Petraeus Goes Quiet, for Good or Ill

But Gates, Petraeus point to risks

(NEWSER) - With Osama bin Laden dead and war costs increasing, the Obama administration is weighing a sharper drawdown of troops from Afghanistan than it had planned, the New York Times reports. But the issue is still very much up in the air, and outgoing defense secretary Robert Gates advocates slower steps. “I would try to maximize my combat capability as long as this process goes on—I think that’s a no-brainer,” he said. “I’d opt to keep the shooters and take the support out first.” More»

A look at some of the more interesting entries from this year's list

(NEWSER) - Time has just released its annual list of the 100 most influential people in the world, and there are some perennial favorites (Barack Obama, Oprah), some recent newsmakers (Julian Assange, Mark Zuckerberg), some villains (Anwar al-Awlaki, Saif al-Islam Gadhafi, Kim Jong Un, all of whom get very brief write-ups), some entertainers (Justin Bieber, Patti Smith), and some offbeat choices (like “Tiger Mom” Amy Chua, who was photographed with actual tigers). More»

With so many vacancies, the president has an opportunity

(NEWSER) - Peter Orszag, Christina Romer, Larry Summers, Rahm Emanuel, Jim Jones: A lot of people have left the Obama administration, but that could be a good thing. The president has a successful team—but he needs “a new agenda, and new ideas,” writes Ezra Klein in Newsweek . He offers four people the White House needs:

• Mark McClellan: He led the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services for George W. Bush and helped implement the Medicare prescription-drug benefit, meaning he has “credibility with Republicans on health care and experience making a major health-care initiative work.”

He's a longtime aide and much more low-key than Rahm Emanuel

(NEWSER) - So who is this Pete Rouse, the man expected to step into Rahm Emanuel's shoes tomorrow? The president's senior aide is a longtime one and not unfamiliar with serving as his chief of staff—Rouse was hired in that job when then-Sen. Obama first arrived in Washington, reports the New York Times . He keeps a low profile, is said to be liked and respected by Democrats and Republicans, and has three decades of insider knowledge on how to get things done within the bureaucracy of Washington. More»

He'll go to Chicago to work on Obama's re-election campaign

(NEWSER) - The exodus continues, sort of: David Axelrod will leave his White House post sometime next year, reports the Chicago Tribune . But he's not going far from the president—he'll return to his beloved Chicago to work on Obama's re-election campaign. Axelrod is one of the president's top advisers and strategists, notes the Tribune. One of his main duties is overseeing the speechwriting team to make sure the president's message is on point. Buddy Rahm Emanuel is also expected to leave soon for the Chicago mayor's race. More»