republicans

Republican Senator Judd Gregg has been chosen to replace Governor Bill Richardson as Commerce Secretary.  (You'll recall that Richardson stepped down amid an apparent controversy over preferring certain companies in state contracts.)  However, the New Hampshire governor, who would appoint Gregg's replacement, is a Democrat, and so Gregg leaving the senate would probably mean that Democrats would have all 60 votes needed to overcome a Republican filibuster.  Because of this, Gregg has reached an agreement with Governor John Lynch and senate leaders that a Republican replacement will be chosen.

African-American Maryland Lt. Gov. Michael Steele has been picked by the Republican National Committee after six rounds of ballot voting, winning 91 of 168 votes to surpass the 85-vote simple majority needed to win.  The field started with six candidates.  Steele has a reputation for being a moderate, which he denies, as well as for being an excellent communicator.

Obama has been meeting with Republican leaders from Congress over the past few days to try to resolve potential sticking points in his economic stimulus plan.  The meetings reportedly did not resolve the differences but both sides came away optimistic.  The full House might vote on the bill, called the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, by next Wednesday.  Obama has helped to remove pork supported by House Speaker Nanci Pelosi, but Republicans are still concerned that the Act doesn't do enough to help the economy in the right ways.