Obama bypasses Southern states in Cabinet picks

So far, President-elect Barack Obama has announced 15 picks for his new administration's Cabinet. And to date, not one is from a Southern state.

As Politico notes, the absence of a Southerner in Obama's team -- aside from press secretary Robert Gibbs, from Alabama -- is unique among modern administrations:

But going back to at least John F. Kennedy, every other new presidenthas populated his initial Cabinet with one or more Southerners.

This seems like a strategic mistake for the Democrats. As Facing South has often reported, the South's political clout is on the rise. Two-thirds of the country's fastest-growing counties are in the South.

This translates into rising political power for the South: after the 2010 Census, Southern states are projected to pick up at least nine additional Congressional seats and Electoral College votes -- at the expense of states in the Northeast and Midwest.

Picking a vocal Southerner for the Cabinet would send a visible signal that Democrats aren't ignoring the South and understand the region's significance to their political future.