GOP Rep. Ray LaHood for Transportation Secretary?

So say unnamed GOP sources on Capitol Hill, according to numerous reports. Jonathan Weisman at The Wall Street Journal has a good wrap-up of why the decision, if it’s final, is unexpected:

LaHood did not serve on the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, and the long-time member of the House Appropriations Committee did not work on transportation funding. He is a noted opponent of organized labor’s efforts to win legislation easing their ability to unionize work places through the signing of cards rather than through secret elections. That will be a key issue as Democrats move to unionize the Transportation Security Administration, something President Bush adamantly opposed.

This allows Obama to brush off criticisms that he hasn’t followed through on campaign vows to create a bipartisan cabinet. Whether that’s worth angering his liberal base has yet to be seen.