Commitment to Change

Saturday, November 15, 2008

Ever since Barack Obama was elected as the 2008 Democratic candidate, my eyes habitually scan the pages of the New York Times for instances of his name. That is why I took an interest in Saturday’s article, “In Transition, Ties to Lobbying,” which opens with a summary lead.

The article begins by describing how Mr. Obama’s recent imposed restrictions on the White House transition team show that he is committed to making a change in Washington. Although the lead reveals the slightest hint of skepticism, saying that Obama's list of staff members "includes a complicated tangle of ties to private influence-seekers," the article goes on to describe the measures being taken to make sure that the special interest of lobbyists' is eliminated.

To make sure that this happens, Mr. Obama has prohibited lobbyists from handling any similar issues in which they have dealt with in the past 12 months. He has also ruled that transition team members are barred from “working on matters where family members or recent business associates may have a direct conflict of interest.”

The article highlights some potential problems within the transition team, such as Obama's appointment of several lobbyists with ties to Fannie Mae and other mortgage giants. However, I feel that the following quote from a transition spokeswoman summarizes the general conclusion of the article: “While these rules disqualify many well-qualified professionals from participating in the transition as a result, they also put in place the right safeguards to prevent any potential conflicts of interest."

Here is a probable outline for the content of this article:

1. Highlight some of Obama's changes to transition team regulations
2. Discuss possible problems that might occur within these regulations
3. Discuss the benefits
4. Talk about certain appointments within the team that are controversial
5. Show quotes both for and against the changes