Mr Abe's immediate selection as Mr Endo's replacement of Masatoshi Wakabayashi, a former environment minister, belies the impression Mr Abe has tried to give that each new appointee is eminently qualified for the position.
Nan Hayworth, a Tea Party representative from upstate New York who lost to a Democrat in November, told me about a Southern Republican who once tried to win her support for a colleague on some internal conference position.