Like everyone else in the Washington press corps, I attended the briefing yesterday by transition chief John Podesta. It was, as others note, not the most news breaking event in the world, leading to these kinds of scene pieces. (I chose to spare you my efforts at purple prose.)
Takeways: Don't expect Cabinet appointments until the end of November, current White House CoS Josh Bolten is buddy-buddy with Podesta, the ethics rules are the strictest ev-ah, Dana Milbank cuts in line, transition = 450 people and $12 million, and Agency Review teams could be going through executive branch offices as early as this coming Monday. Also, the press corps was really worked up when Podesta wouldn't tell them if the Obama camp will send a representative to the upcoming international economic summit, which the president-elect is declining to attend out of respect for the "one-president-at-a-time" rule.
One more interesting gossipy note: I saw James Steinberg leaving the transition office building and returning with lunch. Steinberg is a possible National Security Adviser, and has been advising Obama, but I didn't know he was in D.C. working on the transition. Discuss!
--Tim Fernholz
