Only in Washington D.C. could you be as abject of a failure, and as terrible of a person, as Susan Rice and still be in line for a top administration role the next time around.

There’s been a lot of speculation about how Rice would fit into a possible Joe Biden administration, and with the Supreme Court refusing to hear the Pennsylvania election challenge asking whether the legislature violated the state constitution by enacting universal mail-in voting (spoiler: they clearly did), Biden is inching ever closer to the reality of taking the presidency.

We don’t have to speculate anymore, though. Rice has been tapped to head up Biden’s domestic policy, a powerful advisory role that also doesn’t require Senate confirmation.

Biden to tap Susan Rice to head his domestic policy council-report https://t.co/qCEKJHMjt3

— Bo Snerdley (@BoSnerdley) December 10, 2020

There are a lot of people who I’d scoff at heading up the domestic policy direction of the country in a Biden administration, but Rice has to be at or near the top of the list. Maybe Ben Rhodes is worse? We are talking about a Washington mediocrity that is so bad at her job that she presided over some of the worst foreign policy decisions in American history. Arming rebels in Syria? She was all-in. The Iran deal? She was a chief backer. Ignoring ISIS? She recognized the threat years after she should have. The failures in Iraq and Afghanistan? That happened on her watch. And, of course, there’s Benghazi, where Rice took to the media to lie multiple times about why the attack had occurred. It’s hard to think of a worse, less equipped person to fill the role Biden is giving her.

There is a counter-argument here, though, namely that Rice is so hated and so divisive that no Republican in Congress will want to work with her. Perhaps she becomes a drag on Biden’s plans? If she does, that would certainly be a welcome but unintended consequence. There’s also the silver lining that Rice will hopefully not be involved in foreign policy. But really, who knows?

Regardless, this is the worst of Washington on display. The swamp is alive and well, and they are looking to not only get the band back together, but they are going to be playing all the old hits as well. That this is seen as some kind of preferred “return to normalcy” by so many in this country, specifically the media, is a testament to how ridiculous our politics have become. Results don’t matter, only being part of the club. That’s exactly how we got into the situation that led to Trump winning office. People were sick of being told the cocktail circuit was more important than their son dying from opioid addiction. Yet, Biden looks to usher in the previous era again. Let’s hope there’s a swift backlash.

(Please follow me on Twitter! @bonchieredstate)