Progressives, Bloggers Make GQ’s New Washington Power List

GQ released its much anticipated "Power 50" list on Tuesday, the first compendium of Washington's most influential players in the Obama era, with a PR blitz and a glitzy Washington cocktail party celebrating the magazine's November issue. The rankings are sure to excite and roil the Beltway, where the score is often more important than the game, and in a nod to Change, this list is actually studded with some progressive and new media figures.

The highest-ranking liberal politicians are Nancy Pelosi, David Obey and Henry Waxman, who each made the top ten, followed by Eric Holder, Barney Frank and Carol Browner.

On the advocacy side, new labor gets a shout out with Andy Stern. Paul Rieckhoff gets props for organizing Iraq and Afghanistan veterans. And the New Yorker's Jane Mayer is credited for not only informing U.S. "detention policies," but also pushing President Obama to "release the torture memos."

Some new media moguls also get their due: Tom Goldstein, the Supreme Court litigator who founded the influential SCOTUSBLOG; Josh Marshall, the print journalist turned web publisher (on a list for non-resident Washington power brokers); John Harris, bringing the "urgency of the blogosphere" to editing the Politico newspaper (where I write a monthly column); and Bob Cohn, editorial director of the invigorated Atlantic Monthly website, which topped 35 million monthly views at the peak of the 2008 campaign.

I asked Raha Naddaf, the GQ Associate Editor who headed up the list, how scrappy websites were competing for spots with corporate lobbyists and military leaders.

"Political blogs like TPM and Politico have just been incredibly prolific in the past year. They've been consistently breaking news," she said, "and bloggers have been showing up in news conferences, as pundits on TV -- everywhere. They've risen in a big way." Naddaf also said the list aimed for an ideological "mix," since 50 is a relatively small number and they wanted to "cover as many bases as possible."

Perception is part of power, of course, so even if people contest GQ's picks, the emphasis on progressive lawmakers and online media will still reverberate. And the MIA parts of this list could spark important conversations, too.

There are no antiwar leaders or economic populists, despite the election mandate to end the war and rescue Main Street. (Blame the list or reality?) The Congressional Black Caucus is not represented, even though two of its members now chair two of the most powerful committees in Congress. (But one of them, Charlie Rangel, is embroiled in a scandal threatening his standing.) And perhaps most surprisingly, in this season of broadcast battles, none of our nation's loudest political voices made the cut, from Limbaugh to Beck and Olbermann to Maddow. (But they already get lots of press.)

And finally, the toughest task is for Republicans to stay on the list even as Washington turns blue. Obama's Bush holdovers made it, like Robert Gates and Robert Mueller. Swing voters made it, like Olympia Snowe. (Somewhere Alan Grayson is screaming.) And while President Bush is gone, fittingly, the top ten still includes the G.O.P.'s dark id, Dick Cheney.

Comments (32)

1. This isn't even worth commenting on. Sounds more like a ten most wanted list.

   Posted by gunslinger1 at 10/13/2009 @ 12:44pm

2. Posted by gunslinger1 at 10/13/2009 @ 12:44pm

   Sorry, gunny...s'what happens when your side loses everything.

   You probably didn't mind so much between 2003-2006, did you?

   Posted by Mask at 10/13/2009 @ 1:44pm

3. Reads like nothing has changed in Washington...changed one set of thieves for another...and not an average tax payer in the bunch...no wonder Congress rates lower than even Bush...

   Cake eaters all....and for them the cake is free.

   Posted by YourJomamma at 10/13/2009 @ 2:07pm

4. Rahm Emanuel has more brains than all of them put together.

   Posted by Benchrest at 10/13/2009 @ 2:10pm

5. "changed one set of thieves for another..."----Posted by YourJomamma at 10/13/2009 @ 2:07pm

   Wanna see Maasch do a bicycle trick?...

   "So, John, the Bush Administration were a 'set of thieves'?"

   ((the trick is called "backpedaling"..heheh))

   Posted by Mask at 10/13/2009 @ 2:23pm

6. Fascinating that the moral, societal, cultural and political dregs of this country are remaking it into europelite!

   Rapture, armegeddon, the return of Christ, his 1,000 yr. reign, and final judgement can't be far off now! Glory to God!

   Posted by BigPasture at 10/13/2009 @ 2:29pm

7. Posted by BigPasture at 10/13/2009 @ 2:29pm

   Hey RIO,

   you seriously need to go have some fun.

   you got you a black bear yet since they opened season?

   Posted by Benchrest at 10/13/2009 @ 2:40pm

8. The former Vice President is on the list. Is the CURRENT Vice President on the list?

   Posted by Mistral at 10/13/2009 @ 3:42pm

9. ...because if he isn't then either the list is silly or the current administration is.

   Posted by Mistral at 10/13/2009 @ 3:57pm

10. You call these idiots 'progressives?' While I admit that the people you mentioned do a good job of playing liberals on TV, anyone who is not anti-wars of choice and anti-bailouts for the cons and pro-working man (the very definition of a liberal, BTW) is NOT such an animal. It may be a great PR stunt to cast about as progressive by touting gay rights and more taxes for the wealthy, but these clowns ain't foolin' nobody. OK, I'm wrong. They're fooling lots of fools, and that's the problem. The Democratic wing of our political party may be in charge, technically, but the power hasn't changed one little bit. The reptiles behind the scenes are still running the show.

    Rahm Emmanuel may have a brain, but a brain in the body of a sociopath racist is precisely what made the Nazis so dangerous.

    Posted by DejaVu at 10/13/2009 @ 4:28pm

11. YourJomamma at 10/13/2009 @ 2:07pm

    Wanna see Maasch do a bicycle trick?...

    "So, John, the Bush Administration were a 'set of thieves'?"

    ((the trick is called "backpedaling"..heheh))

    Posted by Mask at 10/13/2009 @ 2:23pm

    The current batch and the past batch at these "meetings"...and the current as well as the last batch in Congress...

    That help you Mask?

    Posted by YourJomamma at 10/13/2009 @ 5:03pm

12. Posted by Mask at 10/13/2009 @ 1:44pm

    You must not read very well. I've told you several times that I'm an independent. I have no side. And I surely could caar less about some social list. I never even heard of it. I'm much more concerned with the KIA list that comes out of Afghanistan every day.

    Is this what progressives really care about? GQ?

    Posted by gunslinger1 at 10/13/2009 @ 5:41pm

13. Is this what progressives really care about? GQ?

    Posted by gunslinger1 at 10/13/2009 @ 5:41pm

    You'd be surprised....its about power...power over resources.....yours.

    Posted by YourJomamma at 10/13/2009 @ 9:24pm

14. Rahm Emanuel has more brains than all of them put together.

    Posted by Benchrest at 10/13/2009 @ 2:10pm

    pero no tiene madre.

    Posted by frosty zoom at 10/13/2009 @ 10:02pm

15. Sorry, gunny...s'what happens when your side loses everything.

    You probably didn't mind so much between 2003-2006, did you?

    Posted by Mask at 10/13/2009 @ 1:44pm

    The Nation must be getting desparate for material.

    A GQ list of Washington? Who cares

    like gunny, I didn't even know such a list existed and certainly didn't care who was on it during the Bush Admin or any other administration.

    But I bet Mask cares.

    Posted by antisocialist at 10/13/2009 @ 11:16pm

16. "pero no tiene madre."

    Posted by frosty zoom at 10/13/2009 @ 10:02pm

    ¿Qué diferencia hay si tiene o no una madre? Él es el cerebro de su partido.

    Posted by Benchrest at 10/13/2009 @ 11:35pm

17. Posted by frosty zoom at 10/13/2009 @ 10:02pm

    Si no fuera por Rahm, los demócratas no poseen el nivel de las mayorías que ahora disfrutan, incluso ahora damos por sentado, fácil olvidar lo que pudo haber sido y no dar crédito donde es debido.

    Posted by Benchrest at 10/13/2009 @ 11:45pm

18. Posted by YourJomamma at 10/13/2009 @ 5:03pm

    Not a direct answer, Maasch...but I realize you're not fully committed yet to totally dissing Dubya & Co.

    I say "yet" because it's what I think will eventually happen. Some die-hards (like Larry or sjcher) but to "salvage conservatism", I see the present "Bush was a good guy, but wasn't a REAL conservative on several issues" evolving into something else....i.e.

    "Bush was really a liberal if you think about it!"

    Yeah...honest-to-gosh. I think it WILL get so nutty on the Right, in an attempt to distance the ideology from the disasterous Presidency #43 that the talking point will eventually become that. An attempt to create the illusion that "there was nothing REALLY 'conservative' under Dubya...from the wars to the 'Great Recession'...that's why he failed, real conservatism never fails!"

    Posted by Mask at 10/14/2009 @ 07:35am

19. Posted by Mask at 10/14/2009 @ 07:35am

    I never did see Bush as a conservative, either of them...I do think he meant well, aand I understand why he went into Iraq and I never thought it was about WMD....

    and as time passed the effects of his tenure will be more clear good or bad....in general I don't think he was a good president nor do I think was is as bad as you and the rest of the hard left know" he was.

    Obama in a few short years, shorter than Bush, will be judged more harshly as teh economy continues its free fall, and the dollar follows suit, ...wait until inflation rages...Ob amas policys of spending your way out of debt is just as idiotic and a private citizen spending his check book put of debt, with noth deposits...jobs creat tawx payers and pay for the money govt spends...ther will be no jobs created by this guy...and a permament unemployed level around 12% will be his legacy.

    BTW, Bush is gone. and will be tomorrow as well as 2 years, and even 4 years..from now...you gotte stop running against him sometime.

    "Not a direct answer, Maasch...but I realize you're not fully committed yet to totally dissing Dubya & Co.."

    You are the king of non direcrt answers...and no, you will never be committed fully to dissing Obama and company no matter how bad he kills the currency, economy, health care, or job creation...for you are a true Obamaphite.

    Posted by YourJomamma at 10/14/2009 @ 10:47am

20. "BTW, Bush is gone. and will be tomorrow as well as 2 years, and even 4 years..from now...you gotte stop running against him sometime."-----Posted by YourJomamma at 10/14/2009 @ 10:47am

    See, John, I'd accept that coming from you....if you guys didn't try to blame the housing crises (and pretty much everything for YEARS under Dubya) on Bill Clinton.

    And Bush has only been gone 9 months.

    Posted by Mask at 10/14/2009 @ 11:14am

21. See, John, I'd accept that coming from you....if you guys didn't try to blame the housing crises (and pretty much everything for YEARS under Dubya) on Bill Clinton.

    And Bush has only been gone 9 months.

    Posted by Mask at 10/14/2009 @ 11:14am

    See Mask, these polices for the most part have been going on for years...it is the BIG changes that effect collapses or improvements...and from Bush 1 throught Obama the big changes have caused bigger problems...all govt caused...and I don't care who started, but Ido care who makes them worse...Bush(both),Clinton made the problems worse, and Obama is making them look like amatures...the spending and printing of Obama for all his health care, cap and trade, "stimulus".....is killing our currency and our economy...there will be no growth in economy of any significance or length...but we will have hyper inflation...HELLO CARTER.......high interest rates, high inflation, and high unemployment,,,sound familiar?

    Posted by YourJomamma at 10/14/2009 @ 2:40pm

22. HELLO CARTER.......high interest rates, high inflation, and high unemployment,,,sound familiar?

    Posted by YourJomamma at 10/14/2009 @ 2:40pm

    In fact, Obama is running his presidency as a mirror image of Carter. I thought after surviving the Carter years that I would never see them again. But it looks like that is precisely where we are headed.

    Bernanke is already warning that interest rates will have to rise next year.

    And I have a close friend who is an auto broker. he has trouble even getting people with good credit approved for a car loan. It took him 2 weeks recently to get someone approved with a 720 score, 6k per month salary, and 20% down for a 25k car. He said that for somone with below 700, they cannot get a new car, they must put 20% down min, and they will get a rate over 20%.

    Posted by antisocialist at 10/14/2009 @ 3:07pm

23. Seems awfully familiar guys...."Jimmy Carter-II"...just months into a Presidency..."socialized medicine" and "debt as far as the eye can see" and (not yet but soon) "most massive tax hike in history"...

    and then a Roaring 90s.

    Only thing missing is Newt shutting down the Government and it blowing up in his face. Weirdly, I don't see many of you guys predicting "Speaker Boehner in 2010"!??!!??!?

    Posted by Mask at 10/14/2009 @ 3:19pm

24. Only thing missing is Newt shutting down the Government and it blowing up in his face. Weirdly, I don't see many of you guys predicting "Speaker Boehner in 2010"!??!!??!?

    Posted by Mask at 10/14/2009 @ 3:19pm

    Gingrich made the right decision on principle, but the wrong decision politically.

    I haven't seen anyone predict that Republicans will take back control of the House in 2010. But a lot of analysts see the GOP picking up at least 20-25 seats.

    Posted by antisocialist at 10/14/2009 @ 3:23pm

25. "I haven't seen anyone predict that Republicans will take back control of the House in 2010. But a lot of analysts see the GOP picking up at least 20-25 seats."----Posted by antisocialist at 10/14/2009 @ 3:23pm

    LOL...exactly my point, Larry. The STANDARD historical precedence is 25 seats for the opposition to a 1st term President (Reagan-1982, Bush-1990, Clinton-1992)....Dubya in 2002, post 9/11 being a rare exception.

    Thing is though....given how "Obama is proving he's an abject failure...a total incompetent" as well as a "radical Marxist who wants to surrender to Iran and kill grandmas with death panels"????....

    you'd THINK the Repubs would do better than 25 seats, wouldn't you???? 40 is the magic number...and it's not even being discussed.

    Posted by Mask at 10/14/2009 @ 3:39pm

26. Again, typo...."Clinton-1994".

    Which given Obama is "Jimmy Carter-II", according to you and Maasch....the GOP should make 1994 look like 1974 for the Democrats.

    Posted by Mask at 10/14/2009 @ 3:40pm

27. you'd THINK the Repubs would do better than 25 seats, wouldn't you???? 40 is the magic number...and it's not even being discussed.

    Posted by Mask at 10/14/2009 @ 3:39pm

    I don't mind stating that the Republicans have shown little to support. You won't find many true conservatives who are happy with the Republicans currently in politics.

    Posted by antisocialist at 10/14/2009 @ 5:12pm

28. Excellent response by Ron Paul moments ago on CNN defending constitutional conservativism.

    I guess Mask and others like him would love to have the Republicans continue to try and be "Democrat lites". That would be good for the Democratics and bad for Americans. We need to have strong and open debate on opposing positions. That is the strength and greatness of our nation.

    Posted by antisocialist at 10/14/2009 @ 5:20pm

29. you'd THINK the Repubs would do better than 25 seats, wouldn't you???? 40 is the magic number...and it's not even being discussed.

    Posted by Mask at 10/14/2009 @ 3:39pm | ignore this person | warn this person

    --40 is the "magic number" according to who? (besides your arbitrary assignment of it, of course).

    Posted by urmygyro at 10/15/2009 @ 09:29am

30. Posted by antisocialist at 10/14/2009 @ 5:20pm

    How's Ron Paul on the "War on Terror", Larry?

    Posted by Mask at 10/15/2009 @ 11:35am

31. Jomamma the word is AMATEURS, f$%^*ng moron.

    Posted by DejaVu at 10/16/2009 @ 01:22am

32. You won't find many true conservatives who are happy with the Republicans currently in politics. Posted by antisocialist at 10/14/2009 @ 5:12pm |

    I guess that explains my curious agreement with them on upcoming patent legislation, but even a blind chicken gets a grain once in awhile.

    http://tinyurl.com/yz37sxf

    Posted by snowball777 at 10/16/2009 @ 07:26am