Spencer Ackerman first reported that my friend Ilan Goldenberg, currently Policy Director at The National Security Network, will be leaving NSN shortly for an important post at the Pentagon. Specifically, he’ll be working as special adviser to Colin Kahl, the deputy assistant secretary of defense for the Middle East, with a portfolio focused on Israel and Iran issues.

I don’t want to discredit Ilan with unduly fulsome praise, but suffice it to say that the above is a photo of him on a panel at Netroots Nation alongside such DFHs as myself, Spencer, and Alex Rossmiller who you may recall from Americablog. He’ll be, of course, one voice among several on a few concrete issues that involve many, many, many thorny details. But I’m a “big picture” kind of guy, who thinks it matters a lot where people situate themselves on the broad questions, so I just went back and read this and smiled.