The devil must be given his due, he does have a few solid and uncontroversial people, or who have at least exceeded my low expectations.
The best he has probably is Sec Def Gates, who he carried over from Bush, probably his smartest policy move.
Panetta seems like a realist in the CIA, and he seems to have learned enough on the job to get somewhat protective of the national interest. He is not quite the political weasel I expected.
Secy of Defense and CIA head are regular cabinet positions or congressionally vetted appointments. The problem is the ones who he appointes on his own, who actually have the real power (while the Cabinet members in this administration are just figureheads, as Hillary has discovered) and are answerable to nobody, overseen by nobody, and vetted by nobody - except Obama.
Presidents have always had their own advisors, but the advisors were just advisors, who gave the president information on various areas. They were not put in charge of departments or entire areas (such as energy, industry, etc.) as Obama’s czars have been.