Obama’s anti-Bush cabinet
How the incoming team of big personalities signals change
Barack Obama unveiled the last of his major cabinet picks Monday, said Frank James in the Chicago Tribune online, and if we've learned anything from his selections, it’s that “his presidency will be far different than the past eight years.” By choosing pragmatists with strong personalities and opinions, Obama is saying that he “can handle disagreement and in fact welcomes it”—a departure from President Bush’s premium on aides who agreed with him.
Obama says that being surrounded by “strong personalities” will prevent “groupthink,” said The Washington Post in an editorial, but the opposite could also be true. His team is so “eager to correct the perceived errors of the Bush administration” that it could collectively place too much emphasis on “better diplomacy” over force. If they’re wrong, “someone in this group will need to speak up.”
The other threat from Obama’s “potentially unruly roster of all-stars,” said David Ignatius in The Washington Post online, is that “these big egos” on his team could either fall into dysfunctional infighting, as happened with Bush’s once-lauded “dream team,” or usurp some of his authority. But if the unveiling of his national security picks is any indication, “this is Obama’s team; he’s clearly in charge.”
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Perhaps the biggest surprise from Obama’s cabinet picks, said Mark McKinnon in The Daily Beast, is that Republicans are praising them. Karl Rove approves of Obama’s economic team and "GOP war horses like Henry Kissinger are falling all over themselves to praise” the foreign policy team. Bush promised to “change the tone in Washington,” but Obama might succeed.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
California mulls pulling health care from eligible undocumented migrants
IN THE SPOTLIGHT After pushing for universal health care for all Californians regardless of their immigration status, Gov. Gavin Newsom's latest budget proposal backs away from a key campaign promise
-
Is Apple breaking up with Google?
Today's Big Question Google is the default search engine in the Safari browser. The emergence of artificial intelligence could change that.
-
Music reviews: Eric Church, Blondshell, and Model/Actriz
Feature "Evangeline vs. the Machine," "If You Asked for a Picture," and "Pirouette"
-
The JFK files: the truth at last?
In The Spotlight More than 64,000 previously classified documents relating the 1963 assassination of John F. Kennedy have been released by the Trump administration
-
'Seriously, not literally': how should the world take Donald Trump?
Today's big question White House rhetoric and reality look likely to become increasingly blurred
-
Will Trump's 'madman' strategy pay off?
Today's Big Question Incoming US president likes to seem unpredictable but, this time round, world leaders could be wise to his playbook
-
Democrats vs. Republicans: who are the billionaires backing?
The Explainer Younger tech titans join 'boys' club throwing money and support' behind President Trump, while older plutocrats quietly rebuke new administration
-
US election: where things stand with one week to go
The Explainer Harris' lead in the polls has been narrowing in Trump's favour, but her campaign remains 'cautiously optimistic'
-
Is Trump okay?
Today's Big Question Former president's mental fitness and alleged cognitive decline firmly back in the spotlight after 'bizarre' town hall event
-
The life and times of Kamala Harris
The Explainer The vice-president is narrowly leading the race to become the next US president. How did she get to where she is now?
-
Will 'weirdly civil' VP debate move dial in US election?
Today's Big Question 'Diametrically opposed' candidates showed 'a lot of commonality' on some issues, but offered competing visions for America's future and democracy