Filed under: BlackSpin, Barack Obama, Politics, News
I get the feeling most Americans would like to say an early good bye to the current White House resident and get an early start with
President-elect Obama. And it's no surprise - given how vacant the White House has been the past year as the nation has tumbled into a financial ditch.
I think President-elect Obama feels the same way.
For a nation crying out for leadership and change, just having a president-elect who seems fully engaged for the difficult tasks ahead is a breath of fresh air and will should provide a needed psychological boost for us all during these dreary times. ...
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I heard a conservative radio talk show host earlier this week say that Obama's ego is what led him to pay an early call on President Bush at the White House to begin serious talks about the transition of power.
Nothing could be further from the truth.
The sense of urgency displayed by Obama is driven less by ego and more by need because the current economic crisis is threatening to swallow this country whole.
Obama will likely enjoy a shorter honeymoon period than other recent presidents because the challenges he faces are so serious and so great in number. So why not hit the ground running?
You would need a crystal ball to tell the ultimate look of Obama's cabinet and appointees but viewing the highest official he has placed to date, the president-elect has sent the clear message that he wants to get the job done and isn't worried if a few egos are bruised along the way.
Illinois Congressman and Chief of Staff designee Rahm Emanuel is a hard charger who is well versed from his days in the Clinton White House in how to pass out sugar or lashes to get his agenda passed.
It seems a lot of Americans want to sign on to help.
Obama's transition team website, Change.gov, has already received more than 150,000 applications from job seekers, according to published reports.
A couple of websites offer some interesting perspectives on the Obama transition.
The first is which offers
policy recommendations from progressive non-profits in the areas of health care, economy, education, energy and the environment and foreign policy.
Another is from the New York Times that allows
readers to pick Obama's cabinet nominees for defense secretary (Robert Gates is the current leader), secretary of state (Bill Richardson) , homeland security chief (Richard Clarke) , attorney general (Janet Napolitano) , and treasury secretary (Paul A. Volker).
+ Hillary Clinton Eyed as Secretary of State_________________
Paul Shepard blogs the Democrat side of politics for BlackVoices. He has been a journali
er Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick to media mogul Damon Dash, a host of celebrities, athletes and politicians have found themselves knocked down from the height of fame and fortune to the poverty and obscurity in their fields over the last two years of economic decline. 
ince election night a few weeks ago,