Today, the President's Chief of Staff has
resigned, to be replaced by budget director Josh Bolten. So much for Bush not
"having an appetite for a staff shakeup". From an article last week:
Card has been reaching out to various friends over the past few weeks for ideas on how to help bring the president out of a growing political slump.
There has been talk for months that Card himself should leave, including reports he could become Secretary of the Treasury. Card has told friends as recently as the past few weeks that he is not interested in moving to the Treasury Department, yet some Republicans outside the White House continue to push the idea.
Card "doesn't want [to move to the Treasury Department], wouldn't take it and isn't planning on going anywhere," the White House official told CNN.
Senior officials and friends of Card said Bush is reluctant to let him leave, saying he is concerned major changes would lead to a transition time they can't afford. Card is the second-longest serving White House chief of staff.
It's not unusual at all for top level staff to change, especially during a President's term. Yet here, what is interesting is that up until last week, the President was stubbornly insisting no shake-up was needed. The fact that Bush, who has steadfastly insisted his staff would remain, has now accepted the resignation of Andy Card proves again that this is a weak President forced to listen to a very, very frightened party threatened with losing its majority status come November.
Like Scooter Libby, the Vice-President's Chief of Staff who resigned because of the Plame scandal, Andy Card is in the midst of another scandal--warrantless spying. It was Card (along with Gonzales) who went to Ashcroft's hospital bed in 2004 to get the approval to keep the illegal program alive. I'm sure the pundits will be abuzz with how this staff shake-up may invigorate the President's second term, but no matter how much new blood Bush brings in, there's no saving this failed Presidency now.
Update: More from MSNBC and CNN.