11/25 Roundup: Econ Squad, Don't Ask Don't Bother, Pardoning the Fugees

Leader: Econ Squad

- Barack Obama announced his economic team yesterday. Captained by Timothy Geithner as Secretary of the Treasury, the group also includes Larry Summers as head of the National Economic Council and Christina Romer as chair of the Council of Economic Advisors. Around the web, economists seem pretty pleased with the selections. NDN's Robert Shapiro, speaking to Forbes, says of the selections: "It tells you that not only does President-elect Obama have respect for expertise, but that he is very comfortable in an administration with very major figures."

- Obama has sounded increasingly willing to take on greater debt through deficit spending, in what would be an attempt to jump-start the economy and create jobs. There is talk that Obama would like a $500 billion stimulus package waiting for him on his desk in the Oval Office on his first day. Josh Marshall takes a look at his calendar, and concludes such a bill would need to be written in the next four weeks.

Economy

- After suggesting he would leave the cash to Obama's team, the Worst Treasury Secretary in Modern Times suggested yesterday that he might actually want that $350 billion to spend himself.

- George Soros takes to the pages of NYRoB to offer his thoughts on the economic crisis, and what to do about it.

Politics

- Joe Biden's seat in the Senate will be filled by longtime ally Ted Kaufman. This may or may not be a tactic to keep the seat warm between Bidens.

- It seems ever more likely that Jim Jones will be Obama's National Security Advisor.  And as the wild cheers and applause die down, everyone leans to their neighbor and asks in a hushed whisper: "Who's Jim Jones?"

- Reversing "Don't ask don't tell" will apparently not be a first-week priority for Obama, though Nathaniel Frank writes in TNR that it would be much easier now than in 1993.

- Susan Rice looks increasingly likely to serve as Ambassador to the United Nations

International

- Venezuelan voters dealt a blow to President Hugo Chavez in regional voting.  Though his allies won 17 of 22  states, his party did unexpectedly poorly in certain districts seen as Chavez strongholds-- poor urban areas and regions dependent on the oil industry, particularly.

- A Russian warship cruises into the Caribbean this week for joint maneuvers with the Venezuelan Navy. In more heartening Russia news, Moscow has suggested they're tired of escalating tensions over the proposed missile defense shield. 

One More Thing

- President Bush pardoned fourteen criminals yesterday, and commuted the sentences of two others. Perhaps representative of a shift in his musical tastes, among those pardoned was John Forte of the Fugees, who was in the can for pushing blow back in '01. Perhaps the president should consider pardoning the rest of the Fugees for disbanding at the peak of the greatness in 1997.  Seriously, why would they do that to us?

- President Bush (who seems to appear in this final section, usually reserved for the likes of Sarah Palin and Long Island schoolchildren, more and more often) had an awkward press conference yesterday apparently trying to appear as though he has some control over what's going on.  Appropriately, he can barely be heard, while Hank Paulson stands behind him looking like Uncle Fester with his head darting around nervously as though he's afraid of being seen with this man: