A panel of political advisers and scholars gathered last night in the ARCO Forum at the Kennedy School of Government to discuss the first hundred days of President George W. Bush's presidency.

The panel included New York Times chief political correspondent Richard L. Berke, Co-Director of the Kennedy School Center for Public Leadership David Gergen, Deputy to the Chief of Staff Clay Johnson III, Kennedy School Public Policy Lecturer Elaine Kamarck, and White House 2001 Project Director Martha Joynt Kumar.

Panelists agreed that making the transition into the White House can be daunting for a politician under the close watch of the press and public eye.

"Transitions matter-you want to use that early opportunity because it is a time when people are watching," Kamarck said.

Panelists noted that the difficulty of transition lies in the need to immediately specify and execute a specific political agenda.

"When you come to the White House," Kumar said, "you have no information there, yet you are responsible for making decisions from day one."

Berke commended Bush on his ability to overcome this major hurdle.

"It's no easy thing assembling a government and doing what President Bush has done in so short a time," Berke said.