Kagen is clearly being set up as a Supreme Court pick, which is fine by me (although my preference would be a 25 yr old fanatical socialist who could spend the next 70 years undoing everything Rehnquist, Scalia, Thomas, Roberts and Alito ever touched).

Speaking of Yoo why is it that he and Bolton are able to get their op-eds published by major newspapers? It is it a Murdock thing?

You would think that Yoo would be trying to keep his head down. After all he might be invited to take part in proceedings at the Hague.

Yoo writes op-ed's for the Wall Street Journal and Johnsen writes one for Wash Monthly. Sweet. That's change I can believe in.

Meanwhile, Republicans must be getting a bit nervous with this lineup.

well, these appointments ought to send a chilling message to those in the CIA who want to keep torturing.

The subtle message of Obama's quote [...] -- Steve Benen

Subtle??? Have you gone all "understating Brit" on us, Benen? It's as "subtle" as poking someone in the eye with a well-sharpened stick. For the perfect choice of words and giving them weight "just so" through their placement in the sentence, the Man is a model to every writer... :)

Just think of the phrase: "integrity, depth of experience and tenacity". Bush's DoJ had only the third one of those characteristics and Obama gives it the least weight, placing the two, which were most glaringly lacking ahead of it. Love it!

Blame spineless Democrats and the Republican enablers of Constitutional desecration.

Legacies of Bush and Ton DeLay. Loyalty over principle.

Lack of outrage by those in a position to act on it tends to create the general ennui of the populace we've witnessed. Cries for action were ignored. Such a pity there were only two realistic choices of party at the polls.

Hopefully the one I chose will prove worthy of my vote come February. Multiple people need jail time before I can manage faith again.

Obama's picking a lot of good people. It will make up some for the less than progressive picks in some areas. That big tax cut of his, even if it be middle-class oriented: I think it's going to create too much debt unless offset, as it should be, with a substantial gas tax now that oil is low and we can take advantage to really move to other sources.

MSNBC is reporting that Obama has picked Leon Panetta for CIA.

I have been a bad hand-wringer worrying about Obama's prepensity to compromise with the right wingers, and his voting history in the Senate. This is the first really positive, important action I feel comforted by in the new administration. It appears we will be returning to the rule of law. As someone who originally thought Dodd was the hope for a positive future, I say, "Hurrah!"

For what it is worth: John Yoo remains on the faculty of Boalt Law School at UC Berkeley where he teaches -- it takes one's breath away -- Constitutional Law. As an alumna, I have written to the Chancellor and the Dean of the Law School to protest, resigned my lifetime membership in the alumni club, and told any and all Cal-connected solicitations for donations or subscriptions to peddle their appeals elsewhere (and why). The Law School dean recently sent me a report on US torture policy that two of its professors put together; "Guantanamo and Its Aftermath." Surprise: they think it's terrible and recommend that a commission look into the problem. This is, uh, not what I had in mind: prosecution and if found guilty jail is what I had in mind for those in the Bush "government" who authorized torture: it is against the law and it looks like they broke the law; officials need to know they are not above the law, that there really are consequences. Like jail, which is where we put people we believe harm society. If you are a CA taxpayer or a UC alum, you can voice your disapproval. The dean is Christopher Edley, Jr., at UC Berkeley School of Law, 215 Boatl Hall #7200, BErekely, CA 94720-7200; edley@law.berkeley.edu, Fax 1-510-642-9893. It is my general feeling that if Yoo cannot be tossed out because of tenure, he certainly can be stripped of: classes, teaching assistants, office, parking space, key to the men's room if there is one. Sophistry that enables torture -- a vicious, deeply dangerous event for the people tortured, ruinous to the humanity of the torturer, and devastating to the integrity, honor and self respect of the country that sponsors it -- does not deserve a the support of civilized society, and that includes a position at a public institution. Not even Berkeley, which I have truly loved in my time.

Kagan is a great pick for Solicitor General? Really? I like her very much, but generally it would be nice if the person responsible for arguing the official position of the United States before the Supreme Court actually had some experience, any experience, arguing appellate or trial cases before any court. Kagan does not have such experience that I can find evidence of. None. Kagan would be fine in some capacity, I respect her quite a bit, but she is wholly unfit for this job.