the policies of the Obama Administration
Posts about Team Obama (section 2):
- Secretary Gates would be a hero – if speeches could reform DoD, 6 May 2008
- I was wrong about SecDef Gates – here is a more accurate view of him, 7 May 2008
- Biden’s gaffes are a threat to American’s complacency!, 13 September 2008
- Obama’s national security team: I hope you didn’t really believe in change?, 26 November 2008
- Obama’s cabinet are the best and brightest (here we go, again), 20 February 2009
- The media rolls over and plays dead for Obama, as it does for all new Presidents (Democrats only, of course), 19 February 2009