Two major dailies — the LAT and the NYT — argue that the resignations of Rove and Gonzales offer Bush has a “fresh chance” to turn things aro
August 27, 2007

Two major dailies — the LAT and the NYT — argue that the resignations of Rove and Gonzales offer Bush has a “fresh chance” to turn things around.

[Bush] can go into the next battle with Congress over the Iraq war — as well as another looming fight over legislation authorizing his domestic wiretapping program — free of the baggage both men carried. If the resignations remove some of the partisan tension between the White House and Capitol Hill, and get Mr. Rove and Mr. Gonzales off the front pages, they could help get Mr. Bush off the defensive as he struggles to salvage something of his second term.

And the LAT on the same issue:

“The Texas mafia is leaving,” said Ron Kaufman, a longtime political advisor to the Bush family. “There’s a shift in the philosophies of the appointees you have [around the president]. They are much more creatures of Washington, D.C., and not Austin, Texas.”

But therein may lie an opportunity for Bush. In two weeks, the president has accepted the resignations of the two members of his staff who have drawn the most ire from the Democrats who now control Congress: Gonzales and political advisor Karl Rove. And that may give Bush a chance to salvage his relationship with Capitol Hill and the legacy of his second term.

I think not. Competent or not, Bush is the don of the "Texas Mafia," and there’s simply no reason in the world to believe he’s anxious to turn over a new leaf. Bush doesn’t want to “salvage his relationship with Capitol Hill”; he wants to smear his critics and bury his enemies. He likes the “partisan tension.”

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