There’s often little real “news” during the holiday season, but at times that makes the newspapers more interesting since it frees up column inches for important topics that aren’t necessarily all that newsy. For example, when DC announced a big slumlord crackdown, that was “news.” But what every happened to it? Is it working? Debbie Cenziper takes a look in today’s Washington Post and comes up with the boring answer “sort of.” But sometimes the truth doesn’t make a good headline.

Greg Sargent reports on RNC Chair Mike Duncan’s latest thinking:

In a frank and private memo sent today to Republican National Committee members, the RNC chairman acknowledges that the GOP has grown too addicted to ideology, places politics before policy, and is bereft of ideas — and that it’s imperative that the party shift towards a genuine effort to develop concrete policy solutions to people’s problems in order to rescue itself.

The memo, which we obtained from a Republican operative. was written by RNC chief Mike Duncan to explain the RNC’s decision — first reported by Politico — to create a new in-house think tank called the “Center for Republican Renewal,” which is devoted to coming up with new policies and ideas to chart a new direction for the party after November’s devastating losses.

I think this is a mistake. Ambitious people don’t like the idea that their fate is out of their hands. But an opposition political party’s fate is largely out of its hands. The Democratic Party’s recovery from its low ebb in the winter of 2004-2005 had very little to do with Democratic policy innovation and a great deal to do with the fact that the objective situation facing the country got worse. The time for the GOP to improve, policy-wise, was back then. Had the Bush administration been animated by better ideas, Bush might not have led to declining incomes, rising inequality, and catastrophic military adventures. But since he did, the GOP lost. And now the reality is that it’s the Democrats’ turn to govern. If things work out poorly, the GOP will get back in whether or not they have an ideological renewal, and if things work out well the Republicans will stay locked out.

But the time when it’s smart politics to have smart policies is when you’re governing. The public is okay at assessing results, and not otherwise that impressed by policy arguments.

The future of the Finnish military looks pretty badass. Just saying. Everyone needs to stay on notice — they’re a small country, yes, but a fierce one.

The Ray LaHood thing was upsetting to some transportation reform advocates, but it’s worth noting that Barack Obama’s introduction of LaHood very much casts him and the administration in the reformist mode:

Standing up for our workers means putting them back to work and fueling economic growth. Our economy boomed in the 20th Century when President Eisenhower remade the American landscape by building the interstate highway system. Now we need to remake our transportation system for the 21st Century. Doing so will not only help us meet our energy challenge by building more efficient cars, buses, and subways or make Americans safer by rebuilding our crumbling roads and bridges – it will create millions of new jobs in the process.

Few understand our infrastructure challenge better than the outstanding public servant I am asking to lead the Department of Transportation – Ray LaHood. As a Congressman from Illinois, Ray served six years on the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, leading efforts to modernize our aviation system by renewing our aging airports and ensuring that air traffic controllers were using cutting edge technology. Throughout his career, Ray has fought to improve mass transit and invest in our highways. But he has not only helped rebuild our landscape, he has helped beautify it by creating opportunities for bikers and runners to enjoy our great outdoors. When I began this appointment process, I said I was committed to finding the best person for the job, regardless of party. Ray’s appointment reflects that bipartisan spirit – a spirit we need to reclaim in this country to make progress for the American people.

Improving mass transit beats out “invest[ing] in our highways” in Obama’s recounting of the events, and LaHood is specifically cited as a bicycle advocate. If that’s the animating spirit of the LaHood-era Department of Transportation I’ll be very happy. For now, we’ll have to see who gets the subcabinet jobs.

One thing that’s occurred to me recently is that car companies seem to make up a wildly disproportionate share of the ads I see on television. But who knows — my TV viewing, like everyone else’s, is pretty idiosyncratic. But James Fallows summarizes a talk from Robert Paterson:

As one solution is tried it drives another problem. We all pull back and the consumer economy stalls. The auto industry and credit firms feeds the media (40% of conventional advertising). Papers and TV and Radio networks, many subject to LBO’s will have to fail as per the Tribune.

Yikes — 40 percent for autos and financial services combined.

I don’t have a great deal to add to Paul Krugman’s great column from yesterday but I just want to make sure everyone reads it. One hopes we can rebuild our economy without such a huge — and hugely profitable — finance sector.