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The end of the inner circle? Hardly

With the resignation of Alberto Gonzales, there will be lots of talk about the disbanding of the president’s inner circle. Gonzales? Gone. Karl Rove? Gone. Harriet Miers? Gone. Dan Bartlett, Scott McClellan, Andy Card, Donald Rumsfeld? All gone.

Well, not all.

CNN is reporting that Bush will likely nominate Michael Chertoff to replace Alberto Gonzales as attorney general and Clay Johnson III to replace Chertoff as the secretary of the Department of Homeland Security.

Who’s Clay Johnson III? As Think Progress reports, Johnson is a prep club pal of the president’s who served as his chief of staff back in Texas. As the New York Times reported earlier this year, Johnson is so devoted to the president that he keeps a George W. Bush doll on his desk.

Johnson, who say he finds it “incredible” that people could think Bush has lied about anything, is currently the deputy director of the Office of Management and Budget. His homeland security experience? As far as we can tell, he has exactly none.

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Recent Posts

Has Rezko started talking?
The real estate developer, who was closely tied to Barack Obama, was convicted this summer — he’s likely talking about other politicians, however.
John Lewis: McCain, Palin “sowing seeds of hatred and division”
Discussing the Republican campaign, the civil rights icon invokes the memory of George Wallace’s rallies.
McCain camp responds to Troopergate report
Sarah Palin denies that she abused her power, while a campaign spokeswoman derides the investigation as partisan.
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War Room is written and edited by Alex Koppelman, with contributions from Salon reporters around the country.