Nina Totenberg discussed the Pickering move last night, and suggested Clinton only recess-appointed Roger Gregory. But in December of 1997, Clinton used a technicality to install Bill Lann Lee as an “acting” Justice Department official who did not require confirmation, and then moved him to head of the civil rights division, where he served a controversially long time without confirmation.
Over on the “NewsHour,” David Brooks tried to be generous, describing John Edwards as a “Southern centrist.” But Edwards has a lifetime ACU rating of 15. Somehow, Democrats from the South are automatically presumed to be “centrists,” when most southern Senate Democrats are not above a 20. Landrieu’s a 17. Cleland was a 16. Bob Graham is an 18. Bill Nelson’s at 20. Blanche Lincoln’s a 23. The label better fits Breaux (46) and Zell Miller (54).