One of the most effective charges that can be leveled against George W. Bush - beyond the ineptitude, lawbreaking, and destructive policies - is that he surrounded himself with the wrong people. They were either hopelessly incompetent (Condoleezza Rice), completely surrounded by conflicts of interest (Donald Rumsfeld), or simply evil (Dick Cheney - no link required). In fact, of the nine most trusted advisers Bush brought up from Texas with him in 2000, all of them have now resigned in disgrace.

In short, we've seen what America under the dubious leadership of an awful man can become, but we've also seen what happens when that man surrounds himself with equally awful allies. It should be readily apparent that the people our next President chooses for his or her Cabinet is of the utmost importance.

Given how high-placed campaign staff and policy advisors often move into the White House if their candidate gets elected (see Warren Christopher in Clinton's administration and Condoleezza Rice in Bush's for two examples), there is real cause to worry about the people John McCain might appoint if he wins in November.

To state the obvious, the connection between John McCain's campaign and corporate lobbyists of all stripes is deep and wide. As Thomas Edsall reported last June, the McCain campaign has more lobbyists on staff than any other campaign:

A Huffington Post examination of the campaigns of the top three presidential candidates in each party shows that lobbyists are playing key roles in both Democratic and Republican bids --although they are far more prevalent on the GOP side. But, all the campaigns pale in comparison to McCain's, whose rhetoric stands in sharp contrast to his conduct.

...

All told, there are 11 current or former lobbyists working for or advising McCain, at least double the number in any other campaign.

That number has likely risen since then.

At the very least, McCain's White House will likely be staffed with the very same lobbyists, meaning you can expect a McCain administration to be a lot friendlier to business and their interests than to the interests of ordinary Americans.

To crystalize the issue, quick sampling of McCain's top policy advisors reveals characters I wouldn't want stepping within 1000 feet of the White House.

For example, Randy Scheunemann, a top McCain advisor, has already set foot in the halls of power and has already messed things up:

Scheunemann helped draft what would later become one of his claims to fame--the 1998 Iraq Liberation Act, which made the toppling of Saddam Hussein an official U.S. policy goal and authorized $98 million for the Iraqi National Congress, a loose grouping of Iraqi dissidents led by Ahmed Chalabi that has been widely blamed for channeling false intelligence about Iraq (see Jim Lobe, "New Champions of the War Cause," Asia Times, November 6, 2002).

In 2001, Scheunemann moved from congressional work to the Pentagon, serving for a short time as a consultant to then-Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld.

Or take William Kristol, one of McCain's foreign policy advisors, who has a long history of public defense of some of Bush's worst policies:

Kristol has used his position at the Weekly Standard to extemporize on everything from what he sees as the imperative of quickly pardoning <span style="text-decoration: underline;">I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby</span>, Vice President <span style="text-decoration: underline;">Dick Cheney</span>'s former chief of staff who was convicted in early 2007 in connection with the PlameGate investigation, to decrying the "idiocy" in Washington that he feels is evident in efforts to roll back troop levels in Iraq. Criticizing congressional legislation to set deadlines for withdrawing troops from Iraq, Kristol pointed to what he called the "sense of momentum" garnered by troops since the surge began. However, he lamented, "In order to preserve the cosmic harmony, it seems the gods insist that good news in one place be offset by misfortune elsewhere. It may well be that Gen. David Petraeus is going to lead us to victory in Iraq. He is certainly off to a good start. If the karmic price of success in Iraq is utter embarrassment for senior Bush officials in Washington, DC--well, in our judgment, the trade-off is worth it. The world will surely note our success or failure in Iraq. It will not long remember the gang that couldn't shoot straight at the Justice Department--or, for that matter, the antics of congressional Democrats--unless either so weakens the administration as to undercut our mission in Iraq" (Weekly Standard, March 26, 2007).

William Kristol in White House? Think about that.