rogue49

I can't tell either way.
And it really doesn't matter to me, I just find it interesting.

However, it's after the war
and we have just had 2 high profile members quit GW's administration

Arie Fleischer - the press secretary
Christine Todd Whitman - EPA Chief

Now, just curious questions come to mind

These are just the first two, are others next?
Is this just as they say face-value - a step down for personal reasons.

Or is GW cleaning up some lose ends before tacking the economy more
and getting ahead of the game for the upcoming campaign?

No implications, no saying its right or wrong from me...
just thinking and I wanted to put it out there.
This is the politics forum after all.

Liquor Dealer

I don't think anything should be read into these two resignations. I think when a shakeup occurs you won't have to guess about it. You are dealing with a president that does not mince words. I seriously doubt he would even ask for a resignation if it reached that point - it would probably be more like "Your fired!"

Fleischer has been a great press secretary and I thnk he has done his job well.

The EPA job? Guess she's either done it well or hasn't done anything to make the papers.

I think it is exactly what Fleischer alluded to - If he is going to quit he needs to do so before Bush gets into the re-election mode. He has already lasted longer than most press secretarys.

Just my two cents worth.

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rogue49

hmm...not that many comments
interesting.

Kadath

What is there to say? Either you take LD's stance, that Bush kicked them out because they weren't doing their jobs, or you take the stance that they left a sinking ship, or you don't care enough about politics to consider resignations in these positions. I suspect if Powell or Rummy resigned, we would get some talk, but Fleischer just says what he's told to say(I know it's more complicated than that, I've seen my share of political films and TV, not that they're accurate) and this administration has never been particularly focused on the environment(go figure....)

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guthmund

I've been watching the opinion shows.

That's usually a bad way to start a reply, but I'll muggle through it anyway.

The thought has been brought up that the Mr. Fleischer resigned because his credibility had been shot. Remember the episode where the press were laughing at him in the press room? It was further stated that maybe the President is looking to 'clean' up the tarnished image of the administration and is looking to restore some prestige. Some shows have hinted that Sec'y Rumsfeld might resign or at least be removed from the media spotlight as well.

I don't know what to think. Maybe the guy just wanted to go home to his wife. I imagine that the press secretary's job is most difficult especially with the terrorist attacks, the war, and the recession dominating the briefings.

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seretogis

They obviously resigned because George W. Bush is an anti-semitic environment-destroying SUV-driving children's-lunch-stealing slave-owning gay-bashing senior-citizen-beating reincarnation of Adolf Hitler. If you think otherwise, you're a part of the vast right-wing conspiracy.



In all seriousness, there's really no reason to look closely at their resignations. Fleischer's deputy is taking his place, which doesn't really seem like something that would happen if he was fired. Generally if you fire someone, you get rid of their co-horts as well.

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Kadath

Uh...yeah. That's...what people were saying...not only in this thread, but anywhere on the board...what?! Come on now.
Again, Fleischer is the press secretary. I don't think he's important enough to have co-horts. If you fire someone for being treasonous to your administration, then I'd say you fire those who support them, but in this case Fleischer is out because he's not doing his job well enough, and thus his understudy steps up.
I do like the statement "there's no reason to look closely at their resignations." It's amusingly close in tone to "pay no attention to that man behind the curtain."

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Macheath

We'll know the shit has really hit the fan when he fires Karl Rove and Paul Wolfowitz.

"cats and dogs living together, mass hysteria...."

As for Whitman:

http://www.salon.com/politics/featur...01/14/whitman/

Liquor Dealer

Some of you should win awards for the imaginative tilt you seem to capable of hanging on everything this administration does. You forgot to mention the fact that, at least according to almost ever poll conducted, the election of 2004 is already a non-event. Whitman has been sideways with the administration and is out. I really fail to see the reasoning for your Fleischer bashing.

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Kadath

To whom are you referring?
Again, no one considered clinton a candidate this time in 91. But if you feel like calling this election 18 months in advance, that's cool.
Again, to whom are you referring? The only person who made negative comments about Fleischer was guthmund, and he only pointed out a specific incident and proposed a conclusion from that incident. Although I did say he was out because he wasn't doing well enough at his job, so I suppose that could be construed as bashing.

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guthmund

"Fleischer bashing?" Really????

I was just passing on what I'd heard on tv through my rounds of the newsmedia channels....

To be quite honest, I couldn't possibly care less why he's quitting and who's taking his place.

Well....I'll take that back....maybe if I tried I could 'not care' a little more....

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Ratman

I usually don't get involved with politics, but... Whitman is resigning because her positions and those of her employer are diametrically opposed, creating an untenable work environment that she would rather leave than continue to fight.

Ari Fleischer could be (I repeat COULD BE) resigning because he has done his job so well that he is burnt out. It is well known that this has been one of the least forthcoming administrations in memory. Mr. Feischer has been at the front lines, no commenting like a crazy man. After holding the White House press corps at bay, which is no mean feat (maybe like holding off a tank of sharks with a pez dispenser) he is probably too burned out to continue for the re-election period. I don't think it too coincidental that his announcement came within a week of GW's re-election announcement.

I'm not saying that either of these people were good or bad at their jobs. I think there are more options than either they were fired because they sucked, or they were fired because they were disloyal.

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Daval

I agree with these statements. I think Ari just feels that it's his time to step down and no more than that.

About the EPA - she wasnt able to do her job with such a man as Bush in office. I don't envy anyone in the EPA in that administration.

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