Ever since America saw the movie Dave, we've been wondering about the massive inefficiencies that must exist in the nation's budget every year. Come on, you know what we're talking about. Every time the government raises your taxes, a part of you wonders, "Do we really need to spend billions on making people feel good about cars they already own?" Anyway, Obama is clearly aware of that feeling, since he coupled his warning yesterday that America was going to face unprecedented trillion-dollar deficits over the next few years with some soothing news: He's hiring Nancy Killefer, a management and efficiency consultant from McKinsey, as the country's "Chief Performance Officer." If you were new to America, you might think someone with that title would also be known as "President." But if you're a businessperson, you know all too well that often it takes somebody brought in from the outside to really tell you the rough news about how you're wasting resources and energy.

If we had the job of "Chief Performance Officer," we'd take charge of everybody's performances. Starting with Michelle Obama's! All tours of the White House would have to be led by saying, "And we're walking, and we're walking ... And we're stopping."

Obama Warns Trillion-Dollar Deficit Potential [NYT]