From a reader:

Whoa there, bub. As an archivist myself, I can say there’s a bit more to this than perhaps you know. The archival world (or at least the hothouse of the Archives Listserv) has been debating this over the last week or two, and despite the usual liberal slant of many of the members, there are some real questions.
In the first place, since the current AoUS is not officially stepping down until July, 2005, W is kinda jumping the gun on bringing in a replacement. There are reasons for it (skip hearings if you can, and what if W loses in November), but it is a little premature.
My concerns are less about the politics of it than Dr. Weinstein’s appropriateness for the post. While he is clearly a scholar, he has no background that I’m aware of in either archival or records management, nor does he seem to have a great deal of general management experience. That doesn’t eliminate him from consideration (John Carlin was governor of Kansas prior to his appointment), but I do think he should be asked some key questions about managing the nation’s archival materials and his strategic plans for the future of NARA.
I recognize the issue is a tempest in a teapot, given all else we need to worry about these days, but archival records will (hopefully) remain long after the rest of us are gone. As an archivist and a citizen, I do think we have a responsibility to preserve our heritage, and the person chosen to lead us in that area should be vetted properly.
My 2 cents.