On the issue of whether it was a good idea for the Democrats to rubber stamp the Gates nomination, which they essentially did, there was an interesting discussion a couple of days ago on a San Francisco radio station. Go to this link:

http://yourcallradio.org/archive/archive.html

and then click on the program for 5 December. The program features a former CIA operative who has a record of opposing Gates and a military affairs correspondent for Washingtonpost.com. While the two of them disagree on many points, the program offers insights into Gates’ history and why he was not confirmed as CIA director in 1987.