Why are so many people of all political stripes calling for Donald Rumsfeld's resignation?
I'm not asking why they think he's a failure in his job. That should be obvious by now. I'm asking why the demand isn't for George W. Bush to fire the guy.
A Secretary of Defense serves at the pleasure of the president. If I were in the Cabinet and I one day realized I was screwing things up beyond belief, I'd go to the Chief Exec and tell him how I felt…and then I'd resign if and when he told me it was the right time. He might not agree I'd messed up, in which case I would certainly not ignore his opinion. Or he might concur but feel that my resignation should wait until things were more stable or a suitable successor was in place or certain events had occurred. Whatever, I'd quit when he felt it was best for the country.
Public figures as disparate as Hillary Clinton, William Kristol, John McCain and Michael Moore have said that Rumsfeld should go. I get the feeling that even most folks who want to "stay the course" think Rumsfeld has made too many clumsy, untrue predictions and statements to be effective in his position and would welcome a fresh face there. It's hard to believe Bush is even keeping him there for any reason other than to avoid the admission that major mistakes have been made.
But ultimately, isn't it Bush's call that we need a new Secretary of Defense? And if he doesn't think so, isn't that the problem?