Surprised that John Kerry is getting so much buzz as Obama's potential secretary of state? According to our cover story on Barack's Washington, it was all part of the bargain:
According to the rumor mill, Kerry traded his primary endorsement of Obama in return for the secretary of state gig. That would be a selection bound to provoke controversy with moderate Democrats, not to mention Republicans eager to frame Obama as soft. (Kerry wasn't tough enough to defend himself from the Swifties!)
Check out Jason Zengerle's prescient piece on how Obama resurrected Kerry's career, and the rest of TNR's O-List to see our take on the new power brokers in an Obama presidency.
--The Editors