Restitutor Orbis

The news services are abuzz this morning with speculation about what the first steps of the Obama administration will reveal. He began his first full day in office with a moment of solitude in the Oval Office, reading a note left for him by Bush, before making phone calls to Middle East leaders, including King Abdullah of Jordan, Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas and Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak.

But as of last night, Obama had already acted in two ways: he ordered a halt to Gitmo cases for 21 days, allowing time for a review, and, in the words of CNN, "Chief Staff of Staff Rahm Emanuel sent a memo Tuesday to all agencies and departments of the federal government. The memo halts further consideration of pending regulations throughout the government until a legal and policy review can be conducted by the Obama administration."

These are two critically important steps. Clearly, the Obama transition team, as it has done all along, did its homework and has a playbook in place. They know exactly what must be done going forward and I suspect many of Obama's first steps are at this point pre-programmed, designed to halt a further deterioration of the problems confronting us and minimizing the sabotage inflicted on his administration by last minute regulations enacted by President Bush.

And this today from Glenn Greenwald at Salon.com:

There is some genuinely good news today from the Obama camp: following up on the appointment of the excellent Dawn Johnsen to be OLC Chief, it was announced yesterday that Johnsen's second-in-command at OLC will be Harvard Law Professor and vehement Bush critic David Barron, who, among other things, co-wrote this superb Law Review article arguing that the President's "war powers" have been wildly overstated over the last many decades while Congressional power in this area has been vastly understated. Also joining the Justice Department in a still-unknown capacity is one of the smartest, most principled, and most unyielding opponents of the legal radicalism that prevailed over the last eight years: blogger and Georgetown Law Professor Marty Lederman (who co-wrote that law review article with Barron on the Constitutional limits on the "commander-in-chief" powers). It is virtually impossible to imagine that particular group of individuals placing political allegiance to Barack Obama over the principles they have so forcefully advocated over the last several years.

As Greenwald says, "The importance of these appointments shouldn't be understated." This news alone is enough to make me want to dance in the streets, and anyone who knows me knows I'm not much of one for dancing.


It is a new day. The first morning. And if last night was a symbolic wedding, then the 100 days are the honeymoon, the best chance President Obama has of pushing his agenda forward and seeing his legislation enacted.

I feel better, physically. Stress, as everyone knows, is unhealthy. Since election night, I have been stressed by thoughts of all the awful things Bush was doing (to the environment, to our rights) and would do to inflict maximum harm on our nation and by extension, the world.

As of noon yesterday, the hostile acts of an embittered and mean-spirited administration ceased. And last night, for the first time in eight years, I could go to bed almost free of worry. I suspect many people will feel an improvement in their lives as a result. Not only scientists and economists but average Americans like me.

The skeptics and doubters, as well as conservative opponents and critics, are at work already as well. WND published an article called "Change We Cannot Believe In" making its usual list of false assertions, misstating the facts etc - basically being as propagandistic and divisive as Joseph Göbbels' Der Angriff. Rush Limbaugh has already said he will pray for Obama to fail. I haven't seen such levels of hatred since the 60s and early 70s, when I was a child.

Even so, the good news continues to pour out of Washington. Most recently, from CNN:

Promising "a new era of openness in our country," President Barack Obama signed executive orders Wednesday relating to ethics guidelines for staff members of his administration. "Transparency and the rule of law will be the touchstones of this presidency," Obama said.

This Administration even at a very early stage seems to be making every attempt to set itself apart from the previous administration. Where Bush was secretive, Obama is open. "This is going to be a general principle of governing," he told CNN's John King. "No spin, play it straight, describe to the American people the state that we're in." Where corruption was the name of the game for the past eight years, Obama swears above-board behavior. Where Bush embraced torture, Obama has abjured such methods of interrogation. Where Bush made war and looked for more, Obama has extended an open hand of friendship to those, in his words, who will unclench their fists.

A final piece of news today, from CNN:

The Senate today approved the nomination of Hillary Clinton as secretary of state by a vote of 94-2. Speaking from the floor, Sen. John McCain urged a quick confirmation. About an hour after the vote, Clinton was sworn in during a private ceremony attended by her husband, former President Clinton. She also formally resigned from the Senate.

I heartily approve of her selection. I think she will make a strong secretary of state, and I'm happy to see McCain did the right thing. I hope he will prove to be a voice of reason on the Republican side.