Top Justice Department picks show that change is coming. Dawn Johnsen, who has been tapped to take charge of the Office of Legal Counsel, has publicly assailed "Bush's corruption of our American ideals." | truthout

How could Obama pick Rick Warren for the inaugural invocation? He was instrumental in passage of a measure against same-sex marriage in California. | Joe Solmonese, Washington Post

Economic woes may help Obama's green agenda. The president elect has made it clear that he sees saving the environment and saving the economy as complementary. | Christopher Beam, Slate

United Auto Workers deserve praise , not the scorn they seem to be getting. Innovation in auto production and in wages and benefits can be traced to the UAW and Walter Reuther. | Harold Meyerson, The Washington Post

Seat Burris already. Blagojevich may be sleazy, but he's still governor with the power to appoint. The legislature can't change the rules retroactively. Roland Burris should be the senator. | Eric Zorn, Chicago Tribune

The Senate has the right to refuse Burris. As judge of the "returns" that brought its prospective members to Washington, the Senate can decide that Roland Burris was picked by a corrupt process and refuse to seat him. | Slate

More mischief from Gov. Rod:  Blagojevich has called the dithering Legislature's bluff - and proved his own lawyer doesn't know what the Illinois governor might do - by appointing Roland Burris to the U.S. Senate. The legislators need to act now. | Chicago Tribune editorial

A governor should not appoint a replacement U.S. senator. The tapes of Rod Blagojevich are just more evidence that the practice is a bad one. | Bruce Reed, Slate

Israeli war leaders bolster their election hopes and undermine both Abbas and peace.   Rather than defuse extremism, the attacks on Gaza bolster Israel's enemies. | Marwan Bishara, International Herald Tribune

Israel's excessive violence will solve nothing. To make a lasting peace, Hamas and Fatah must quit fighting, and Israel must be willing to enter real peace negotiations. | The Daily Star, Lebanon

A vote of confidence in democracy :  Relatively high turnout in recent district elections in India indicate a confidence in the democratic process, even though Indians have a right to be critical of national leaders. | The Times of India

Mumbai is India's 9/11. But India should not respond militarily. India  needs a balanced strategy that bolsters the civilian government in Pakistan and weakens the argument of the generals, not (as in the case of those American bombing raids) the other way round. | The Economist