News Buzz: Building the Obama Administration Amid Global Enthusiasm Over His Victory

Obama Turns to Task of Building Administration: The longest campaign in history now behind him, President-elect Barack Obama will begin his new job today by choosing members of his new Democratic administration. One expected pick is Illinois Rep. Rahm Emanuel for White House chief of staff. Choosing a strong team is integral to the success of the Obama administration, which will have to overcome a number of daunting challenges, as Obama reminded Americans last night, including two wars, an economic crisis, and an uncertain global order marked by rising anti-American sentiment. But the latter, at least, seemed partly mitigated by Obama's election. His victory sparked a worldwide outpouring of enthusiasm. In Africa, people stayed up all night to watch the returns, and the president of Kenya declared a public holiday. Europe was also particularly excited, with one French government minister calling Obama's election "the fall of the Berlin Wall times 10."

New Congress Turns More—Much More—Democratic: Democrats captured at least 17 Republican-held seats in the House and five in the Senate yesterday, with several other races still too close to call. Meanwhile, not one Republican defeated a Senate Democrat. While the Democrats fell just short of the 60 Senate seats needed for a filibuster-proof majority, the sweep was still dramatic. And, combined with the defeat of Republican presidential candidate John McCain, it prompted a good deal of Republican hand-wringing. "We have got to clean up, reform, and rebuild the Republican Party before we can ask Americans to trust us again," Republican Sen. Jim DeMint of South Carolina said in a statement.

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