The World Around You

Mike Allen at Politico reports this morning,

“The sense among the no-drama Obama world is this is well on its way to winning best Oscar for drama,” said one well-connected Democratic official.

There are signs, however, that the Clintons may move decisively to satisfy the vetting requests in coming days, clearing the way for a “Team of Rivals” Cabinet that would bring the president-elect’s opponent for the Democratic nomination into his historic administration.

I know some Obama supporters are upset by this courting, but I think it’s exactly what Barack promised. This is not going to be a business as usual administration, and that means he is going to upset supporters not just sometimes, but often. Senator Clinton is a strong diplomat and if she is willing to take on the task I think it is a brilliant move to add her to the team. There is also a lot to be said for having the Clintons as part of the team instead of on the outside criticizing and building their own power base.

It appears that the offer was extended to Hillary yesterday to be Secretary of State…interesting stuff…

Real Clear Politics - News - Elections 2008 - Opinion - Commentary - TIME.

I certainly agree with Artur about the need to have appointments made based on merit, not on political patronage. When I contacted the state party about this committee, I got the same line they fed Mary Orndorff, that a similar committee was formed in 1992. The party’s perspective is that because we don’t have a Democratic US Senator, it’s important for the party to get involved.

However, as close as Artur has been to the Obama campaign, I would think his advice will be heeded and a non-partisan group assembled to deal with judicial and US Attorney appointments for Alabama.

Alabama Rep. Artur Davis calls Democratic appointment panel presumptuous - al.com.

There is some good discussion going on at Doc’s Political Parlor, over the county-by-county results. I agree wholeheartedly with this commenter.

I think these numbers are very interesting, particularly in light of what they say about Artur Davis. it is obvious that Obama improved on Kerry in urban, suburban, and black areas and underperformed in rural and working class white areas.

I assume that Davis’ strategy would be to try to win the big 4 counties out right, maximize black turnout, and draw more white working class support than Obama could.

That is not a pipe dream given the Republican field. A Kay Ivey or a Tim James would not run well in Jefferson or Montgomery, and Sam Jones proves a black can win in Mobile. Also, AEA and labor would work hard to defeat a conservative pro business Republican and that would help Davis in North Alabama.

This is the right strategy for Artur…
1. Keep the turnout as close as possible to Obama’s
2. Win Montgomery, Jefferson, Madison and Mobile counties
3. Work on those counties in North Alabama where Obama didn’t get much support at all, to make as many personal contacts as possible, while also using white surrogates to hit the service club circuit.

It is not a pipe dream at all…as disappointing as it was that only 10% of white Democrats supported Obama (according to the exit polls), Davis has much greater support among his party here and, with a strong campaign, could be in the governor’s mansion in 2011.

Difference in Voting for Dem President, 2004 & 2008, by County » Doc’s Political Parlor.

UPDATE: Had to fix my reference…of course it was the Political Parlor, not Left in Alabama, where this discussion was ongoing.

There seems to be a push-pull among Obama advisors on how ambitious his early agenda should be…

“Every president is tempted to take on too much,” said one Obama adviser, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss internal deliberations. “On the other hand, there’s the Roosevelt example and the L.B.J. example, which suggest an extraordinary president can do an awful lot. So that’s the question: Is it too risky for the president to be ambitious?”

It’s very tempting to be ambitious, but until people feel confident in the economy again, tackling a mountain of other priorities simply won’t be possible. Better to plan for the things you would like to do, but work with Congress on encouraging economic stimulus first, other priorities second.

Obama Team Weighs What to Take On in First Months - NYTimes.com.

Mooncat did a great job of breaking down the Obama results by county yesterday (Left In Alabama:: Alabama Presidential Elections: Barack Did Better, But Not Enough Better). I too am very encouraged by the results in the big counties (Jefferson, Montgomery and Mobile) and also agree that the state party abandoned the presidential ticket in the 5th Congressional District, which is unfortunate.

However, I read this as opportunity for a statewide candidate. I read these numbers as an indication of where a statewide Democratic candidate needs to put some boots on the ground. Remember that Obama had very little investment in Alabama, whereas a candidate for governor, for instance, should put significant time into talking to the voters in those counties that didn’t go for Obama this time.

I firmly believe the counties that went for Clinton in 1996 and showed degradation between ‘04 and ‘08: Cherokee, Colbert, Crenshaw, Etowah, Fayette, Franklin, Jackson, Marion, Walker and Washington are certainly winnable by a candidate for statewide office. So, I believe what these numbers do for a statewide candidate is tell him/her where the work needs to be done to win over voters in some areas more than others.

I’m encouraged about the chances for a Democratic governor of Alabama 2010 and particularly excited that we have our first African-American governor, just two years after our first African-American president.

UPDATE: The Birmingham News covered the 2010 angle very differently. While Artur Davis said,

“Voters put on a different lens when they are assessing presidential races in the South than they do when they are assessing races involving people they’ve gotten to know,”

(which I agree with 100%, see the analysis above) Others said this,

“In my judgment, it’s not a good sign,” said University of Alabama political scientist William Stewart. “Even a white Democrat is having a hard time winning an important statewide office. An African-American Democrat would have even a steeper hill to climb.”

The University of Virginia’s Southern politics expert, Larry Sabato, said Davis’ running for governor in Alabama would not be like Obama running for the U.S. Senate in Illinois in 2004 or L. Douglas Wilder running for governor in Virginia in 1989.

“Alabama is a heavily conservative, Republican state,” Sabato said in an e-mail. “Anything’s possible, but Davis would never be viewed as a front-runner or favorite to win in November. Obama’s win may make race less important in the future, but I’m not sure that will be true in Alabama for a long time.”

If you look at on a county-by-county basis, it is not so insurmountable. There are counties that are already firmly Democratic and a number of others that went blue this time around for Obama. If the investment is made in a ground game for an African-American candidate who is even more conservative than Obama in many ways, the climb will be uphill, but not insurmountable.

Tim Lennox points me to a commentary that Peggy Wallace Kennedy wrote for CNN about her father, former Alabama Governor George Wallace, and our President-elect. It’s a moving piece you should definitely read for yourself.

CNN - My Father, George Wallace, and Barack Obama

Artur took a lot of encouragement from last night’s results in Alabama, as did I. His prediction of a higher percentage for Obama than he was polling was accurate. Given that Obama put almost no resources here and that he is more liberal than Davis, it bodes well for Artur’s run for governor in 2010.

Rep. Artur Davis encouraged by Barack Obama victory - Breaking News from the Press-Register - al.com.

I wanted to believe…I did believe it could happen, but it still doesn’t feel real. Barack Obama is the President-Elect of the United States, and, perhaps, in a landslide.

So sad that she came this close to seeing him elected…my condolences to the Senator and his family.

Obama’s Grandmother Dies | The Trail | washingtonpost.com.