Gates: A "Done Deal"

I know he's well regarded, but this really doesn't thrill me.

Though I should disclose that his former job as president of Texas A&M might be prejudicing me.

I only tolerate KT since she moved out of Texas

Surge II! Let's do this!

I'm kidding; I like Gates, blah blah blah no drama blah. How about one token Drama appointment: Triumph the Insult Comic Dog as White House Barksperson. Throw me a bone here; I asked for Cabinet members with frickin' lasers on their heads.

Is Obama going to have at least one token liberal in his government or are liberals no longer welcome now that they helped put him in power? Given that Nader destroyed the centrist cult's chances a few years back, one would think that they wouldn't want to drive all the liberals out of the party. However, I imagine they will be back again when they need money and votes in a few years.

pourme: how about... hillary at state?

Fourlegs: I knew that. Did you hear the one about the...?
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Ha. Aggies, DOAN WANT!!
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Hey, did you hear about the pre-election activities on the A&M campus? the aggie republican club set up a huge sign with Obama's face and invited their fellow students to throw eggs at it. Not making this up - a friend of mine (a fellow Crockett-eer) who is a grad student there witnesses it.

I only tolerate KT since she moved out of Texas

Hey now!
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Texas has produced not only KT, but also Molly Ivins and four legs good. Show a little respect.

Yay. This makes me so happy. Gates has been a great, great SecDef. Glad he's staying.
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On the whole guest-blogger suggestion thing mentioned a few posts back, I'd like to see a post on torture=ineffective.
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Andrew Sullivanhad a nice post up about conversations between an actor and the producer of "24". And I also wrote something about it today.
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To reference jayackroyd, if this comment's html code comes out like a bunch of cheese in a sewer, blame the lack of preview.

On the whole guest-blogger suggestion thing mentioned a few posts back, I'd like to see a post on torture=ineffective.

Billmon had a brilliant series of posts up about this very subject back during Abu Ghraib. Not sure if anyone can get to the archives.

On the whole guest-blogger suggestion thing mentioned a few posts back, I'd like to see a post on torture=ineffective.

Billmon had a brilliant series of posts up about this very subject back during Abu Ghraib. Not sure if anyone can get to the archives. It flat out doesn't work and the army and the CIA has known this for a generation.

Well it's not a tabloid story anymore.
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Bush off the wagon. Via Matt Browner-Hamlin's tweet.
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http://www.andina.com.pe/Ingles/Noticia.aspx?Id=dgLcZ6OY0yg=

Sean,
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What I like about this is 1) continuity 2) Gates not an ideologue 3) reassures the service chiefs 4) Obama made it clear when talking to Petraeus that Obama is going to give orders.
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What I hate about this that it reinforces the idea that being bellicose is being strong. And that only republicans can be strong.
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If it's for a year or so, on balance, net good. I still would have preferred Clinton in this slot to SecState.

Re Torture = ineffective. This is an older article, but very compelling: http://smallwarsjournal.com/blog/2007/10/waterboarding-is-torture-perio/

wow, that is some awesome commentor responsiveness. good articles, thanks.
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jay, I don't really associate Gates with bellicosity. Rumsfeld and Cheney, yes. Gates, no. Also, Hillary as SecDef would have been a disaster. The military might, and I stress the might, hate her more than Rumsfeld. The Clintons destroyed and demoralized the military in the '90s. People remember.
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Not to say that Bush didn't do worse, but he did it in a very different way.

Jayack - your off the wagon comment intrigues me. The citation does say "apparently" was drinking. I expect that eight years into the Presidency Bush's advance people know enough to instruct their hosts that Bush wants to drink something nonalcoholic that looks just like the alcoholic drinks. Your average hostess at your average party knows enough to do this.
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I'm willing to be persuaded though.

Am pleased that Gates is staying on for a year or so, and I hope he then gets replaced with somebody. Keeping him on pretty much takes care of Obama's promise to have a Republican in a significant job.
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Derek - how touching that you're concerned about whether there will be liberals in the cabinet, etc. Obama didn't run as a "liberal" in the sense you probably mean. And getting us out of Iraq, stopping torture, restoring our standing in the world, rescinding the ban on federal funding for most stem cell research, tackling global warming in a serious way - all seem like good starts to me for a liberal/progressive agenda. We're the reality-based good-government party.

I wonder if we like Gates because he was such a relief after Rumsfeld. Perhaps if he had followed someone sane, his rep would not be as good.

teresa,
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and that's exactly the reason clinton looks so much better now than he did eight years ago.
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Gates would be slightly above average if he hadn't followed Rumsfeld imho, but I could be wrong about that. And most SecDef's couldn't have been as successful as fast following Rumsfeld's disaster.

This is someone else's idea (a smart someone) but it bears repeating: Part of the rationale of having Gates on, beyond valuing competence over ideology, is having a Republican and Dem hawk (Hillary) go fix what they broke. They got us into this mess, and now they are in charge of getting us out. It also gives some cover to Obama to have a Repub on board in the exit strategy. Gives the impression of consensus.

Gates seems a clear-headed sensible man among the insanity. Me likey.

Sean -- Good point.

I just got a Spam email from Newt Gingrich. Apparently secular radicals are trying to take God out of Thanksgiving. Here is a selected passage.
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Others seem intent on denying or whitewashing the central role that religious faith has played in American history, such as the attempt to whitewash God out of the Capitol Visitor's Center (view the video and petition my wife, Callista, and I have created to ask Congress to ensure the Capitol Visitor's Center is historically accurate about America's Godly heritage.)
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My question is if this is what Newt was talking to her about when she was giving him hummers on his desk while he was still married to wife #2 and trying to get Clinton impeached. Just wondering.

"We're the reality-based good-government party."
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I'm sure you know what that means.