Much as Bush (and Congress) are in a lame duck period, we’re in a lame duck news cycle. Not that there aren’t important things going on, people still getting blown up in Iraq, the economy in the toilet, and all that stuff, but that’s all old news we’re pretty much numb to (and apparently there aren’t any missing blonde chicks at the moment). Let’s face it, it’ll be a while before we get anything as big as ‘America Elects Black Guy’ again.

So, we’re stuck with people obsessing about how Obama isn’t progressive enough and how he’s got too many Clinton people on his transition team, and lots of obsessive speculation on who he’ll appoint to his cabinet (today the big thing is Hillary for Secretary of State, which she’d probably be pretty good at). It’s all designed to get us prepared for the declaration of this as the ‘Failed Obama Presidency’ as soon as possible.

Does anybody have any doubts about how the traditional media – which spent the last eight years cowering on its collective knees before the likes of Bush and Cheney – will suddenly emerge as relentless pit pulls on or about January 20th? Or that, from the Republican minority, a deafening wailing sound is about to emerge over those mean old ‘do-nothing’ partisan Democrats not listening to them (while they filibuster every initiative the Democrats put forth). The very serious Joe Lieberman – with his chairmanship still in tact – will shake his head and be very disappointed by Obama while he suddenly discovers his oversight obligations and subpoena power. And of course the Democrats will shrug their shoulders, write stern letters, and say there’s nothing they can do, because they ‘don’t have the numbers.’

Of course, there is one bit of news that’s pretty exciting and – like the Obama election – is something I never thought I’d be writing: The New York Jets are all alone in first place in the AFC East! A darn shame the way that old man Brett Favre is embarrassing himself by not retiring, isn’t it? Eat that, cheeseheads.