Bright Hall http://brighthall.aol.com Bright Hall http://brighthall.aol.com/media/feedlogo.gif Bright Hall http://brighthall.aol.com en-us Copyright 2013 Weblogs, Inc. The contents of this feed are available for non-commercial use only. Blogsmith http://www.blogsmith.com/Were Obama's Staffing Woes Foretold in Harry Potter?http://brighthall.aol.com/2009/02/12/is-obamas-commerce-dept-hogwarts-dark-arts-class/http://brighthall.aol.com/2009/02/12/is-obamas-commerce-dept-hogwarts-dark-arts-class/http://brighthall.aol.com/2009/02/12/is-obamas-commerce-dept-hogwarts-dark-arts-class/#commentsFiled under: , ,

I'm no fan of Harry Potter, but that didn't stop me from reading four-and-a-half books in J.K. Rowling's pseudo-literature series. One thing I remember very clearly is that every year, the Hogwarts wizard school has to keep replacing its teacher for the Defense Against the Dark Arts class, because the professors keep dropping out or getting fired.

And then today I read about Judd Gregg withdrawing as Barack Obama's pick for Commerce secretary.

Technically, Gregg's surprising statement is only the second shock for the department, just one shy of the three-makes-a-trend rule that is standard in most newsrooms. But, it didn't take a genius to realize that after Gilderoy Lockhart's tragic withdrawal from Hogwarts in the Chamber of Secrets, the Dark Arts course would only be a temp job forever.

So who was professor Lockhart? Well, he was a teacher who claimed to have prevailed in numerous heroic acts, but never actually did. He was a fake, a total phony, who once said, "Fame is a fickle friend, Harry. Celebrity is as celebrity does. Remember that."

Gregg isn't exactly a phony -- in fact, he's quite the opposite, telling Politico that the reason he pulled out from the White House was because he "couldn't be Judd Gregg."

"I've been my own person, and I began to wonder if I could be an effective team player," the senator said in the interview.

Come to think of it, there are more similarities between Gregg's and Lockhart's predecessors. Quirinus Quirrel, the first Dark Arts teacher, was heralded as a brilliant mind before it was revealed at the end of the Sorcerer's Stone that the dark lord, Voldemort, had somehow attached himself to the back of the professor's head and was trying to kill Harry.

Look at Bill Richardson, Obama's first pick for Commerce, who seemed to be the perfect man for the job -- a wealth of experience, knowledge and diplomacy fit for virtually any Cabinet post. Yet Richardson quit the process as an ethics investigation reared its own ugly head in the governor's home state, New Mexico.

Who will Obama look to now to fill one of his only remaining Cabinet slots? Playground rules would suggest someone so friendly that no one can have a problem with him or her, essentially casting the "alohomora" spell to unlock the door to the White House. Should Obama take a cue from the millionare "literary" author Rowling and search for his own Remus Lupin, the third Dark Arts professor who was favored by all and even helped Harry defeat the dementors (House Republicans)?

Perhaps. But the White House vetters should know that even the most charming of politicians can turn into werewolves when the sun goes down -- or when the stimulus bill goes up for a vote.

 

Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments

]]>Matt Negrin2009-02-12T21:43:00+00:00