Wednesday Morning Massacrette: More Rumors About Scotty

We’d like to write about something else; really, we would. But the departure of Scott McClellan and the changing responsibilities of Karl Rove are all that people are talking about today.

Let’s see, what have we heard… Word on the street is that this wasn’t Scott’s decision. This makes sense, given that McClellan’s explanation of his departure at this morning’s press conference was vague and lame. His departure may be best explained by the White House’s desire to remove the Rummy resignation calls from the front pages of the nation’s newspapers.

We also hear that Josh Bolten told McClellan only yesterday that he would be leaving. Ouch. (Of course, reports that Bolten was shopping Scotty’s job around earlier this week were not a good sign; McClellan may have seen the writing on the wall.)

As for McClellan’s likely successor, Hotline is all over the story. The latest news: hottie-cum-firecracker Torie Clark, who regularly goes toe-to-toe with Paul Begala on CNN, does not want the job. Neither does Dan Bartlett. We can’t really blame them.

Here are three new names to add to the mix: Mark Corallo, Trent Duffy, and Mark Pfeifle. We reported earlier that Duffy previously expressed no interest in the job; but Bolten, to whom he is close, may be able to change his mind.

And that’s the latest unsubstantiated speculation and wild rumor about your next White House press secretary.

READ MORE: White House, dan bartlett, gossip, mark corallo, mark pfeifle, resignations, scott mcclellan, top, trent duffy, unverified rumors, victoria clarke

Wednesday Morning Massacrette: To Take Over from Scotty, Maybe Not the Hottie

Last month, we predicted that Scott McClellan would be gone as White House press secretary by the summer. That prediction has now come to pass.

We also suggested that McClellan might be replaced by the exceedingly attractive Dana M. Perino, just promoted to serve as Deputy Assistant to the President and Deputy Press Secretary. Perino was being groomed for the job after Trent Duffy made clear that he wasn’t interested.

But that was before Josh Bolten officially took over as Chief of Staff. And we’re hearing that Yosh doesn’t think Dana Perino is ready for prime time just yet.

So who will fill Scott McClellan’s (often uncomfortable) shoes? Hotline On Call offers a helpful round-up of the candidates under consideration: Tony Snow, Rob Nichols, Dan Bartlett, Victoria Clark, Dan Senor, Brian Jones, and Ron Bojean. The Hotline crew seems to favor Bartlett — who, rumor has it, may be leaving his current post soon.

(Oh, and here’s a dark horse contender for the job.)

We’ve heard that Dan Senor was viewed by many as a great candidate, if not for his marriage to the luscious Campbell Brown. In addition to the obvious conflicts issue, the jokes about the press secretary being “in bed with the media” would never stop.

If you have anything to add — either about Scotty’s successor or why he left (and why now) — feel free to drop us a line. It will be interesting to see how this all shakes out.

Who Replaces Scott? [Hotline On Call]

Earlier: BREAKING: Scotty Is Outie
Campbell Brown and Dan Senor to Make Tons of Baby Insiders Together

READ MORE: White House, brian jones, bush, campbell brown, dan bartlett, dan senor, dana perino, george w. bush, resignations, rob nichols, ron bojean, scott mcclellan, tony snow, top, trent duffy, unverified rumors, victoria clarke

Bound and Gaggled: Vocal Coaching Edition

From yesterday’s gaggle:

MR. DUFFY: Good morning. One update to the President’s schedule to inform you about. The President, on Sunday, January 1st, will visit the Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio, Texas, where he will visit with wounded soldiers. We anticipate that most will be from Iraq. There may be others, and we’ll update you on that at a future point.

Remember when Condi Rice said the line, “I believe it was titled ‘Osama Bin Laden Determined to Strike in the United States.’” to the 9/11 committee? That tone of voice that captured the subtext: “I’d be surprised if you found this piece of information at all significant”? Remember that?

We imagine that when Duffy said “We anticipate that most will be from Iraq”, he used the exact same vocal inflection.

“There may be others, and we’ll update you on that at a future point.” Yeah. Remember. No timetable.— DCEIVER

READ MORE: press briefings, top, trent duffy

Gossip Roundup: Outwit, Outlast, Outplay

• Names & Faces: White House flack Trent Duffy: “The president is the president 24 hours a day, seven days a week, as we all know, wherever he goes.” [WP]
• Page Six: 33% of Americans want to see Bush on “Survivor.” [NYP]

READ MORE: Personalities, george w. bush, survivor, trent duffy

Daily Briefing: The New Caliphate

• Time reporter Viveca Novak says Karl Rove was the likely source of a July 2003 article about Valerie Plame. Novak: “I remember [Rove’s lawyer] looking at me and saying something to the effect of ‘Karl doesn’t have a [Matt Cooper] problem. He was not a source for Matt.’ I responded instinctively, thinking he was trying to spin me, and said something like, ‘Are you sure about that? That’s not what I hear around Time.’ He looked surprised and very serious.” [Time, NYT, WSJ]
• Sen. Frist threatens to use the “nuclear option” to save Samuel Alito from a filibuster. Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.): “We’re not close to a deal.” [WP, NYT, LAT]
• White House flack Trent Duffy: “What you will see more of next year is the president going back to the basics — winning the war and growing the economy and creating jobs.” [WT]
• Sen. Clinton’s quiet, centrist approach to Iraq “is drawing increasing scorn from liberal activists.” [WP]
• Ronald Brownstein on Alito’s abortion memos: “It’s still not clear these disclosures will seriously threaten Alito’s confirmation. And if they do not, both sides might need to rethink basic assumptions about the politics of the Supreme Court.” [LAT]
• Gov. Mark Warner (D-Va.) tours battleground states for a head-start on ‘08. Warner: “As Democrats, what we have to do is put forward ideas and candidates that can win in places like Florida, that can win in places like Virginia.” [NYT]

• Administration officials warn of impending caliphate; Rumsfeld says Iraq could “serve as the base of a new Islamic caliphate to extend throughout the Middle East, and which would threaten legitimate governments in Europe, Africa and Asia.” [NYT]
• House and Senate have different views to the future of Medicaid. [NYT]
• Attorney, professor, and author John Yoo believes “the constitution itself gives the president lots of leeway, allowing him to invade Iraq without congressional permission and to disregard such treaties as the Geneva Convention.” [LAT]
• Gov.-elect Corzine’s appointment of Robert Menendez to his N.J. Senate seat fulfills childhood dream. [USAT]
• Investigators conclude John Snow’s ownership of bonds did not represent a conflict of interest. [WSJ]

READ MORE: 2006, 2008, bill frist, caliphate, donald rumsfeld, george w. bush, hillary clinton, john snow, john yoo, jon corzine, karl rove, leak investigation, lindsey graham, mark warner, matt cooper, patrick fitzgerald, robert menendez, ronald brownstein, samuel alito, time magazine, trent duffy, valerie plame, viveca novak