Could the President of the United States be a more conservative dresser?  If the pictures from today’s White House past/present/future occupants’ summit are any indication, there’s just one permissible variable in the Presidential uniform:  Choice of a red or a blue tie to go with the dark colored suit.  Well, we know what those colors have come to symbolize in “red state and blue state” America.  But while every President must dress conservatively, even conservative Presidents apparently need not wear their colors around their necks.  Bravo to all 4 former Presidents for their bipartisan fashion statements.

And, while I’m complimenting the Presidents for making a more colorful photo op, I should add that this sort of meeting among senior leaders past, present and future, without regard to party affiliation, should be a more regular and substantive occurance.  President-elect Obama has announced his intention to consult routinely with a bipartisan group of Congressional leaders on national security and foreign policy.  Why not add former leaders from both sides of the aisle to that group?  And for that matter, the President should encourage his top appointees to follow the same course.  Why not schedule a monthly or quarterly meeting between current and former cabinet officials, deputies, and other senior advisors to the President?  Doing so would tap into a literally limitless reservoir of wisdom and experience, as well as offer the incoming administration indispensible channels of communication with top leaders on the other side of the aisle, and from past administrations.

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