State, A.G., Homeland Defense and just before the election, CIA. -- sounds like a lot of turnover in the foreign/counterterrorism areas.

Is there someone in particular your gunning for?

Patrick

Dan-
What'd be your "wish list" for those posts most likely to be vacated? As a Democrat, I can't decide between "reality-based Republicans" (which'd be good for the country) or more Ashcroft-esque circus clowns (which'd be good for THE DAILY SHOW and THE ONION).

Here're some breakdowns:

Attorney General-
Reality-based: Rudy G.
Circus-based: Duane "Dog" Chapman, bounty hunter

Secretary of State-
Reality-based: Richard Lugar
Circus-based: Former UN ambassador Alan Keyes

Also, from the circus-based community, I want Donald Luskin to head treasury if Snow steps down.

One theory is that Bush sees his Cabinet less as a group of government department heads and more as his people. This is after all the era of the Me Generation Presidency.

All nastiness aside, Bush's record suggests that he does not trust very many people, and does not know very many people well enough to trust them. Richard Lugar is a very smart guy and an exemplary public servant, but Bush knows him only well enough to know Lugar has some views of foreign affairs that differ from administration policy -- and he doesn't need Lugar for political reasons as he needed Colin Powell. So Lugar will not be named Secretary of State.

In fact nearly everyone Bush can keep, he will keep. Also, as far as the domestic departments are concerned Bush's Cabinet secretaries don't have anything like the autonomy (and ability to take risks and court trouble) that they did in many previous administrations. If they are overwhelmed with administrative issues (e.g. Ridge, Thompson) or have slipped in to the Cabinet with policy ideas of their own (Whitman when she was at EPA) their jobs are exhausting. But for the most part Bush's domestic secretaries have their big decisions made for them by the White House political office. It's not ennobling, but it isn't exhausting either.

Continuing my meme, Viet D. Dinh for Attorney General.

Bush appointees believe religiously in the famous Franklin anedote: 'If We don't hang together, We will hang separately.' lgl

Tarred and feathered would be too good for the nutjobs in Rummy's OSP. Do they still have a gallows at the Pentagon?

In today's episode of "Don't blame me, I'm a Californian who wrote-in Tancredo":

If Tom Ridge goes, his replacement might be Asa Hutchinson. Here are a few interesting links to ponder:

"Rounding up all illegals 'not realistic'"

"[Bush] Immigration plan envisions 'incentives' to illegal aliens"

"Illegals detained at border released onto U.S. streets"

"What astonishes me is not that Bush wants to keep most of his cabinet officers on board -- that is certainly true to Bush's style. What's amazing is that these people want to stay on.

Might this say something about their boss?

notthisgirl, That they are all *cough* power-hungry *cough*?

Let us pray that the positions that did open up aren't filled by the Rick Sanatorum's of the republican party. As for the DoD, it looks like we are all set for "Four more years, Four more wars". I'm waiting for TradeSports to open up betting on the # of wars in the next four years.

Let me also second Luskin for circus-based Treasurey Secretary.

Jor,

You guys lost because you looked like a bunch of crazy hate-filled hyenas. Congratulations on getting an early start with this approach for '06 and '08.

Nice job of projecton there, Matthew C.

Yeah, why is it the the left's hate-filled hyenas cost us votes, but guys like DeMint and Santorum keep getting elected?

Really, I can think of only three current elected Democratic reps that are as batshit crazy as this year's freshman class of GOP Senators: Kucinich, Barbara Lee and Cynthia McKinney.

Luskin for Treasury!

Just think Kerry supporters muse--if only we got 65,000 crossover voters in Ohio WE WIN. Well we would still have a GOP House and Senate. Bush would have won by 3.9 million (bit more then their real pres Al Gore did in 2000) With all the uproar over Kerry's "victory" the country would have been in a gridlock with a weak pres. and a pissed off population. A Kerry victory under these circumstances would have left us like a deer in the headlights when the next attack was launched. Oh yeah our First "LADY" would have been spoating her pearls of wisdom for all the world to ponder. But all the Kerry people could say they won. It's so important to win is it not?