Why wouldn't Obama appoint Elizabeth Warren?

[BzaDem]

We all know the substantive reasons why Obama should appoint Warren. But even from a political standpoint, a Warren appointment would be a winner.

-- If (as some here basically allege) Obama is secretly heading some pro-banker cabal, and actually hates consumer protection, he and his administration would not have listened to Warren in the first place and proposed such a powerful Consumer Financial Protection Agency. In fact, Consumer Protection was the main reason why bipartisan negotiations on financial reform collapsed. There would be no reason to get such an agency enacted if he didn't really believe in the issue.

-- Warren has been overseeing TARP, which often means she makes the establishment uncomfortable and asks probing questions.

-- Consumer protections in general remain very popular with the public (and the consumer protections in the healthcare bill were similarly the most popular parts of the bill). Even if the Senate refused to confirm her, this would be a fight Obama would want to have. It would draw a sharp contrast for the midterms (if Snowe/Collins/Brown killed her nomination). Obama could even do a recess appointment after the fight and at least get her until January.

-- Even if Geithner hates her (and even if Obama cares, which I doubt), I don't think she is going to butt heads with him nearly as much as head of CFPA as she has as TARP overseer.

I could be wrong. But I think Obama will appoint Warren. There is no downside politically or substantively (unless Obama wanted her for a higher position, such as Supreme Court justice when Ginsburg retired).