Same as it ever was

We've been going through the cabinet confirmation process this week and, as usual, we aren't learning very much. I remember having the same feeling back in '09, when Team Obama was riding into town. I looked back through my archives to a similar time frame and found this observation:

The Washington Post is reporting that the nomination of Eric Holder to de-Albertoize the Justice Department has hit a snag. Oddly, it seems that there are some concerns being raised about Mr. Holder's role in the delivery of justice for Marc Rich and the news that Mr. Holder has been seen consorting with the inconvenient Rod Blagojevich. It's possible that the evil Mitch McConnell might raise a few impertinent questions during the hearings that are scheduled for this week. 

Impertinent questions come from across the aisle, but in the end it doesn't matter very much. Eric Holder got the job despite his previous sins and was able to commit a bunch more at the helm of the Justice Department. Jeff Sessions will likely commit different sins; perhaps we'll like his sins better. I'm not particularly alarmed by anyone Trump has nominated; I might have selected some other names for key positions, but I'm just a guy banging a keyboard in his dining room. Whatever changes we see in Washington will be at the margins.