Brenda wrote:
I wonder how many of those advisors are actually the same people?
The only cabinet-level advisor they both shared was Robert Gates as Sec. of Defense. There are Bush-appointed heads of the FBI and FDIC still in office, but they serve for set terms and their terms simply haven't ended yet. Ben Bernanke is a Bush appointee that Obama reaffirmed, but he meets with the Secretary of the Treasury (not the President) and most Fed Chairmen traditionally serve for multiple Presidential administrations anyway.
My point here is that very few of Bush's Presidential advisors are also Obama's advisors (maybe 4%).
The top levels of most government agencies are replaced when there's a new President, but the lower levels tend to be more stable. Those people aren't Presidential advisors, but they might be advisors to the advisors of Presidential advisors. Their advice could potentially trickle up.