Why is nobody talking about THIS..?
drewnice
5,465 Posts
H2>Bush Spokesman Quits and Rove Loses a Post
http://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/2006/04/19/us/19cnd-bush.3.337.jpg" alt="" /> By ELISABETH BUMILLER and JOHN O'NEILWASHINGTON,[/b] April 19 ??? The overhaul of the White House staff intensified today as Karl Rove, one of the president's most powerful and feared advisers, gave up day-to-day control over administration policy to concentrate on the midterm elections and Scott McClellan, the White House press secretary, said he was stepping down.Mr. McClellan's resignation, widely anticipated in recent days, was overshadowed by the more significant development about Mr. Rove, which is likely to have far more impact on President Bush's remaining two and a half years in office.Mr. Rove will retain his title as deputy of chief of staff, but Joel D. Kaplan, now the deputy White House budget director, will assume Mr. Rove's duties as the manager of policy development at the White House. Mr. Kaplan worked closely with Joshua B. Bolten, the new White House chief of staff, when Mr. Bolten was budget director."Joel Kaplan is a man of great talent, intellect and experience who possesses a deep knowledge of policy and budget processes," Mr. Bush said in a statement issued shortly after he left for a trip to Alabama.White House officials cast the change in Mr. Rove's status in a highly positive light, much like the return of a star pitcher to the mound, and said that he was desperately needed to focus on the midterm elections that Republicans increasingly fear could result in major losses for their party. At the same time, administration officials said, Mr. Rove would continue as an overseer of White House policy as he was during Mr. Bush's first four years in office."We're returning to the structure we had at the beginning of the first term," said Nicolle Wallace, the White House communications director. "All that changes is that the management of the day-to-day policy process will be put under Joel. Karl will keep the high-yield strategic role that he's always had."But some Republicans in Washington also saw the change in Mr. Rove's responsibilities as a step down in stature for him and an acknowledgment by the president of the White House policy failures in the second term. Mr. Rove, who was Mr. Bush's chief political adviser in the first term, always saw himself as more substantive than a mere political operator, and after his role in re-electing Mr. Bush in 2004, he was rewarded with the additional policy position.A number of Republicans on Capitol Hill have grown increasingly unhappy about Mr. Rove's dual roles, particularly after the White House response to Hurricane Katrina and its failure to push through an overhaul of Social Security, Mr. Rove's chief domestic policy goal in 2005. Mr. Rove was seen as spread far too thin, and was also distracted by the long-running investigation into his role in the C.I.A. leak case. Mr. Rove is still under investigation in the. leak case, although his lawyer has expressed confidence that he will be cleared.Democrats applauded the change. "The White House has never separated politics from policy and that's been one of the reasons for its undoing," Senator Charles E. Schumer of New York, the chairman of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, said in a statement. "Late is better than never, but the key for the White House will be getting a new person in charge of policy independent from Karl Rove who understands that policy is not simply politics."Mr. McClellan announced his resignation at the side of Mr. Bush on the White House lawn, but through sometimes emotional remarks he did not say what he would doing or who would be succeeding him. It was unclear if Mr. McClellan had acted on his own or had been encouraged to leave after his two years and nine months as Mr. Bush's chief spokesman."The White House is going through a period of transition," Mr. McClellan said. "Change can be helpful, and this is a good time and good position to help bring about change. I am ready to move on. I've been in this position a long time, and my wife and I are excited about beginning the next chapter in our life together."Mr. Bush, in his remarks, at one point put a hand on Mr. McClellan's shoulder. "One of these day he and I are going to be rocking on chairs in Texas, talking about the good old days and his time as press secretary," the president said. "And I can assure you I will feel the same way then that I feel now, that I can say to Scott, job well done."White House officials have talked to Tony Snow, a commentator for Fox News and a former speechwriter for the president's father, about possibly succeeding Mr. McClellan. Other speculation has focused on Victoria Clarke, the former Pentagon spokeswoman, and Rob Nichols, the former spokesman for the Treasury department.Mr. Bolten, who has been given a free hand by Mr. Bush to make changes, has told associates that he wants to change the White House communications operation and is interested in spokespeople who have longtime contacts and ties with reporters in Washington. Mr. McClellan, who grew up in Texas politics, has been working for Mr. Bush since Mr. Bush first ran for president.Mr. McClellan became press secretary in June 2003, replacing Ari Fleisher. His relationship with the White House press corps had become increasingly contentious in recent months. As the administration's point person with the media ??? and in many ways its second most visible figure after Mr. Bush, thanks to televised daily briefings ??? Mr. McClellan became a lightning rod for complaints by the press corps about the adequacy of information provided by the White House. Those tensions first boiled over last year when it was revealed that Mr. Rove had been involved in the the disclosure of the identity of Valerie Wilson, an undercover operative for the Central Intelligence Agency, despite earlier public denials by Mr. McClellan.More recently, Mr. McClellan was yelled at, during a briefing, by an NBC correspondent, David Gregory, who was frustrated by how little information was being made available after Vice President Dick Cheney shot a hunting partner. Mr. Gregory later apologized to Mr. McClellan. "I don't know whether or not the press corps realizes this, but his is a challenging assignment dealing with you all on a regular basis," Mr. Bush said today. Mr. Kaplan had served as Mr. Bolten's deputy in the budget office since 2003, after working for Mr. Card as an assistant to the president in the office of the chief of staff. A Marine Corps veteran, he earlier had been a clerk for Justice Antonin Scalia of the Supreme Court. Elisabeth Bumiller reported from Washington for this article and John O'Neil from New York.
Comments
This will not change anything.
and I'm sure Rove working on 2006 campaigns will only go ahead and discredit anyone unfortunate enough to face the candidates he'll be working for.
NEOCON FEVER 2006
catch it
BINGO...
i think across the board (dem or rep) its a tough job. must be hard to spout bull$hit lies each and every day, get called out on it by the press, and still have to act like you believe it.
actually though, dude was pretty much the norm for "Career Length" as a press secretary. appears that most people can't stand lying for more than about 4 yrs.
check it
http://www.drjoelkaplan.com/
I want a refund.