A Cabinet Loss and Gain

[Commentary] The addition of Sen Judd Gregg (R-NH) to the cabinet will offer president Obama a substantial payoff down the road. He is one of the smart guys on Capitol Hill, especially when it comes to fiscal policy. And he provides President Obama with a third strong Republican Cabinet member, joining Defense Secretary Bob Gates and Ray LaHood at Transportation. Sen Gregg and North Dakota Sen. Kent Conrad, the top Republican and Democrat on the Senate Budget Committee, respectively, have been pushing for the creation of a bipartisan commission that would tackle the looming bankruptcy of the three big entitlement programs -- Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid. Sen Conrad said that he deeply regrets the departure of his partner and does not know where to find a substitute. But help may be on the way. Lamar Alexander of Tennessee, the No. 3 man in the Senate Republican leadership, quietly joined the Budget Committee last month. He said it was to "help move the Gregg-Conrad commission proposal forward." Moreover, Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, the Republican leader of the Senate, told the National Press Club that a bipartisan deal on entitlements is something he thinks can and should happen in this Congress.