EARLYBIRD

Monday, December 1, 2008 8:30 AM

Top Transition News - 12/1

Republicans are watching President-elect Barack Obama's Cabinet picks to figure out what they may say about his future judicial nominations (Roll Call -- subscription).

Political consensus is emerging for health care reform that would provide universal coverage, but that would fall short of a federal, single-payer system like those in Canada and Europe (Los Angeles Times).

Washington, D.C. has been allotted just $15 million in federal funds for the inauguration -- less than the city got for the 2004 festivities, and far less than the $50 million distributed to both Denver and St. Paul for this summer's party conventions (New York Times).

Now that Obama has signaled that he wants a new stimulus package for public works and energy research, there's no shortage of voices offering advice on how to spend it (Los Angeles Times).

The U.S. Conference of Mayors released a Christmas list of $90 billion in local infrastructure projects it hopes Obama will fund (Politico).

Obama's millions of tech-savvy supporters could be a powerful ally as he tries to push legislation through Congress (Bloomberg News), especially younger voters (NationalJournal.com).

After winning more seats in the Senate and House, Democrats seem poised to deliver Obama several key legislative victories early in his term (Washington Post).

Vice President-elect Joe Biden has tapped three longtime advisers for key posts in his office (AP) -- Michael C. Donilon, Terrell P. McSweeny and Evan M. Ryan.

Shuffling The Deck

Obama will formally announce several high-profile national security appointments today, but he is moving more slowly on his "intelligence picks in an attempt to find experienced officials who aren't associated with the Bush administration's controversial interrogation policies" (Wall Street Journal).

Obama is expected to appoint as national security adviser General James Jones, who "comes out of the Rumsfeld Pentagon as one of the renegades" (Agence France-Presse).

Susan E. Rice, Obama's choice for United Nations ambassador, is a strong advocate of "dramatic action" against genocide (New York Times).

Among the avalanche of Cabinet picks Obama is expected to announce today are Eric Holder as attorney general and Arizona Gov. Janet Napolitano (D) as homeland security secretary (AP).

By sticking with Defense Secretary Robert Gates in the short term, Obama gets an uncontroversial figure and buys himself time to find a suitable replacement (USA Today).

Hillary Watch

The choice of Hillary Rodham Clinton for secretary of State has reassured Israelis, but dampened Palestinian and wider Arab hopes for a marked shift away from the Bush administration's approach to the conflict (Los Angeles Times).

Clinton's nomination may face tough questioning in Congress, where some Republican lawmakers say they are troubled by her husband's business dealings (New York Times).

Women's rights activists expect Clinton to push for their cause in her new role at State (Boston Globe).