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"Open Left's Chris Bowers wrote on Friday that he felt "incredibly frustrated ... [W]hy isn't there a single member of Obama's cabinet who will be advising him from the left?" Even Pat Buchanan -- not exactly the world's most liberal guy -- apparently thinks Obama needs to throw a bone to progressives after the start the transition is off to."
Thankfully, Chris Bowers isn't one of Obama's strategic advisors. Does he seriously think Pat Buchanan has the left's interests at heart when he recommends that Obama "throw a bone" to progressives? No! Buchanan wants a repeat of 1993-94, when Bill Clinton brought in a band of partisan outsiders; tried to push through gays in the military, Hillary-care, and midnight basketball; and ultimately helped to cede control of congress back to the Republicans. Obama's picks thus far have made him look much more like the Bill Clinton of 1995-96-- the one who picked his fights wisely and governed from the center. That's bad news for Buchanan and co., which is why we're seeing these e-mail blasts from the RNC.
On a slightly different topic, can I ask why this is even news? You can pretty much create any story you want by mining the blogosphere (see: the PUMA movement), but that doesn't mean you're accurately reflecting the mood of the country, or even the left-leaning corners of it. For every scattered criticism, there has been a litany of praise for Obama's handling of the transition. I realize you don't win a Pulitzer for being sanguine, but why not direct your energy at something that is actually worth investigating.
