Posted by The Crux |
Presidential adviser Karl Rove has announced his resignation after 6 1/2 years (The Hill). That's one way to give us bloggers something to get worked up over, what with Congress in recess this month.
Rove's underlying reasons are unclear. It's not like a resignation will erase his fingerprints from the President's dismal policies and tactics. And Congress can still subpoena Rove. According to the Washington Post, Congress likely will. Though, the President will likely order Rove to continue flipping off Congress.
I'm not sure what to make of it, but I've enjoyed reading other bloggers' reactions. One that I haven't seen elsewhere came from BN-Politics' own Damozel:
"This is going to take some time for me to process. It's a bit like the fall of Voldemort in the final Harry Potter: more anticlimatic than you'd have dreamed and not nearly as satisfying."
Snaking the Drain objected to the media attention:
"It's aggravating to see the performers who play journalists on television still fawning over Karl Rove, talking about him on the day he resigns as if he was some great figure who accomplished brilliant deeds in the service of his country."
The Next Hurrah laid out multiple (possible) reasons for Rove's resignation, including this one:
"Republicans think he's a loser. It is quite likely that Republicans have finally realized that if you want support from voters, you need to actually deliver on policies, not just promise to. But to change the previous "create our own reality" approach to governance, you'd have to get rid of Rove, because that's all Rove does."
In other words, Rove's chief skill was beautifully packaging turds. Conservative Michelle Malkin attacked Paul Gigot's Wall Street Journal editorial for going too easy on Rove:
"Gigot lets Rove defend himself and his legacy, and what I see, alas, is the mark of self-delusion and blindness that has damaged the White House and the Beltway GOP...." (Malkin doesn't stop there).
Rove pats President Bush (and himself) on the back for the disastrous Medicare entitlement expansion and the aborted Social Security reform effort....
Not a word here about the Harriet Miers debacle, the botching of the Dubai ports battle, or the undeniable stumbles in post-Iraq invasion policies. And not a word about the spectacular disaster of the illegal alien shamnesty, which will be the everlasting stain Rove leaves behind.
Apparently, there may be substance behind rumors that Republicans have turned on Rove. The ever-sensible and moderate conservative Andrew Sullivan seems to share Malkin's distaste for Rove but for different reasons:
"The man's legacy is a conservative movement largely discredited and disunited, a president with lower consistent approval ratings than any in modern history, a generational shift to the Democrats, a resurgent al Qaeda, an endless catastrophe in Iraq, a long hard struggle in Afghanistan, a fiscal legacy that means bankrupting America within a decade, and the poisoning of American religion with politics and vice-versa. For this, he got two terms of power - which the GOP used mainly to enrich themselves, their clients and to expand government's reach and and drain on the productive sector. In the re-election, the president with a relatively strong economy, and a war in progress, managed to eke out 51 percent. Why? Because Rove preferred to divide the country and get his 51 percent, than unite it and get America's 60. In a time of grave danger and war, Rove picked party over country. Such a choice was and remains despicable."
Others in the blogosphere contemplated Rove's future. Shakespeare Teacher wondered: "Campaign chairman for Fred Thompson? Little League coach from hell? James Bond villain? What’s next for Karl Rove?"
Moderate Monkey doubts that we've seen the last of Rove:
"His job has always been to get Republicans elected. And he can’t do that if he’s still acting adviser to a President who’s final term is about up. So everyone just needs to calm down. Karl will still be around, stirring up political messes. He can’t leave it; it’s in his blood."
Similarly, Blogging Blue said:
"After he got done blubbering like a walrus, he said he’s going to spend his free time writing a book and teaching. Now as much as I’d love to see Karl Rove fade into infamy, I just don’t see that happening. Ben Brothers over at Badger Blues is predicting Rove will end up with the giuliani campaign, and I think it’s safe to say Karl Rove’s “retirement” won’t last long."
So, perhaps, we will have Karl Rove to kick around some more. I've yet to see as concise a reaction to Rove's resignation as that of presidential candidate John Edwards:
"Goodbye, good riddance."
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