If you had to describe the Bush administration in one word, few would be more apt than the word incompetent.  From the historic foreign policies blunders of Iraq and Afghanistan to the tragic do-nothing domestic policies of Katrina, 9/11, and managing the economy.  

Not only have the policies been incompetent, but those with positions of responsibility in this administration have been incompetent.  Bush, Rumsfeld, Gonzales, Chertoff, Miers, "Brownie", Cheney, Libby, Rice, Bolton, Goodling and many more.  These individuals were not the best and brightest of what this country has to offer, rather they are party loyalists who share a similar disdain and disrespect for the positive role that government can have in people's lives.

A familiar theme from Barack Obama on the campaign trail was that government can't solve every problem, but at the very least, it should do no harm.  With all of the serious challenges that we face as a nation, Obama seems convinced that surrounding himself with very smart people is more important than where a person leans politically.  

Instead of selecting partisans and rewarding political hacks with cushy positions where they have no business being, Obama is selecting open-minded and qualified individuals who are well-respected throughout Washington and abroad.  

Are Obama's selections the progressive all-star team that some of us might have preferred? No, obviously not.  Still, few can say that his appointments are incompetents or partisan hacks or ideological die-hards.  Many in this country have lost confidence in our government, in our economy, and in our institutions.  It seems to me that Obama is attempting to provide a sense of confidence in the team that he is assembling, to give assurances to all that he intends to provide responsible government.