Daschle's out

Former Sen. Tom Daschle (D-SD) has just withdrawn his pending nomination to be Secretary of Health and Human Services.  This is an unfortunate turn of events for a smart, dedicated man who could have been a strong leader on  universal health care; additionally, Tom has been a dedicated public servant and is a honest man who clearly made an error that ended up hurting him.

With this I have a question and a proposal.

1) Will Senator Daschle be leaving his position as Director of the White House Office of Health Care Reform? (Did he officially take that job yet?...It's not Senate confirmable).

2) Nominate Howard Dean.

Former Gov. Howard Dean, (D-VT), is superbly qualified to lead the Department of Health and Human Services, and his appointment would be embraced politically.  Quite honestly, after an impressive performance as Chairman of the DNC, Governor Dean deserves a position, and HHS Secretary is a great fit.  Gov. Dean is a physician who was an early leader in the health care debate, enacting legislation while governor that made Vermont the first state to guarantee health insurance for all children under age 18.  He proved over the past 4 years that he knows how to manage a large organization, think innovatively, and put up a tough political fight.   One major problem:  Dean and Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel, don't, uh, exactly like each other.  But I think Rahm could be willing to put that aside.  After all, grown ups are running the White House again.