By Christopher Coffey
Republican Political Consultant

The French have a saying: Plus ça change, plus c’est la même chose. Loose translation: The more things change, the more they stay the same. Leave it to the new Democratic administration to introduce this European aphorism to American politics.

We are learning very quickly that “change” for President-elect Obama, is nothing more than a “change” in job title for the same old Washington insiders.

It was fair to assume that Obama would “change” D.C. by sending the Beltway warhorses to the political glue factory. Instead, he appears intent on giving them promotions. Senator Joe Biden is Vice President-elect; former White House Chief of Staff John Podesta is co-chair of the Obama transition team; and now we learn that the former voice of partisan divisiveness, Tom Daschle, will reportedly be nominated Secretary of Health and Human Services.

Former Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle/AP photo

Clinton White House veterans might fill key positions: Eric Holder, who advised President Clinton to give Marc Rich a get-out-of-jail-free card, is Obama’s top choice for Attorney General, and Senator Hillary Clinton is reportedly being considered for Secretary of State.

President Clinton is involved in discussions involving his wife’s cabinet level post, and Obama might be forming an alliance with Senator John McCain, who just a few weeks ago, was branded an enemy of change.

It is just like old times. Who will Obama unearth next in the name of change? King George III? Stegosaurus?

While President-elect Obama’s conciliatory overtures are a credit to his character, there is an obvious disconnect between his rhetoric and his actions, and this could prove terribly disconcerting for a world already in nervous turmoil. If by “change,” Obama means the further empowerment of D.C. warhorses, then what does he mean by “middle class tax cuts”? Is Obama a typical liberal Senator, surrounding himself with other Senators, or something different? Will he support radical legislation, or just tweak the same old policies? We don’t know.

Until we fully understand the Obama lexicon, the nation and the world will suffer from continued uncertainty both politically and economically.