I going to go out on a limb and take a guess that maybe, just maybe there's things we don't know. I get the idea that BXVI is the sort that would keep friends close and enemies closer. That could be a motivation. It could be that Levada showed promise at some point and was practically hamstrung under Mahoney's metropolitan. That might be closer to the mark. But as well as BXVI knows the bishops over here, and everywhere else for that matter, he's not going to pick someone just for the sake of picking someone and I doubt he would be afraid to replace that person somewhere down the road if the appointment turned out to be a mistake.
I think you are correct. I was talking to a young Caldean priest and he was very interested in hearing that some folks in the this Internet chat room I post on are upset by Levada's appointment. The General feeling among the conservative priests I know, at least in this diocese is that Bishop Levada is OK.
That's the feeling I have, too. He's only been Pope for a month, so I think it's premature to get hysterical about this appointment. Actually, I'm surprised we're seeing so much early action on his part with respect to the US and various "players" in the Church here. The US bishops have gotten used to coasting along on their own for decades now, but it doesn't look as if the Atlantic is going to protect them anymore.
Now I wish he'd appoint Mahony to be in charge of fund-raising for stray cats in Rome or something like that, and get him out of LA.