The big news of the day is the speculation that Janet Napolitano has been tapped to be Obama's Homeland Security secretary. The pick of Napolitano indicates that immigration may have been Obama's primary concern in making his decision on this post. Napolitano taking the gig means she'll be out of the 2010 Arizona Senate speculation, and probably clears the way for McCain to have a relatively easy re-election.

In order to make things a tad smoother for Tom Daschle's HHS confirmation, his lobbyist wife is giving up her lobbying career. 
 
"Associates of Senator Hillary Clinton said yesterday she is weighing whether to leave Congress and become secretary of state in the Obama administration, a job they say she believes is hers if she wants it," the AP reports. "Transition officials for President-elect Barack Obama said that other candidates have been vetted for the job as well, but that Clinton has emerged as the leading contender. The vetting of the New York senator's husband, former president Bill Clinton, has been particularly intense, the officials said, adding that he has offered several concessions to help his wife get the post…. Hoping to ease concerns about possible conflicts of interest, Bill Clinton has shifted a longstanding policy and agreed to publicly disclose the names of all donors who have given more than $250 to his presidential library and foundation."

Politico's Allen and Thrush: "Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.) and former president Bill Clinton have cleared away the final hurdles to a formal offer of secretary of State from President-elect Obama, and officials say the two former foes could appear together for a smiling announcement next week. As a key part of satisfying Obama's vetting team, former President Bill Clinton is open to giving up foreign sources of income if his wife becomes secretary of state, according to a close friend."

Indeed, Bloomberg News reports that Bill Clinton has sent the Obama vetters a list of more than 200,000 donors to the Clinton library and foundation. "The 200,000 or so names comprise the universe of donors to Clinton's presidential library and foundation. This is separate from the Clinton Global Initiative, which operates under the aegis of the foundation but does not directly take money from the donors."

But… "President-elect Barack Obama's camp, well practiced in keeping secrets, is increasingly frustrated by a steady stream of leaks that insiders suspect come from confidants of Hillary Clinton, the Daily News has learned. Just as ex-President Bill Clinton pledged Wednesday to prove there are no new skeletons in his closet that could derail his wife's chances of becoming secretary of state, top Obama sources suggested loose-lipped Clintonistas abide by their rules: If caught leaking, you will pay the price. 'They have been strategic about what they leak each day,' said an Obama insider, who acknowledged word around the transition office in Chicago is that Obama himself is miffed at the leaks. 'This [leaking] isn't coming out of our shop,' added another irked Obama official."

Politico's Ben Smith makes the argument against Clinton. "But the sum of those parts seems something less than the whole explanation for Obama's first great presidential gamble: his move toward giving his former adversary, whose judgment on foreign policy he criticized relentlessly, by offering her the most important Cabinet position in his administration. Neither Holbrooke, Kerry nor Richardson would bring Clinton's downsides: Her towering, volcanic husband; her own ambitions; and the endless speculation about the two of them."

The Miami Herald did the "Obama taps Elian Gonzales attorneys" story in response to the speculation that Eric Holder will be Attorney General and that Greg Craig will be Obama's White House counsel. "President-elect Obama has not made the appointments official, but both the Republican National Committee and some Cuban-American leaders in Miami are already signaling their disapproval. 'This is a clear sign that the Obama administration is diametrically opposed to the concerns and views of the Cuban-American community,' said state Rep. David Rivera of Miami, who helped organize the June protest. 'It is a blatant and disrespectful slap in the face.'"

The Chicago Tribune on David Axelrod going to the White House: "After two years as the chief architect of Obama's campaign strategy, Axelrod will work to implement the ideas and policies he helped sell to American voters. 'I just want to help him be successful,' Axelrod said Wednesday, between meetings with Obama in Chicago. 'Part of that is making sure that we're communicating the right way with the American people.'" 
 
OUR OBAMA CABINET SPECULATION LIST:
Chief of staff: Emanuel NAMED
Deputy chiefs of staff: Jim Messina NAMED, Mona Sutphen NAMED
Senior advisers: Valerie Jarrett NAMED, Peter Rouse NAMED, David Axelrod NAMED Assistant to the president for legislative affairs: Phil Schiliro NAMED
White House counsel: Greg Craig NAMED
Press secretary: Robert Gibbs
Biden chief of staff: Ron Klain NAMED
Staff secretary: Lisa Brown NAMED
Cabinet secretary: Chris Lu NAMED

POTENTIAL CABINET MEMBERS:
Agriculture: Tom Vilsack, Tom Buis (Natl Farmers Union), Charlie Stenholm, Jim Leach, Stephanie Herseth Sandlin, Marshall Matz, John Boyd Jr. (pres, Natl Black Farmers Assn)
Commerce: Penny Pritzker, Kathleen Sebelius, John Thompson (Symantec), Ron Kirk (former Dallas mayor), Scott Harris (Harris, Wiltshire & Grannis fndr)
Defense: Robert Gates, Richard Danzig, Chuck Hagel, Sam Nunn, Jack Reed, Colin Powell, John Hamre, Tim Roemer, Thomas Pickering, Anthony Zinni, Max Cleland, Michele Flounoy, Jim Jones
Education: Joel Klein (NYC), Linda Darling-Hammond, Kathleen Sebelius, Colin Powell, Jim Hunt, Arne Duncan, Inez Tenenbaum, Michael Bennett, George Miller, Gaston Caperton (fmr WV gov), Bambi Cardenas (pres, U TX-Pan Am, Susan Castillo (OR supt), Michael Cohen (pres, Achieve), Christopher Edley (dean, UC-Berkeley), Michael Johnston (dir, Mapleton Expeditionary Schl of the Arts), VA Gov. Tim Kaine, Michelle Rhee (DC), Sharon Robinson (pres, Assn of Colls for Tchr Ed), Andrew Rotherman/Jonahtan Schnur (fmr Clinton advisers), Diane Shust (dir, NEA govt rels), Paul Vallas (supt, New Orleans Recovery Schl Dist), Bob Wise (fmr WV gov)
Energy: Dow Chemical CEO Andrew Liveris, Kathleen Sebelius, Philip Sharp, Ed Rendell, Arnold Schwarzenegger (has said no), Al Gore, Jeff Bingaman, Jennifer Granholm, Steve Westly, Frederico Pena, Dan Reicher, Jason Grumet
HHS: Tom Daschle CONFIRMED BY NBC NEWS, Howard Dean (reportedly ruled out), Eric Whitaker, John Kitzhaber, Kathleen Sebelius
Homeland Security (priority): Ray Kelly (NY), William Bratton (L.A.), Tim Roemer, James Lee Witt, Tom Kean Sr, Jane Harman, Janet Napolitano, Artur Davis, Richard Clarke, Manny Diaz, Maine Sen. Olympia Snowe, Susan Collins, Lee Hamilton (though he said he's too old), Jamie Gorelick
HUD: Jim Clyburn, Shirley Franklin (Atlanta mayor), Manny Diaz (Miami mayor), Saul Ramirez
Interior: Bill Richardson, Jay Inslee, John Kitzhaber, Tony Knowles, Ken Salazar, Jamie Rappoport Clark, Brian Schweitzer
Justice (AG): Eric Holder CONFIRMED BY NBC NEWS, Janet Napolitano, Charles Ogletree, Deval Patrick, James Comey, Patrick Fitzgerald, Artur Davis, Tim Kaine, Jamie Gorelick (but was vice chair of Fannie), Ken Feinberg, Cass Sunstein, Kathleen Sullivan (Stanford Law prof, possible Solicitor General. Also possible SGs: Beth Brinkmann – DC Atty; Preeta Bansal – Skadden, Arps; Elena Kagan –Harvard law dean; Pamela Karlan—Stanford; Teresa Wynn Roseborough -- MetLife litigation counsel)
Labor: Andy Stern (SEIU) (said not interested), Richard Gephardt, George Miller, David Bonior (said he's not interested, suggested: American Rights at Work Executive Director Mary Beth Maxwell), Xavier Becerra, Linda Chavez-Thompson, Antonio Villaraigosa
State: John Kerry, Bill Richardson, Richard Lugar, Chuck Hagel, Richard Holbrooke, Chris Dodd, Hillary Clinton, Thomas Pickering, Al Gore, Colin Kahl (CNAS fellow), Tom Daschle
Transportation: Ed Rendell, Jane Garvey, Mortimer Downey, Earl Blumenauer, Steve Heminger, James Oberstar, Peter DeFazio, Federico Pena, Jeanette Sadik-Khan, Tim Kaine,  John Hickenlooper (Denver mayor), Ron Sims (King County (WA) Executive), Doug Foy (Fmr pres, Convservation Law Fndtn), Parris Glendening (Fmr Gov MD)
Treasury (priority): Larry Summers, Tim Geithner, Paul Volcker, Robert Rubin, Jon Corzine, Warren Buffett, Michael Bloomberg, Laura Tyson, Jamie Dimon (JP MorganChase), Jacob "Jack" Lew, Sheila Bair, Indira Nooyi, John Thain (Merrill Lynch)
Veterans Affairs: Max Cleland, Tammy Duckworth, Chet Edwards, Arnold Fisher (fmr Fisher House Fndtn chair), James Peake, William Bratton
 
OTHER POSITIONS:
CIA: Tony Lake, John Brennan, Chuck Hagel, Michael Hayden, Jami Miscik (fmr CIA dep dir for Intel)
DNI: Tony Lake, John Brennan, Tim Roemer, Rand Beers, Jane Harman, John Abizaid, Evan Bayh
FEMA: James Lee Witt
EPA: Howard Learner (Pres, Exec. Dir, Environmental Law and Policy Center), Ian Bowles (MA), RFK Jr, Kathleen Sebelius, Kathleen McGinty (former secretary of Pennsylvania's Department of Env Protection), Mary Nichols (chair of California's Air Resources Board), Robert Sussman, Dan Esty, Lisa Jackson (NJ environ commission)
FBI: Robert Mueller (term expires 2011)
Fed Chair: Ben Bernanke (at least for first year)
FDA: Steven Nissen (Cleveland Clinic), Joshua Sharfstein (Baltimore health commissioner), Janet Woodcock (Big Pharma's choice), Susan Wood (GWU occupational and environmental health professor), Diana Zuckerman (president, National Research Center for Women & Families) Joint Chiefs: Michael Mullen (term ends in late 2009, can expect to be appointed for second term, per tradition)
Natl Economic Council: Dan Tarullo, Jacob "Jack" Lew, Jason Furman, Austan Goolsbee, Laura Tyson
Natl Sec Adviser: Jim Steinberg, Rand Beers, Susan Rice, Greg Craig, Jim Jones
NSC: Dennis Ross, Greg Craig, Susan Rice, Tony Lake
OMB: Peter Orszag CONFIRMED BY NBC NEWS, John Spratt Jr, Gene Sperling, Jason Furman
Peace Corps: Chris Shays
UN Ambassador: Caroline Kennedy, Susan Rice
USTR: Cal Dooley (American Chemistry Council president), Daniel K. Tarullo (Georgetown University law professor), Lael Brainard (Brookings Institution vice president), Thomas F. "Mack" McLarty (fmr Clinton White House chief of staff)
Urban Czar: Manny Diaz
Climate: Terry Tamminen (climate change, adviser to Schwarzenegger), Al Gore, Carol Browner (Audobon Society), Jonathan Lash (World Resources Inst), Kathleen McGinty, Janet Napolitano, Mary Nichols, Kathleen Sebelius
Auto Czar: Jennifer Granholm
Secretary of the Army: Mortimer Downey
 
Other mentions for various White House staff posts: Patti Solis Doyle, David Wilhelm, John Rogers, Bill Daley, Cass Sunstein, Bob Bauer, Michael Froman, Federico Pena, Lawrence J. Korb, Carol Browner (Clinton's EPA head), Thomas Perrelli, David Ogden

Hopes for a last-minute compromise on auto industry aid are fading for the 110th Congress, but look for a vote on unemployment insurance in the Senate before the end of the week.

In fact, the auto executives' testimony was a disaster after they got slapped down for their decision to fly in on private jets. And it appears there may not be a congressional vote on a bailout this week and, perhaps, for the rest of this year.

Yesterday, the Wall Street Journal and others reported that "Waxman won the first-round of voting today in his bid for a hostile takeover of the House Energy and Commerce Committee. A panel of big-shot Dems voted 25-22 in favor of Waxman unseating John Dingell, the Michigan Democrat who now chairs the committee. The final vote comes [today], when the full House Democratic Caucus will vote on who should hold the gavel… Dingell may get backing from rank-and-file congressmen wary of shaking up the seniority system, as well as moderate Dems who find Waxman (D., Calif.) too liberal."

Politico's Bresnahan characterizes Republicans in the Senate -- down 13 seats since before the 2006 cycle and awaiting the results of two more unpredictable races -- as being "in a deep funk."  The rancor appears to be deepened by infighting among GOP senators unsure of how to restructure their message and their caucus on the Hill.

"More than three decades after he first appeared before the panel as a 27-year-old Vietnam veteran-turned-antiwar protester, Senator John F. Kerry will be named chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, giving him enormous influence over President-elect Barack Obama's foreign policy, according to congressional officials," the Boston Globe reports on its front page with a black-and-white photo of a Vietnam-era Kerry testifying before the committee. "Aides to Kerry said he is already laying out a broad agenda for the committee, beginning with new legislation to strengthen the United States' hand against terrorists in Afghanistan and Pakistan; provide oversight of efforts to end the war in Iraq; and seize what he sees as a new opportunity to curtail the spread of nuclear, chemical, and biological weapons."

More: "Kerry, 64, is still considered by some political observers to be a possible pick for Obama's secretary of state, but Senator Hillary Clinton of New York and former New Mexico governor Bill Richardson, each of whom met separately with Obama at his Chicago transition office last week, are considered far more likely selections for the position of top diplomat."

At the Republican Governors Association conference last week, Tommy Franks "appeared to be the only one who wanted to take responsibility for either war, even obliquely," the Boston Globe says. "The others who gathered in Miami seemed to relish the new freedom they inherited along with their party's devastating losses earlier this month: with President Bush and losing candidate John McCain drifting off the scene, Republicans no longer have to be the party of unpopular and seemingly unending conflicts abroad. Those are now Democratic responsibilities, one Bush ally noted with some satisfaction, hinting at a corollary to the 'Pottery Barn rule' about postwar responsibility: Republicans may have broken Iraq, but President-elect Barack Obama bought it."

The Boston Globe on Romney's New York Times op-ed from yesterday. "Leading up to the Michigan presidential primary, Mitt Romney cast himself as the savior of the beleaguered auto industry and jumped all over rival John McCain when he gave some 'straight talk' that 'some of the jobs that have left the state of Michigan are not coming back.' … Fast-forward 11 months, and Romney is speaking out against a federal bailout of the auto industry."

Huckabee acknowledged "an envy" at how Sarah Palin was able to "leapfrog the process." "I'm not frustrated by it," he said. "It's not a resentment on her part. It's an envy."

Newt Gingrich co-writes a Wall Street Journal op-ed agreeing with Obama that America needs a middle-class tax-cut; he just does't believe in Obama's plan.

CALIFORNIA: A challenge to California's Prop. 8 gay-marriage ban will be heard by the state Supreme Court early next year. Could gay marriage end up making its way to the Supreme Court?

GEORGIA: "Former President Bill Clinton on Wednesday appealed to Georgians to send Democrat Jim Martin to Washington arguing the state's hotly contested Senate runoff must provide a 'bridge not a firewall' to the progress promised by President-elect Barack Obama," the AP reports. "'The hopes of America are riding with Georgia,' Clinton told a rally at Clark Atlanta University, a historically black college. Democrats are within two seats of a 60-vote majority that would give Obama a stronger hand in Washington and Georgia is one of two unresolved Senate races. Martin is locked in a tight Dec. 2 runoff against Republican incumbent Saxby Chambliss. 'Martin is the bridge, Chambliss is the firewall,' Clinton said. 'Don't let Georgia put a firewall up in front of the bridge.'"

Hours before Clinton stumped for Martin, "Chambliss was praised and endorsed by the executive vice-president of the National Rifle Association. Wayne LaPierre said in Atlanta that Chambliss is needed back in the Senate to protect gun rights. 'We're going to have some real battles in Washington,' LaPierre said, who added that Obama will 'break his promise' to protect gun rights." 

ILLINOIS: Rep. Jan Schakowsky of Illinois says that she's "certainly on that list" of possible replacements for Barack Obama's vacated Senate seat. The Illinois lawmaker noted her recent "long conversation" about the post with state Gov. Rod Blagojevich, whom she said plans to name Obama's replacement during the last two weeks of the year. 

MINNESOTA: The Coleman-Franken recount began yesterday. "By day's end, with about 18 percent of the vote recounted, Coleman continued to lead Franken -- but by only 174 votes, notably narrower than the unofficial gap of 215 votes at which the recount had begun. Franken's gain owed much to a swing of 23 votes in the Democratic stronghold of St. Louis County -- the result of faintly marked ballots and older optical scanners that failed to read the marks. The figures represent a Star Tribune compilation of recount data reported to the secretary of state and gathered by the Star Tribune."

"Campaign monitors from both sides had challenged a total of 269 votes statewide, with Coleman observers disputing 146 ballots while the Franken camp challenged 123. If that pace continues, challenged votes could wind up being a major factor in a race where the margin is down to hundreths of a percentage point. Challenged votes will be set aside until mid-December, when a five-member state Canvassing Board will review them individually."

By the way, this is fantastic: Minnesota Public Radio is posting some of the ballots being challenged... Some incredible examples.

"A Minnesota judge has granted a request by Democratic Senate candidate Al Franken for the release of information on voters whose absentee ballots were rejected. Ramsey County Judge Dale Lindman directed the county to produce the data by the close of business Wednesday. It complied."

NEW YORK: Andrew Cuomo is the overwhelming choice of New Yorkers to replace Clinton in the Senate if she's tapped to be Secretary of State, according to a Marist poll. Cuomo, whose father was a popular governor of the state and is currently attorney general, was the pick of 43% of people in the poll. "Reps. Nydia Velazquez of Brooklyn and Nita Lowey of Westchester were backed by just 5 percent of voters each."

National Journal looks at some grim election results for House Republicans looking ahead to 2010. "Of the successful House Republican candidates, 29 fell below 55 percent of the vote, according to near-final but still unofficial election results. Of that group, 20 were incumbents, three defeated Democratic incumbents and the remaining six won contests for open seats that had been held by Republicans. The group is spread across the nation, with five from California, where Republicans this year retained all 19 of their House seats." 

In Virginia's gubernatorial race, Democrat "Brian J. Moran is poised to collect endorsements for governor from the highest echelons of the state Democratic Party, while presumed rival Terry McAuliffe is being backed by one of Virginia's biggest political check-writers," the Richmond Times-Dispatch writes. "Moran today is scheduled to announce the support of nearly two-thirds of the Democratic Party's steering committee. Made up of district chairs and other senior Democrats, the committee largely governs the state party."

From NBC's Andrea Mitchell and Michelle Perry
NBC NEWS has confirmed with Linda Daschle, Tom Daschle's wife, that she is leaving her lobbying firm where she has specialized in aviation and defense issues at the end of the year. She is starting her own public policy firm on transportation and communication issues.

In her new firm, she will not lobby.
 
In the past, she had been a registered lobbyist for American Airlines, Boeing, Cleveland International Airport, Lockheed Martin and other corporations.

She is also a former acting administrator of the FAA.

From NBC's Bridget Nurre
Rep. Dan Burton (R-Ind.) says that while he does not plan to campaign publicly against the appointment of Eric Holder to Attorney General, he does not support President-Elect Obama's decision.

As First Read noted this morning, Burton was the chief Republican critic of the Clinton administration's pardon of Marc Rich in 2001.

Burton, who was the Chairman of the House Government Reform Committee when it investigated the pardon, initially said yesterday that Holder had simply been following orders by issuing his "neutral, leaning towards favorable" opinion of the Rich pardon.

But after reviewing the documents from the committee's investigation overnight and this morning, Burton revisited that assessment, telling NBC News that Holder took a more active role in the pardon than he recalled from memory.

According to documents submitted to the committee, Burton said, Holder met with Clinton White House Counsel Jack Quinn on several occasions in which Quinn made the White House's intentions known.

In 2000, Holder made several attempts to set up a meeting between Quinn and the New York US Attorneys office because he knew of their opposition to the pardon. A meeting never took place. "[Holder] kept it at arms length," said Burton.

On November 21, 2000 Holder and Quinn met at the Department of Justice where Quinn asked for a written statement. In lieu of a written statement, Burton says that Holder asked Quinn to have the White House call him for his opinion. Burton says that Holder did not notify anyone at the Justice Department that this conversation had taken place and refused to see the pardon petition.

On January 19th, Quinn called Holder for his assessment. Though he was aware of the New York Attorneys' opposition, he told Quinn his opinion was "neutral, leaning towards favorable," due to support Rich had gotten from Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak.

"This is more than a question of judgment," Burton said. "By not giving the information to the other people at the Justice Department and telling Quinn not to send him the pardon petition, he kept a lid on something important to the pardoning process."

"I don't know about other issues, but on the Rich pardon alone, he should not be appointed Attorney General," he concluded.

From NBC's Savannah Guthrie
According to a transition official, Obama today surprised Biden one day before his 66th birthday with cupcakes after their weekly lunch. He lit the candles on the 12 cupcakes and brought them over to Biden.

Obama joked, "You're 12 years old!"

Biden laughed, replying: "Maybe in dog years!"

Then Obama led the staff in singing Biden Happy Birthday. Obama also surprised him by giving him a Chicago White Sox hat, a Chicago Bears hat, and a bucket of Garrett's popcorn as gifts.

From NBC's Domenico Montanaro
David Axelrod officially heads to the White House as Senior Advisor, the Obama transition team announced. In addition to the widely expected step, the transition also announced that Greg Craig will serve as White House counsel -- another move confirmed previously by NBC News.

Additionally, Lisa Brown will serve as Staff Secretary and Chris Lu will serve as Cabinet Secretary.

Here is part of the release with Obama's quote and brief bios:
"I am pleased to announce these new additions to our team, and I'll be relying on their broad and diverse experience in the months ahead as we work to strengthen our economy, reform Washington, and meet the great challenges of our time," said President-elect Barack Obama.

David Axelrod, Senior Advisor to the President
David Axelrod served as President-elect Obama's Chief Strategist during the presidential campaign, and led Obama's 2004 Senate campaign. A native of New York City, Axelrod graduated from the University of Chicago and spent eight years as a reporter for the Chicago Tribune, where he covered national, state and local politics and became the youngest political writer and columnist in the paper's history. Leaving journalism in 1984, Axelrod managed Paul Simon's upset victory over incumbent U.S. Senator Charles Percy of Illinois. In 1985, he founded Axelrod & Associates, a political consulting firm known today as AKP&D Message and Media. Axelrod has worked for leading Democrats across the country, including Senators Hillary Clinton, Chris Dodd, and Herb Kohl, as well as Governor Tom Vilsack of Iowa, Governor Deval Patrick of Massachusetts, Congressman Rahm Emanuel of Illinois, and Mayor Richard Daley of Chicago, along with mayors of big cities across the country. He is married to Susan Axelrod, president and founder of Citizens United for Research in Epilepsy (CURE). They have three grown children.

Lisa Brown, Staff Secretary
Lisa Brown is the Executive Director of the American Constitution Society for Law and Policy. Lisa was Counsel to Vice President Gore from September 1999 through January 2001, and Deputy Counsel from April 1997 through August 1999. In addition to advising the Vice President on legal issues, Lisa served on the Executive Board of the President's Committee for Employment of People with Disabilities and worked closely with the Vice President's Domestic Policy Office on a variety of legislative initiatives. Lisa was an Attorney Advisor in the Office of Legal Counsel at the Department of Justice from June 1996 until April 1997. Prior to her government service, Lisa was a Partner in the Washington, D.C. law firm Shea & Gardner. Ms. Brown graduated Magna Cum Laude from Princeton University with a B.A. in Political Economy in 1982. She received her law degree with Honors from the University of Chicago Law School in 1986.

Greg Craig, White House Counsel
Gregory B. Craig served under President Bill Clinton as Assistant to the President and Special Counsel. Prior to his appointment to that post he served for two years as Director of Policy Planning under Secretary of State Madeleine Albright. Craig also worked for Senator Edward M. Kennedy as Senior Advisor on Defense, Foreign Policy and National Security from 1984-1988. In addition to his service in government, Craig brings to the White House a wealth of experience in civil and criminal litigation.

Chris Lu, Cabinet Secretary
Christopher P. Lu has worked for President-elect Obama in a number of roles over the past four years. He was Legislative Director and Acting Chief of Staff in Obama's Senate office, as well as a policy advisor during the presidential campaign. Chris is now the Executive Director of the Obama-Biden Transition Project, where he manages the day-to-day operations of the transition. From 1997 to 2005, he was Deputy Chief Counsel to Rep. Henry A. Waxman on the Democratic staff of the House Government Reform Committee (now the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee). A graduate of Princeton University and Harvard Law School, Chris was a litigation attorney at Sidley Austin in Washington, D.C. (1992-1997), after a clerkship with the Honorable Robert E. Cowen of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit (1991-1992).

From NBC's Carrie Dann
History may not be on Rep. Chris Van Hollen's side, but he's not giving up the ghost for 2010.
 
House Democrats already made history in November by winning more than 20 seats in two consecutive elections, and more Democratic gains in two years would be unprecedented. In fact, the party in power has customarily lost an average of almost 30 House seats in off-election years.  "Just being realistic, we are going to be fighting hard just to hold our own" in the next cycle, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee chairman said this morning.
 
Briefing reporters today at the National Press Club, Van Hollen did not rule out a Democratic hat trick in 2010, but he also cautioned that Democrats' successes in the next election cycle will depend on the American people's perceptions of Congress. Bolstering that perception would be quick legislative action on at least two fronts where Van Hollen hopes for "solid wins we can get right out of the box" : children's health care and new renewable energy portfolios. 

He added that Democrats would continue to target House seats in which Republicans won with less than 55% of the vote this cycle and those districts where the GOP continued to hold Congressional power despite a strong performance by John Kerry in 2004.
 
Previously, Van Hollen had hinted that he would not re-up as the DCCC chief for another election cycle, then did an abrupt about-face after House Speaker Nancy Pelosi asked him to stay on in the post.  The Maryland congressman said that he decided to keep the position because of the opportunity "to marry the policy role and the political role" offered by the DCCC gig and the new (simultaneous) job as Assistant to the House Speaker.  In that expanded capacity, he said, his primary responsibility will lie in incumbent retention and policy solutions. "I believe more than ever, this cycle, good policy will lead to good politics," he said. (Pressed for tea leaves about what his new expanded role means for his widely rumored hope to run for U.S. Senate one day, Van Hollen conceded that he would "certainly take a look at" a run in Maryland should a vacancy arise, but that he's received no indication that Sen. Barbara Mikulski intends to retire at the end of her term.)
 
The Democratic congressman demurred when asked to weigh in on the developing boxing match between Reps. Henry Waxman and John Dingell over the chairmanship of the Energy and Commerce Committee.  On the struggle over the House's longstanding seniority system, he said only that Waxman's challenge is within procedural rules and that the Capitol functions as "a democracy."
 
Van Hollen also said that he hopes Congressional Democrats will continue to benefit from Barack Obama's groundbreaking organizational capacity during the extended presidential race.  "He obviously has a stake in this," Van Hollen said of Obama's willingness to remobilize his volunteer network two years from now. "The 2010 election will be seen as a referendum, the semester grade on the Obama administration."
 
Although Van Hollen was conspicuously upbeat about the outcome of the 2008 House races -- in which Democrats picked up fewer seats than some pundits prognosticated -- he allowed himself some tongue-in-cheek exasperation at the outcome of one Congressional race that floored even cautious observers.  "Don Young, I mean... What can you say?" he joked, referencing the reelection of Alaska's At-Large representative despite an ongoing corruption investigation. "I guess the fact of the matter is, in Alaska you actually have to be convicted" in order to lose an election.

From NBC's Tom Lea and Mark Murray
The Salt Lake Tribune: "Updated election results released Tuesday show that Salt Lake County voters favored Barack Obama over John McCain -- but just barely -- marking the first time in decades that a Democratic presidential hopeful won the state's most populous county. With the addition of more than 29,000 provisional and late-arriving absentee ballots, President-elect Obama scored a come-from-behind victory over McCain. The county's official election canvass didn't change the outcome in any other race."

More: "The final result gave Obama a 296-vote victory, which equates to less than one-tenth of 1 percent... The updated election results have no impact on who won the presidency or even on Utah's five Electoral College votes, which easily went to McCain. But Obama's Salt Lake County win sure mean a lot to the leaders of the Utah Democratic Party, who watched President Bush win the last two elections by a margin of more than 20 percentage points in the county. 'It is a huge step for us,' said party Chairman Wayne Holland."

From NBC's Doug Adams
While everyone is focused on the outstanding Senate races, don't forget about the still undecided House races. Here's an update of where they stood as of this morning.

CALIFORNIA 4: Both Tom McClintock (R) and Charlie Brown (D) are in DC this week for freshman orientation. They're even staying at the same hotel (Hyatt Regency). McClintock leads by 592 votes as of this morning, with thousands of ballots still to be counted.  Counties have until December 9 to finish the counting, and results will be certified by December 13. Republicans are confident McClintock will prevail and keep the seat in GOP hands.

OHIO 15: State Sen. Steve Stivers (R) holds a 393-vote lead over Mary Jo Kilroy (D), but a lawsuit is holding up counting 27,000 provisional ballots in Franklin County -- home to the city of Columbus. At issue are about thousand provisional ballots where voters failed to print and/or sign their names on the ballot envelopes. The secretary of state (a Democrat) has ordered that the ballots be counted, and Republicans have sued to stop that. A ruling is expected by Thursday afternoon, and counting of all the provisionals should be completed by next Monday. But official results won't be released until certified (on or before November 25th). Of course, an automatic recount seems likely. Democrats are optimistic they can win this GOP-held open seat, because the outstanding 27,000 ballots are from Kilroy's home, where she is a Franklin County commissioner. Both Stivers and Kilroy were in Washington DC this week for freshman orientation.

VIRGINIA 5: The Democrat Tom Perriello has claimed victory over incumbent Virgil Goode (R), but might need a recount to be sure. Perriello has a 745-vote lead out of more than 316,000 cast. The results will be certified next Monday, and Goode will have 10 days to request a recount. Republicans have sued to require counting some 200 late arriving military ballots, but even if they are all for Goode, it is not enough to overcome Perriello's lead.  Democrats seem to have picked up this seat.

LOUISIANA 4: This election, which was postponed by Hurricane Gustav, is set for Sat December 6. Democrats are hoping they can win yet another GOP open seat here in this matchup between Caddo Parish DA Paul Carmouche and Republican John Fleming, a physician and businessman. The latest poll shows Carmouche up by about 10 points, but both national parties are now airing ads in the district. Vice President Cheney is coming to Shreveport to hold a fundraiser for Fleming on Friday. It's a Republican district, but Carmouche is a good candidate -- a social conservative with strong law and order credentials -- while Fleming is a relative newcomer to politics who emerged from a crowded primary. Democrats could win this one.

LOUISIANA 2: Remember William Jefferson, the New Orleans congressman who was indicted last year on bribery and other corruption charges? Well, he's still around, and likely will stay for awhile. He's expected to breeze to re-election on the run-off on December 6. His opponent is little-known Republican lawyer Anh "Joseph" Cao, who stands little chance in the heavily Democratic district. Ironically, his federal trial in Virginia is also scheduled to start a few days before the run-off.

ILLINOIS 5: And don't forget Rahm Emanuel's old job. There should be a Chicago brawl over his House seat, when leaves Congress. Emanuel hasn't said when he'll formally resign his seat, but when he does, state law requires Gov. Rod Blagojevich (D) to call for a primary and special election within five days; and those elections must be held within 115 days.  That's a very short time for such a hotly contested seat. 

From NBC's John Yang
The White House has fired back in the pre-emptive blame game if one of the Big Three car companies files for bankruptcy in the next two months or so, while Congress is out.

Press Secretary Dana Perino says the administration backs the proposal by Sens. Kit Bond of Missouri and George Voinovich of Ohio to allow automakers to use the $25 billion in loans in the energy bill -- intended to pay for retooling to make energy efficient cars -- for day-to-day operations. Their proposal also has language requiring the companies to show evidence of future viability as a condition of getting the money.

Perino says that if Senate Democratic Leader Harry Reid does not allow a vote on Bond-Voinovich and fails to pass Democratic legislation that would use TARP money for the carmakers, "Congress will bear responsibility for anything that will happen ... during their long vacation."

From NBC's Cherelle Kantey
Rahm Emanuel, the chief of staff to President-elect Obama, tipped his hat to Sen. John McCain yesterday, saying the Obama administration plans to work in a bipartisan fashion to address the challenges of the new presidency.

At a discussion for the Wall Street Journal's CEOs in Washington, D.C., event he spoke about the meeting the president-elect held with McCain and Sen. Lindsey Graham, saying the nation will enter an "era of reform."

"We didn't just do not have the meeting with Sen. McCain and Sen. [Graham], … just for optics, we covered very serious issues," Emanuel said.

He spoke about having a diplomatic approach to solving the economic crisis, while also ducking questions about Obama's cabinet selection. When asked about the suggestion of Sen. Hillary Clinton being chosen for Secretary of State, he responded, "Great question."

He refused to answer an audience member about who Obama might choose for Treasury Secretary, saying, "I can't do these, guys; you know that."

"I am not here to make news," Emanuel said jokingly. "If you want to have a bathroom break, go ahead and do it right now."

Emanuel mentioned the need for Congress to pass an "immediate economic stimulus," saying that reaching an agreement is key. He emphasized the opportunity for leadership provided by the economic climate, opening the door for more bipartisan talks.

"And this crisis provides the opportunity, for us, as I would say, the opportunity to do things that you could not do before," Emanuel said. "The good news … is the problems are big enough that they lend themselves ideas from both parties for the solution."

Never straying off-message, Emanuel stuck to the talking points about government reform and working with the Republicans in Congress to reach an agreement on how to fix the economy. He discussed embracing Sen. McCain's ideas on cutting spending and Graham's suggestions on defense procurement.

"That's what we mean by the era of reform," Emanuel said. "This is an opportunity to do things in a bipartisan fashion, because the American people in two successive elections have voted for change. And change can not die on the doorsteps of Washington."

From NBC's Andrea Mitchell
NBC News has confirmed that Tom Daschle -- the former Democratic Senate leader who backed Obama early in the Democratic nomination fight -- has been tapped to be the next secretary at the Department Health and Human Services.

Roll Call, which broke the news, adds that Daschle "is set to take on the position of 'health care czar' in the Obama White House, ensuring that he does not get bigfooted on matters relating to health care policy, according to [a] source."

From Chuck Todd, Mark Murray, Domenico Montanaro, and Carrie Dann
*** Tamping down the speculation -- or not? HillaryLand seems to be making a concerted effort to start tamping down speculation about the secretary of state job. Reports from the New York Times and Politico are sparking the debate about whether she's 100% ready to make the leap from the Senate and 100% ready to give up politics for a while (at least while at State). As the New York Observer notes, the secretary of state job hasn't been the presidential stepping-stone it was when the country was founded. In fact, the last former secretary of state to even RUN for president was Al Haig in '88, and there's been just one in the last 180 years to go from that position to the presidency: Buchanan. (Then again, the Senate hasn't been a great stepping-stone either, right?) The New York Times' Tom Friedman also makes a great point about Clinton at State: If she's going to get the job, there has to be absolute trust between Obama and Clinton -- which is something we're still not too sure exists. "When it comes to appointing a secretary of state, you do not want a team of rivals," Friedman writes. That said, today's Wall Street Journal and the AP confirm that the Obama folks are letting it be known that Bill Clinton is fully cooperating with the vet. So while the Hillary folks use the Times/Politico to signal reluctance, others are using the WSJ/AP to suggest that the momentum is still building for the Clinton appointment to happen. 

VIDEO: NBC's Chuck Todd gives his first read on Bill Clinton's willingness to disclose past donors in order for the Obama team to go forward in vetting his wife for a cabinet position. 

*** The old bulls are gone: With Ted Stevens' defeat now official, it's worth repeating this point we made a few weeks ago: The old bulls of the Republican Senate caucus are mostly gone. With Stevens' loss -- combined with the retirements of Pete Domenici, Trent Lott, Larry Craig, and John Warner -- the Republican Party lost quite a bit of seniority in 2008 (and this doesn't count the reflected seniority Elizabeth Dole had in the Senate, thanks to her husband). In fact, just nine of the GOP's 42 senators (or 41 or 40 depending on what happens in Georgia and Minnesota), were elected before 1990. Dick Lugar and Orrin Hatch were elected in '76 and now share the distinction of being the GOP's senior-most senators now. Thad Cochran (elected in '78) is next in line, followed by Chuck Grassley ('80) and Arlen Specter ('80), then Mitch McConnell ('84), Kit Bond ('86), Richard Shelby ('86 -- elected then as a Dem) and John McCain ('86). One other point about the result from Alaska: Democrats have now netted at least 13 Senate seats in the past two cycles. Those are a lot of skins on the wall for Chuck Schumer. To regain control of the Senate, Republicans are going to have to pick up nine Senate seats in 2010 (a cycle that once again has Republicans defending more seats than the Democrats). And that's not considering potential losses in Georgia and Minnesota.

*** Don't (re)-count your chickens before they hatch: That, of course, brings us to Minnesota, where the recount in the Coleman-Franken race begins today. Coleman declared victory Tuesday with the certification of the initial results. But law mandates a recount, so nothing is in stone. The reason why Coleman is trying to look the part of the winner is to call into question any lead taken by Franken in the recount. Of course, that PR strategy didn't work for Dino Rossi during the controversial recount in Washington State in 2004. Also consider this: We're going to know the outcome in Georgia (December 2) before the one in Minnesota (mid-December). Go figure. By the way, Bill Clinton stumps in Georgia today for Jim Martin.

Video: President-elect Barack Obama reportedly has chosen veteran Washington lawyer Eric Holder as his attorney general. If confirmed, Holder would be the first African-American to head the Justice Department.

*** Hold(er) on loosely: The Eric-Holder-for-AG chatter hit a fever pitch last night and this morning. Of course, the big question is: How messy will his confirmation be given the Marc Rich pardon? The good news for Holder, House Republican Dan Burton, who became the chief GOP critic of the Rich pardon back in 2001, is not in the Senate. It's hard to imagine folks like Orrin Hatch, Jon Kyl, Lindsey Graham, and Arlen Specter (all GOPers on the Judiciary committee) getting so partisan on this one, especially if Hillary Clinton is also up for a confirmation battle. Could the Senate GOP really bloody up Holder over a Clinton-era issue and not someone with the last name of Clinton? If Rich isn't an issue for Clinton, it probably won't be for Holder. Many Holder defenders believe he was a fall guy on the Marc Rich issue when the ultimate responsibility belonged to Bill Clinton and the White House's relationship with Jack Quinn. It's also worth pointing out that if the GOP had a problem with Holder during the VP selection process -- when Holder headed that up for Obama -- it didn't really show it (Republicans instead directed their fire at Jim Johnson, who stepped down as a VP vetter). The thing that's not being talked about as much regarding Holder is that it would bring a career Justice guy with experience as a US attorney into the top job. Given all the issues Justice has had with its relationship to the US attorneys, Holder may be a welcome nomination by some Justice careerists. By the way, in other transition news, don't get too worked up over the reports about Bob Gates staying on as Defense secretary. First, this has been in the works for some time (as NBC's Jim Miklaszewski reported last week). But more importantly, if you don't see reporting on the idea of there being some end date for Gates' transition, assume something's missing.

*** Obama's chit and The Left's displeasure: Obama has collected a Lieberman chit, but the left is not happy. Here's Kos: "In the spirit of post-partisanship, and in spite of the American people's overwhelming votes for change in 2006 and 2008, let's appoint fierce global warming critic James Inhoffe to the Environment and Public Works committee." And Jane Hamsher, citing a Senate Democratic aide criticizing the left, wrote: "No matter what Joe Lieberman does, the people who are protecting him hate you much more than they hate him." The liberal blogosphere is not happy with this decision, and they believe Dems will pay for this at some point. But it does appear the blogosphere is simply sitting back for the "told you so" moment rather than getting too worked up now. 

*** The two Mitt Romneys: Romney today has a provocative New York Times op-ed in which he argues against a bailout for the auto industry. "Without that bailout, Detroit will need to drastically restructure itself. With it, the automakers will stay the course -- the suicidal course of declining market shares, insurmountable labor and retiree burdens, technology atrophy, product inferiority and never-ending job losses. Detroit needs a turnaround, not a check." But how does he reconcile opposing the bailout when he said, after McCain declared jobs were leaving Michigan and were never coming, that "I'm going to fight for every single job"? In fact, these two seemingly contradictory statements demonstrate the two different Mitt Romneys. In the op-ed, you see the pragmatic businessman offering sensible solutions (the auto industry has to bring down its legacy costs, the current management must go, you need more cooperation between labor and management). But on the campaign trail in Michigan in January 2008, we also saw someone who was willing to almost say anything to get elected. And don't forget: Romney does have extra credibility on the auto industry, as his father ran the last American carmaker to go out of business. George Romney was head of the American Motor Corp. (though, he was not the head of AMC when it essentially went under, via mergers with Renault and then eventually Chrysler).  

*** Just askin': What is taking Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich (D) so long in appointing a successor to Obama in the Senate? It's not like Obama's victory two weeks ago was a surprise, right? Isn't the clock ticking on Blagojevich's own term, as he bites his nails wondering if there's a grand jury indictment in his future? So if he doesn't appoint someone soon, could he end up missing the opportunity?

*** On the Hill today: In the Senate, the nominee for special inspector general of the Troubled Assets Relief Program (TARP), Neil Barofsky, testifies before the Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee; the Finance Committee holds a hearing on health-care reform; and Judiciary discusses "Helping Families Save Their Homes: The Role of Bankruptcy Law."… In the House, Armed Services discusses the fate of the F-22 fighter jet program; Financial Services holds a full committee hearing on the auto industry: "Stabilizing the Financial Condition of the American Automobile Industry"; Foreign Affairs discusses Iraq; and Veterans Affairs discusses an investigation into document shredding at VA offices.
 
Countdown to Georgia Senate run-off: 13 days
Countdown to Electoral Vote Count: 50 days
Countdown to Inauguration Day 2009: 62 days

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The New York Times writes, "Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton of New York has reservations about accepting an appointment as secretary of state in the Obama administration, an adviser to Mrs. Clinton who is familiar with her thinking said on Tuesday. The adviser described Mrs. Clinton as flattered by President-elect Barack Obama's interest but said she was agonizing over the decision. Mrs. Clinton likes being her own boss and is reluctant to give up the independence that comes with that, said the adviser, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the process was at a delicate stage."

"'If you are secretary of state you work for the president,' the adviser said in an e-mail response to questions from The New York Times. 'If you are a senator, you work for yourself and the people that elected you.' It was unclear if Mrs. Clinton's stated hesitation was part of a bargaining tactic as the Obama team weighs whether to appoint her secretary of state, a genuine moment of indecision or, perhaps, a signal that she was preparing to withdraw from consideration."

Politico adds, "Press reports that portray Clinton as willing to accept the job -- once the Obama transition team vets Bill Clinton's philanthropic and business ventures -- are inaccurate, one Clinton insider told Politico. 'A lot of the speculation and reporting is out ahead of the facts here,' said the person, who requested anonymity. 'She is still weighing this, independent of President Clinton's work.'" 

The Wall Street Journal: "Former President Bill Clinton has offered to submit future charitable and business activities to strict ethics reviews if his wife, New York Sen. Hillary Clinton, were nominated as secretary of state, according to Democrats familiar with the deliberations. He has also agreed for the first time to disclose many of the previous donors to his efforts."

David Broder is against Clinton becoming secretary of state. "What Obama needs in the person running the State Department is a diplomat who will carry out his foreign policy. He does not need someone who will tell him how to approach the world or be his mentor in international relations. One of the principal reasons he was elected was that, relying on his instincts, he came to the correct conclusion that war with Iraq was not in America's interest. He was more right about that than most of us in Washington, including Hillary Clinton."

Some fun trivia via the New York Observer: "The office of secretary of the state was once the preeminent steppingstone to the presidency, but that was back in the early days of the republic. Starting with Thomas Jefferson in 1789, five future presidents -- James Madison, James Monroe, John Quincy Adams and Martin Van Buren were the others -- ran the State Department (actually, the Foreign Affairs Department, as it was then known) in its first 40 years of existence. But in the 180 years or so since then, just one person -- the forgettable James Buchanan -- parlayed the position into the nation's top job."

And the last former secretary of state to even RUN for president: Al Haig in 1988.

"If Hillary Rodham Clinton becomes Barack Obama's secretary of state, she could wipe away her lingering $7.6 million presidential campaign debt," Politico's Vogel reports. "As the nation's top diplomat, she would be barred by tradition and ethics rules from partisan political activity, including raising cash to pay off debt from her unsuccessful bid for the Democratic presidential nomination. And that could give her a powerful case to make to the Federal Election Commission about why it should forgive her campaign debt through a settlement process not unlike filing for bankruptcy." (The irony of Clinton going to State is that it would prevent Mark Penn from getting paid…)

"Eric H. Holder Jr., a former Justice Department official who was President-elect Barack Obama's campaign co-chairman, is the leading candidate to serve as the next U.S. attorney general, according to Democratic sources familiar with the choice," the Washington Post writes. "Holder, 57, was offered the job late last week and tentatively accepted it, sources said. The Obama team intends to make the nomination official if he receives at least moderate support from Republican lawmakers and completes the vetting process, the sources said. Intermediaries began to reach out to Republicans on the Senate Judiciary Committee last week, and the vetting pace accelerated yesterday."

"Sources close to the process said Holder was a 'near-certainty' to become the first African American nominated to head the Justice Department, which plays a leading role in enforcing civil rights laws. Officials in the Obama transition office said no final decision has been reached." 

The New York Times: "As a top adviser to Mr. Obama, he has long been considered the front-runner for the job of attorney general because of his extensive record as a prosecutor and a judge and a well-honed reputation inside Washington. Mr. Obama's advisers appear to have overcome concerns that Mr. Holder's involvement in a presidential pardon scandal as President Bill Clinton left office in 2001 might cloud his nomination for the job."

The Chicago Tribune adds, "Holder is another former Clinton Administration official so he's sure to draw complaints from those who say that Obama's choices of members of the last Democratic administration don't exactly look like 'change we can believe in.'" 

Politico has what it calls "the story of how Rahm got rich." "Emanuel's career as an investment banker was short but, oh, so sweet. Emanuel left the Clinton White House in 1998 as a senior adviser on a government salary. By the time he won election to the House in 2002, he had earned an astonishing $16 million."

If Nebraska Republican Chuck Hagel is in talks with Obama about a possible Administration appointment, his lips are sealed. 
 
OUR OBAMA CABINET SPECULATION LIST:
Chief of staff: Emanuel NAMED
Deputy chiefs of staff: Jim Messina NAMED, Mona Sutphen NAMED
Senior advisers: Valerie Jarrett NAMED, Peter Rouse NAMED
Assistant to the president for legislative affairs: Phil Schiliro NAMED
White House counsel: Greg Craig
Press Secretary: Robert Gibbs
Biden chief of staff: Ron Klain NAMED
 
POTENTIAL CABINET MEMBERS:
Agriculture: Tom Vilsack, Tom Buis (Natl Farmers Union), Charlie Stenholm, Jim Leach, Stephanie Herseth Sandlin
Commerce: Penny Pritzker, Kathleen Sebelius, John Thompson (Symantec), Ron Kirk (former Dallas mayor), Scott Harris (Harris, Wiltshire & Grannis fndr)
Defense: Robert Gates, Richard Danzig, Chuck Hagel, Sam Nunn, Jack Reed, Colin Powell, John Hamre, Tim Roemer, Thomas Pickering, Anthony Zinni, Max Cleland, Michele Flounoy
Education: Joel Klein (NYC), Linda Darling-Hammond, Kathleen Sebelius, Colin Powell, Jim Hunt, Arne Duncan, Inez Tenenbaum, Michael Bennett, George Miller, Gaston Caperton (fmr WV gov), Bambi Cardenas (pres, U TX-Pan Am, Susan Castillo (OR supt), Michael Cohen (pres, Achieve), Christopher Edley (dean, UC-Berkeley), Michael Johnston (dir, Mapleton Expeditionary Schl of the Arts), VA Gov. Tim Kaine, Michelle Rhee (DC), Sharon Robinson (pres, Assn of Colls for Tchr Ed), Andrew Rotherman/Jonahtan Schnur (fmr Clinton advisers), Diane Shust (dir, NEA govt rels), Paul Vallas (supt, New Orleans Recovery Schl Dist), Bob Wise (fmr WV gov)
Energy: Dow Chemical CEO Andrew Liveris, Kathleen Sebelius, Philip Sharp, Ed Rendell, Arnold Schwarzenegger (has said no), Al Gore, Jeff Bingaman, Jennifer Granholm, Steve Westly, Frederico Pena, Dan Reicher, Jason Grumet
HHS: Tom Daschle, Howard Dean (reportedly ruled out), Eric Whitaker, John Kitzhaber, Kathleen Sebelius
Homeland Security (priority): Ray Kelly (NY), William Bratton (L.A.), Tim Roemer, James Lee Witt, Tom Kean Sr, Jane Harman, Janet Napolitano, Artur Davis, Richard Clarke, Manny Diaz, Maine Sen. Olympia Snowe, Susan Collins, Lee Hamilton (though he said he's too old), Jamie Gorelick
HUD: Jim Clyburn, Shirley Franklin (Atlanta mayor), Manny Diaz (Miami mayor), Saul Ramirez
Interior: Bill Richardson, Jay Inslee, John Kitzhaber, Tony Knowles, Ken Salazar, Jamie Rappoport Clark, Brian Schweitzer
Justice (AG): Eric Holder CONFIRMED BY NBC NEWS, Janet Napolitano, Charles Ogletree, Deval Patrick, James Comey, Patrick Fitzgerald, Artur Davis, Tim Kaine, Jamie Gorelick (but was vice chair of Fannie), Ken Feinberg, Cass Sunstein, Kathleen Sullivan (Stanford Law prof, possible Solicitor General. Also possible SGs: Beth Brinkmann – DC Atty; Preeta Bansal – Skadden, Arps; Elena Kagan –Harvard law dean; Pamela Karlan—Stanford; Teresa Wynn Roseborough -- MetLife litigation counsel)
Labor: Andy Stern (SEIU) (said not interested), Richard Gephardt, George Miller, David Bonior, Xavier Becerra, Linda Chavez-Thompson, Antonio Villaraigosa
State: John Kerry, Bill Richardson, Richard Lugar, Chuck Hagel, Richard Holbrooke, Chris Dodd, Hillary Clinton, Thomas Pickering, Al Gore
Transportation: Ed Rendell, Jane Garvey, Mortimer Downey, Earl Blumenauer, Steve Heminger, James Oberstar, Peter DeFazio, Federico Pena, Jeanette Sadik-Khan
Treasury (priority): Larry Summers, Tim Geithner, Paul Volcker, Robert Rubin, Jon Corzine, Warren Buffett, Michael Bloomberg, Laura Tyson, Jamie Dimon (JP MorganChase), Jacob "Jack" Lew, Sheila Bair, Indira Nooyi, John Thain (Merrill Lynch)
Veterans Affairs: Max Cleland, Tammy Duckworth, Chet Edwards, Arnold Fisher (fmr Fisher House Fndtn chair), James Peake
 
OTHER POSITIONS:
CIA: Tony Lake, John Brennan, Chuck Hagel, Michael Hayden, Jami Miscik (fmr CIA dep dir for Intel)
DNI: Tony Lake, John Brennan, Tim Roemer, Rand Beers, Jane Harman, John Abizaid, Evan Bayh
FEMA: James Lee Witt
EPA: Howard Learner (Pres, Exec. Dir, Environmental Law and Policy Center), Ian Bowles (MA), RFK Jr, Kathleen Sebelius, Kathleen McGinty (former secretary of Pennsylvania's Department of Env Protection), Mary Nichols (chair of California's Air Resources Board), Robert Sussman, Dan Esty, Lisa Jackson (NJ environ commission)
FBI: Robert Mueller (term expires 2011)
Fed Chair: Ben Bernanke (at least for first year)
FDA: Steven Nissen (Cleveland Clinic), Joshua Sharfstein (Baltimore health commissioner), Janet Woodcock (Big Pharma's choice), Susan Wood (GWU occupational and environmental health professor), Diana Zuckerman (president, National Research Center for Women & Families) Joint Chiefs: Michael Mullen (term ends in late 2009, can expect to be appointed for second term, per tradition)
Natl Economic Council: Dan Tarullo, Jacob "Jack" Lew, Jason Furman, Austan Goolsbee, Laura Tyson
Natl Sec Adviser: Jim Steinberg, Rand Beers, Susan Rice, Greg Craig
NSC: Dennis Ross, Greg Craig, Susan Rice, Tony Lake
OMB: Peter Orszag CONFIRMED BY NBC NEWS, John Spratt Jr, Gene Sperling, Jason Furman
Peace Corps: Chris Shays
UN Ambassador: Caroline Kennedy, Susan Rice
USTR: Cal Dooley (American Chemistry Council president), Daniel K. Tarullo (Georgetown University law professor), Lael Brainard (Brookings Institution vice president)
Urban Czar: Manny Diaz
Climate: Terry Tamminen (climate change, adviser to Schwarzenegger), Al Gore, Carol Browner (Audobon Society), Jonathan Lash (World Resources Inst), Kathleen McGinty, Janet Napolitano, Mary Nichols, Kathleen Sebelius
Auto Czar: Jennifer Granholm
 
Other mentions for various White House staff posts: Patti Solis Doyle, David Wilhelm, John Rogers, Bill Daley, Cass Sunstein, Bob Bauer, Michael Froman, Federico Pena, Lawrence J. Korb, Carol Browner (Clinton's EPA head), Thomas Perrelli, David Ogden

Automakers' pleas for $25 billion in aid makes the Boston Globe front page.

Put gun control advocates on the list of interest groups measuring Obama's issue coattails and hoping to sew up a legislative victory. In a new Penn/Schoen post-election poll passed along to First Read by the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence, two out of three respondents said that they believed that "common sense" gun regulations -- like background checks, waiting periods, and a renewal of the assault weapons ban -- should be enacted in the first year of the Obama administration. The pollsters, who asked 1083 voters in a nationwide internet-based survey for their opinions on gun control measures and on the National Rifle Association, found that even majorities of voters who supported McCain, as well as rural voters and those who identify themselves as conservative, are in favor of some increased regulations on the sale and use of firearms.

By a 42-13 vote Sen. Joe Lieberman was allowed to keep his Homeland Security Committee chairmanship. "Independent Bernie Sanders and Democrat Pat Leahy, Vermont's two senators, spoke against allowing Lieberman to keep the Homeland Security and Government Affairs post, the Associated Press reported. And two members of Connecticut's Democratic state central committee said they'll still ask it Dec. 17 to consider censuring Lieberman and asking him to resign from the party, the AP said." (The photo, by the way, is classic Lieberman.)

Democrats have welcomed McCain ally Joe Lieberman back into the fold, but some of his Senate colleagues say that he won't be on a long leash. 

"Two members of Connecticut's Democratic state central committee, Audrey Blondin and Myrna Watanabe, said they'll still ask Connecticut's top Democrats to consider a resolution repudiating Lieberman for publicly backing McCain," AP reports. "It also would ask him to resign from the party. 'Ultimately, there were no consequences to his actions,' Blondin said. A meeting of state Democrats is scheduled for Dec. 17." 
 
After getting off the Senate trolley, McCain received a generic "Welcome back." But "then, a more familiar greeting came from another senator who had been riding in back. 'John, wait up,' called out Senator John F. Kerry, clapping a big hand on McCain's shoulder. The pair conferred quietly as they rode up an escalator toward lunch with their colleagues. Two failed presidential nominees, minus Secret Service detail or much suspense about their futures, back to the Senate -- same as it ever was. Explicitly or not, Kerry's backslap marked McCain's induction into an unofficial bipartisan caucus of would-be commanders in chief who fell short of the big prize and landed, humbled somewhat, back where they started." Interesting note: "[A]t least 17 colleagues now serving know what it's like to take steps toward White House bids, only to be turned back."

More than one influential House Democrat is nervous about the contentious battle for the chairmanship of the Energy and Commerce Committee, with the challenge of Rep. John Dingell (D-MI) by Rep. Henry Waxman (D-CA) representing -- for some -- a possible dismantling of the body's time-honored seniority system.  
 
Who says Congress is stodgy? "Elected two weeks ago to represent Utah's third congressional district, [newly elected Rep. Jason] Chaffetz intends to serve how he lives and how he campaigned: frugally. So rather than renting an apartment in Washington, he'll join the ranks of members who sleep in their offices at night and shower each morning in the House gym. He will take his suits to the House dry cleaner and will bundle together his 'socks and undies' to take home every weekend to be washed." 
 
Move over, Texas. In the new Congress, Obama's home state of Hawaii is poised to install two of its favored sons on the Hill in influential positions in the legislature.

ALASKA: Begich was declared the winner in Alaska's Senate race after he "widened his lead to 3,724 votes in Tuesday's count of absentee and questioned ballots. The lead is insurmountable, as the only votes left to count are approximately 2,500 ballots from overseas," the Anchorage Daily News reports. "Stevens could ask for a recount but his campaign would have to pay for it. The state pays if the margin is within .5 percent of the total votes cast. But Begich leads by just over 1 percent with more than 315,000 votes cast in the race."

The AP calls Stevens' defeat the "end of an era in which he held a commanding place in Alaska politics while wielding power on some of the most influential committees in Congress."

DELAWARE: The Washington Post's Chris Cillizza reported yesterday that "Delaware Attorney General Beau Biden will not accept an appointment to the Senate to replace his father, according to knowledgeable state sources, a decision that scrambles the race to replace the vice president-elect in the Senate next year." Cillizza adds, "Biden's decision does not rule out the possibility that he would run for the remaining four years on his father's Senate term in a 2010 special election. And, the specter of Biden -- the son of the vice president returning from his military service to assume the Senate seat -- complicates the decision that will be made by either outgoing Gov. Ruth Ann Minner or incoming Gov. Jack Markell (both Democrats) about who to appoint to the two-year vacancy."  

GEORGIA: Bill Clinton -- who campaigns in the state today for Jim Martin (D) -- isn't the only bigwig who's coming to Georgia for the state's Senate run-off. Per Huffington Post, Al Gore will stump for Martin on Sunday. And Mitt Romney will campaign for Chambliss on Friday.

Meanwhile, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution says that it's unlikely that Chambliss and Martin will debate before the run-off. 

MINNESOTA: The Star Tribune: "Two weeks after the closest U.S. Senate election in Minnesota history, a massive hand recount of all 2.9 million votes gets underway today, with local officials working under the scrutiny of top lawyers brought in by both candidates. At stake is possible control of the Senate, where Democrats are within a few seats of a filibuster-proof 60-vote majority, putting intense pressure on county auditors who now find they may have to explain every decision they made in the closest race in the country."

"That pressure ratcheted up Tuesday as the campaign of Democrat Al Franken alleged in a last-minute brief to the state Canvassing Board that more than half the state's county auditors had botched the canvassing process and may have improperly rejected ballots that should have been counted… The Canvassing Board, made up of two state Supreme Court justices, two county judges and Secretary of State Mark Ritchie, delayed ruling on whether to include the rejected ballots until next week and did not certify vote totals in the Senate race, saying instead that the results fell within the half-percentage point margin needed for an automatic recount."

According to the secretary of state's office, it "has set a goal of completing the recounting by Dec. 5 so the state canvassing board may begin the process of reviewing all challenged ballots on Dec. 16."

A new Quinnipiac poll for New Jersey governor (one of the two gubernatorial races of 2009; the other is in Virginia), shows Corzine with a net-negative job approval rating (43%-46%), but he leads his most likely GOP foe, outgoing U.S. Attorney Chris Christie, 42%-36%. Also, with Corzine as a candidate for Treasury Secretary, the pollsters asked if he should go to DC. A majority said no; then again, a majority also say he doesn't deserve re-election. Does Corzine, himself want out, as his re-election bid is going to be VERY difficult no matter how much money he spends?

Meanwhile, McCain is setting up a PAC, which some are seeing as a first step for McCain in running for re-election in 2010.

And/but sources tell Roll Call that McCain has made clear his intention to run for re-election when his Senate term is up in 2010. "McCain, 72, announced the decision during a meeting Tuesday evening with top ally Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), advisers Rick Davis, Charlie Black, Carla Eudy and other aides."

From NBC's Ken Strickland
Could it get much worse for convicted Republican Sen. Ted Stevens today? On his birthday?

As he came to work this morning, one of his Republican colleagues, Jim DeMint, was threatening to hold a vote to kick him out of the GOP caucus. DeMint decided to postpone the vote a few days but said in a statement that "it's clear there are sufficient votes to pass the resolution."

And now it looks like Stevens' re-election is doomed. The AP reports that Stevens "trails his Democratic challenger by 2,374 votes as the vote count for the state's U.S. Senate race nears its end."

It was apparent today that the conviction, possible expulsion, and the re-election are taking a heavy toll of the 85-year-old senator. To add insult to injury, the process could drag on: Stevens says he can't begin to appeal his conviction until February, and if the election results are within 0.5%, it would automatically trigger a recount.

"It's a long process," Stevens said as he was swarmed by reporters this morning. "I wouldn't wish what I'm going through on anyone, not my worst enemy."

The usually boisterous Alaska senator spoke in a soft voice as he described the impact the trial has had on him: "I haven't had a night's sleep now for almost four months. I went home even during the trial. And then I came to the Senate at night after the trial. So I've been living about three different lives. It's hard to even answer your questions properly, but I'm doing my best."

From NBC's Jeff Hanley
Minnesota still remains one of the three states with an undecided Senate race. Currently, incumbent Republican Norm Coleman leads challenger Al Franken by a mere 215 votes in a race where more than 2.9 million ballots were cast.

The Minnesota State Canvassing Board's most recent election report today shows a separation between the candidates of roughly seven one-thousandths of one percent (.007%), making the results too close to call and a statewide manual recount will begin tomorrow.    
 
Following the canvassing board's recount decision, Norm Coleman's campaign released a statement claiming, "Senator Coleman has, for the third time, been named the winner of the 2008 election." 

The statement cited the canvassing board's rejection of Franken's attempts to stop the recount as grounds for the official recognition of Coleman's win as he is currently ahead.   

On a conference all this afternoon, the Franken campaign responded to Coleman's campaign stating, "The only person who has named Norm Coleman the winner of anything is Norm Coleman."  
 
In reference to the recount, the Franken Campaign stated that, "Tomorrow morning the vote count will be zero to zero, with more than 2.9 million to go." 

A brief filed yesterday by Franken requesting to re-examine previously rejected absentee ballots and add them to the count remains a pending legal issue, therefore the current vote tally could still not be inclusive of all eligible votes cast. 

Franken's campaign also made a point that it has not in any way attempted to stop or delay the recount.

From NBC's Ken Strickland
If aides to President-elect Barack Obama reached out to Senate Republicans to garner support for Eric Holder as a possible Attorney General, they forgot to call Sen. Arlen Specter.

"There has been no outreach," said the top Republican on the Senate Judiciary Committee. "I saw a news release on it a few minutes ago."

Specter said he's familiar with Holder from his work in the Clinton Administration, but added it's "too soon for me to say" whether Holder would get Specter's support. "I'd have to take a much closer look at his record and talk to him and think about it," he said.

Part of that record includes Holder's role in the 2001 pardon of fugitive Marc Rich at the end of Clinton's presidency. The Pennsylvania senator said that the Rich case "would be a factor to consider," but added, "I wouldn't want to articulate it among the top items."

 

From NBC's Wendy Jones
Barney Frank's House Financial Services Committee heard today from three panels of witnesses on the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008. The economy's big guns were on the first panel: Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson, Federal Reserve Chair Ben Bernanke and FDIC Chair Sheila Bair. As usual, Frank was irascible, but kept his members within their allotted five minutes.

At the end of almost three hours, Bernanke assured the representatives that the "bailout" was "not a failure of capitalism...it's a problem of execution. Historically, in other countries, the failure of the financial system can bring down an otherwise strong economy. ...This is not an indictment of the broad market system."

Frank's focus was on the surprising evolution of the bailout plan.

"When the program was passed, very specific language was included for mortgage foreclosure diminution as one of the purposes of the bill," Frank said, adding, "The fundamental policy issue is our disappointment that funds from the $700 billion are not being used to support mortgage reduction... The need to use TARP funds as the bill contemplates is critical."

Paulson's answer to this, and similar questions: "Our objective in asking for a rescue package was to stabilize a system on the verge of collapse ... and then get lending again. ... By the time this legislation had cleared Congress the global crisis was so severe that powerful action was necessary ... our response was a program to purchase equity in banks. ...This action helped us to stabilize the financial system."

He reasoned that "stronger capitalization encourages lending. ...We expect banks to increase lending over time.

There were some testy exchanges. At one point, Paulson talked about Treasury's intent in coming to Congress; Frank shot back, "You are talking about your intent ... our intent is also relevant ... I don't accept other actions to not do what is in the TARP."

And California's Brad Sherman (Harvard Law) dryly noted, "[There has been] earlier discussion of the intent of the Secretary of the Treasury and the intent of members of Congress being balanced in interpreting this law ... I want to point out that under the Constitution, Congress writes the law and legislative intent is the only intent that should govern the construction of a statute."

Paul Kanjorski (D-PA) urged the secretary to be more "forthcoming," and to avoid more "180-degree turnarounds."

Paulson's response: "The intent of the TARP was to stabilize the system and prevent its collapse. ...I said I believed that turning the corner meant we had stabilized and prevented a collapse ... I said we had a lot of work ahead of us. ...The TARP is aimed at the financial system ... in terms of autos, I have said it would not be a good thing."

Paulson suggested that Congress modify the bill authorizing $25 billion for DOE.

But not all the monies allocated under TARP will be spent: as Paulson put it, "We have determined that the prudent course is to preserve the remaining funds in the TARP for this and the next Administration."

California's Maxine Waters took the secretary over the coals: "I come here troubled by the direction Mr. Paulson has taken ... the purchase of toxic assets was at the center of this program. ...The fact is that you, Mr. Paulson, took it upon yourself to ignore the direction this Congress has given you."

There was a suggestion of betrayal, as she said, "I want you to know that I and others worked hard to pass this. ...I was looked at with suspicion by the Black Caucus. ...I was asked if the homeowners would be helped. ...I worked [hard] to sell this program to those who were suspicious."

A similar tack was taken by New York's Nydia Velazquez: "I hope you understand the pain of the homeowner who is losing his home. It is not enough to say to the banks 'Here is money, and I trust you.' They are not lending."

Waters denounced HOPE Now as "a failure" with inexperienced staff, and pointed to the FDIC's Inde Mac program as the way to go. (Chairman Bair was then given a chunk of time to detail the program, which has modified 30,000 mortgages out of 40,000 which were delinquent.)

Gary Ackerman (D-NY) was another who sounded a note of betrayal: "You came to us with a plan ... and made a strong case for over $700 billion ... based on a particular premise. ...We listened and asked questions and, in turn, were asked questions by our constituents. ...We sold them the plan ... suddenly we woke up to find that the $700 billion was to be used for a different plan. ...You seem to be flying a $700 billion-plane by the seat of your pants."

Not mincing words, Ackerman added, "This seems to be the second-largest bait and switch ... second only to the arguments used to invade Iraq."

Steven LaTourette (R-OH) grilled the panel about Ohio's National City Bank and its takeover by PNC. His charge was that National City had not been permitted to apply for TARP money.

Without characterizing either bank, Paulson said, "I will make the general point ... if a bank in distress is acquired by a healthy bank, it's better for everyone ... This program is not to be used to prop up banks that might fail."

Paulson explained that neither bank had submitted an application, but under pressure, agreed to talk to OCC's John Dugan more.

Today's second panel was to consist of Steven Bartlett, Edward Yingling, Cynthia Blankenship and Cameron Findlay; the third of professors Alan Blinder and Martin Feldstein.