Only Nixon could go to China

I like the point being made in the first part here about Obama's array of appointments and what they convey -- i.e., it might say less about his orientation (hawkish versus dovish, change or establishment, blah blah) than about his crafty strategy.

If the great and glorious David Petraeus and the shiny Robert Gates are saying, "Bring the troops home," then you've defused your enemies. It ain't Clintonian triangulation, which involved embracing a watered-down version of your opponents' beliefs. It's just fuckin' smart.

If the onetime hawks are the ones proposing the new (dovish or pick your stupid adjective) policies, nobody can blame it on naivete! Obama has certainly shown himself well attuned to perception and crafty in using or subverting it to enable his own ends, so this is certainly a move within his reach.

Color me still confused about how Hillary as Secretary of State is effective without too much baggage, but I'm willing to be pleasantly surprised...