The White House confirmed this morning that Deputy Chief of Staff Karl Rove would be leaving his post at the end of this month. In an interview with the Wall Street Journal, Rove says it was time.
I’m actually surprised it took this long. For a figure of Rove’s stature and influence to remain in the daily grind of the White House for seven years is extraordinary and unusual. He has given much to this President, and evidently, had been considering the timing of his departure for more than a year.
But the fact that the President would accept Rove’s resignation now, in the dog days of summer, with 18 months remaining in his term, suggests that the President has accepted his status as lame duck. For if President Bush was planning any more major pushes on domestic policy, he would, no doubt, have asked Mr. Rove to remain by his side. And Mr. Rove, being the loyal right hand man, would have stayed, as he has always stayed.
Whether you love this President or despise him, it’s worth marking this day. For this one, it seems to me, is the day that the President conceded that his term is effectively finished.
Jim: I keep looking for a way to disagree with this conclusion, Marshall, and I’m struggling. I figured that after staying this long, Rove would hang on until January 20, 2009, but I guessed wrong. What’s truly fascinating is how much is reputation has soared and crashed in a six year span. He was considered a bit overconfident for the way the 2000 Bush campaign was run, earned rave reviews for the way the president helped congressional candidates in 2002, was “the architect” of 2004, and certainly deserved at least some blame for the way Bush hit the skids in early 2005 and slid all the way through 2006. I’ve met Rove very briefly, and my impression of watching him in action is that he’s a man of enormous knowledge - but sometimes he sticks to a losing position - i.e., I can convince the Republican base that we’re serious about securing the border — long after it is wise.
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August 13, 2007 - 5:18 pm
I’m stunned by two things this morning, first those that think that Karl still matters at this point and second by those trumpeting this as a “great defeat of the evil president and his cronies”.
A few points:
1) Karl Rove has essentially been done for some time now. (so be gone with ya…)
I think we can lay the incredible tone deafness of the presidents approach towards immigration directly on Karl, and we can probably say that the tone deafness was caused by the distraction provided by two years of watching his wallet getting eaten away by legal staff successfully managing to keep him out of the “flames of plame”.
2) Yes, its 18 months before the president steps down, thats true, but its probably less than 180 days of actual legislative session between now and then (nice work if you can get it, eh?)so why not blow out of town now? So whats the fall session going to be? Iraq, followed by the usual budget noise. And whats Spring next year? not much really unless someone on the supreme court dies. After that, forget it, its all about the longest election season in history, which will have the populafce begging to complete by May, but will drag on for another six months. The only reason to stick around between now and then is a sense of duty, or to get your public service ticket stamped. The truth is, you aint getting anything done, you get to hold to fort and keep anything from burning down, thats about all. You invite ridicule and indictment at every turn for a civil service pension, hardly worth the powder if you think about it.
The left is trumpeting this as “We finally got rid of Karl” as if they drove him out of town, but all I see is a man who can look at a calendar, has a literary agent and knows that with a few phone calls to the right people in january, he can recoup the losses to his fortune lost in his service to the President to the country.
I dont see this as a defeat of Bush as much as the inevitable end to the longest two term presidency in the history of the republic. Whats great and often forgotten in the blather of politics is that in this country, all presidencies come to an end. We transfer power in a timely and effcient manner and today is the start of that process, nothing more, nothing less.
Bushs Presidency and his Administration has been under withering fire from the opposition since before the first day he took office. What’s remarkable about today isnt that Karl left, but that he, and many others at many levels of the presidents staff have remained and remained steady-as-she-goes for so long.
Its remakable if you stop and think about it, there has never been a period of “honeymoon” for these folks. Before Sept 12th was over, his political enemies were calling the president a coward for not coming directly to New York, and saying that he “stole the election” and caused 9/11 and so on. The slanders have gone on so loud for so long that they are canonical at this point and Karl has been right there in the slaughterhouse the whole time getting sprayed with the entrails of politics in Washington.
It would have been so easy to change course, pull up stakes and do the safe and popular thing at least 100 times along the way in the last few years.
It would have been easy to give that advice too.
Instead, the President has provided remarkable, steadfast and yes at times exasperating, executive leadership against a contrast provided by a legislature that makes an over turned and aflame ant hill look organized by comparison.
For me, Bushs Presidency reminds me of the ship “old ironsides”; they keep throwing everything at it, and he just keeps sailing on.
Its time for Karl to go, he will rest at home for a few months and then he will quietly be offering his services to the highest bidder.
…and if hillary is smart, she will hire him.
August 13, 2007 - 8:25 pm
I dunno. I have a feeling that Rove will continue to be “Bush’s Brain” when needed. It’s just like when Karen Hughes left to spend time with her family. I’m sure it’s not such a long walk between the office of the Under Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs and the Oval Office.