Czarist rule

Government: Bypassing confirmation, a platoon of bureaucrats sets federal policy | Edward Lee Pitts

Jones and Rattner: Getty Images; Jennings: Associated Press

WASHINGTON—In Russia the last czar, Nicholas II, died in 1918, shot by Bolshevik revolutionaries. But the title did not die with his assassination. It simply migrated to Washington.

Today there are between 30 and 40 so-called czars serving in the Obama White House. There is a Great Lakes czar, a pay czar, a weapons of mass destruction czar, and a government performance czar. Could a "czar performance czar" be far behind?

Designated as special advisors to the president and tasked with overseeing special initiatives, the American version of czars is blurring the lines of authority and responsibility. We have the auto recovery czar who must somehow work with the car czar. And there is a trifecta of environmentally conscious czars: the green jobs czar, the environment czar, and the climate czar.

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