Dan Bartlett Decides He Can't Stay the Course

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So, everyone agrees that Dan Bartlett is not resigning to spend more time with his family. "Who gives up a paycheck with 'twin, 3-year-old boys and another son born in January' before they know another paycheck is coming in?" asks Jeralyn. "Of course, maybe he's independently wealthy and just wants to spend more time at home."

Or maybe he has an exit strategy -- sell his stock while he can still make some money off of it:

Dan Bartlett, probably the lowest-profile of Bush's longtime senior aides, is calling it quits in order to spend more time with his family and, it seems, to try to cash in with a private sector job ("Bartlett said he was open to job opportunities and had retained Washington attorney Bob Barnett to help him in the search") before connections to the Bush administration become worthless. ...

Libby Spencer reminds us that Bartlett is one of many:

... administration insiders are fleeing in droves. Many have spoken critically on the way out, perhaps out of political expediency or to salve their guilty conscience but I suspect for some it's out of a genuine fear of what insane measures he might take in his remaining months in office.

Like "thumping himself on the chest three times while [repeating], 'I am the president!'" and telling friends that "he's setting up Iraq" so the next administration "cannot get out of 'our country's destiny.'"