Thursday, November 6, 2008

Meet the New Politics. Same as the Old Politics.

Two developments today:

1.  Rahm Emanuel has accepted Barack Obama’s offer to become his Chief of Staff.  Emanuel has a well-deserved reputation as a skillful political player, and an even better-deserved reputation as an utterly ruthless political player.

2.  It appears that Senate Democrats will strip Joe Lieberman of his chairmanship of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee.  Lieberman, as you’ll recall, gave a primetime speech at the GOP convention endorsing John McCain.  He also stuck with the Dems after they tried and failed to defeat him for reelection in 2006, when a switch of his allegiances could have given control of the chamber to the GOP.  Of course, Harry Reid will no longer need Lieberman’s vote, and thus Lieberman will probably no longer have his chairmanship.

Will Obama intervene to persuade Senate Democrats not to go through with this retribution?

Don’t hold out too much hope.

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