By Steve Clemons

(photo credit: Lou Linwei for The New York Times) The U.S. government is about to kick $15 billion over to the U.S. auto industry.

The New York Times offered a strong critique of one of George W. Bush’s exit interviews — and Bush National Security Advisor Stephen Hadley has just issued his protestations. The Times offered this powerful punch: It was skin crawling to hear him tell Mr.

What else can be said about Sean Penn other than that he is an unbelievably extraordinarily gifted actor with a sense of self and social conscience matched by very few in Hollywood.

This has been a good year for policy books — particularly ones that I think have moved the policy needle in better directions than they have been going. The Washington Post has just published its roster of “Best Books of 2008.

I recently hosted Helene Cooper for a discussion about her best-selling book, The House at Sugar Beach: In Search of A Lost African Childhood.

Tevi Troy‘s business card reads “The Deputy Secretary of Health and Human Services.” That’s right. He’s not one of five deputies. He’s the second highest ranking guy in the Department.

I think you’ll enjoy this five minute chat with Barton Gellman, author of the best-selling Angler: The Cheney Vice Presidency, a book which I think makes a great holiday gift. A video of an event discussion I held with New America Foundation president Steve Coll and Bart Gellman is available here.

I’m just back from Brussels — pretty tired, or jet-lagged technically. Next week — Paris, California, Georgia. . . The pups haven’t said hello as a threesome lately, so greetings from Oakley, Annie and Buddy – a family of amazing weimaraners. More when I wake up.

Just arrived in Brussels and in the hotel lobby ran into the very smart Tevi Troy who is Deputy Secretary of Health and Human Services. This will probably be his last European Ministerial meeting during this stint of government service. Troy used to be George W.

This blog post has not been written by Steven Clemons or any member of The Washington Note team. It is written by someone who really does deserve a very top spot in Obama Land but is sitting pensively waiting for a call while trying to pretend he/she is not. Waiting for the Call. . ….