So it's Colin Powell plus three more letters of resignations today from Bush Cabinet officials, according to the New York Times (although that includes Rod Paige, whom we already knew about).
How is President Bush greeting this changing of the guard? According to U.S. News & World Report, he sees it as an opportunity -- why are we not surprised? -- to bolster and further centralize Oval Office power. "The president is moving briskly to seize the moment. He is consolidating power at the White House, channeling ever more influence to Vice President Dick Cheney, his closest confidant, and counselor Karl Rove, architect of his November 2 victory. Senior White House officials tell U.S. News that Bush plans to replace at least half his cabinet over the next few months. His aim is to remove officials who have become lightning rods for controversy or who seem to have lost their desire to serve in Washington." We know the Abu Ghraib scandal is so six months ago, but if any remaining cabinet member has been a "lightning rod for controversy," it's Rumsfeld. Still no word on whether Rumsfeld will follow Powell and perhaps half the Cabinet out the door.
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