Obama has chosen Bill Daley to become his next Chief of Staff, replacing Peter Rouse who was filling in as acting-Chief while they searched for a replacement to Rahm Emanuel. Bill Daley is part of the Daley political dynasty that runs Chicago–so it’s no coincidence he was chosen to be part of Obama’s team.
The selection of Daley may upset the professional left-wing base of the Democrats and signals that Obama is trying to position himself as a centrist-lefty–at least to a degree. In 2009, Daley stated that Democrats needed to “acknowledge that the agenda of the party’s most liberal supporters has not won the support of a majority.”
Daley also led efforts to enact NAFTA during the Clinton administration. Union bosses’ heads are exploding all over D.C. right now…
What will the folks at Kos say?
UPDATE: The “professional left” does not approve. From Kos:
This isn’t particularly good news from a “professional left” standpoint, at least as far as progressives and those of us who aren’t corporate interests are concerned. From his Chamber of Commerce ties and opposition to key Obama priorities of the past two years, Daley at first glance was bad news for the non-corporate wing of the Democratic party. As more about his activities since leaving the Clinton administration have emerged, the worse it looks.
