Joe Lieberman for Rummy

Well it's becoming obvious that Donald Rumsfeld will soon become the ex Secretary of Defense.

WASHINGTON - White House officials are telling associates they expect Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld to quit early next year, once a new government is formed in Iraq, sources said yesterday.

It is also becoming obvious that Joe Lieberman is busy burning all bridges to the Democratic Party. So what does that all mean?

Rumors that Lieberman could replace Rumsfeld started flying early this week, and Bush and Vice President Cheney fanned the flames by quoting the former Democratic veep candidate's pro-war statements.

The mention of Lieberman's name prompted some Democrats to whisper that he is lobbying for the job.

"Lieberman seems to be coordinating his statements on the war with the White House," a Senate Democratic source said.

The source pointed to a news conference this week where Lieberman urged his party not to undermine Bush. The timing of Lieberman's pitch, also this week, to form a bipartisan "war cabinet" to aid Bush was cited as well.

Lieberman denies it but he must realize that his influence in the Democratic party is over. He also has to be aware of the threatened challenges to his reelection. Rumsfelds departure would be a good thing, his replacement by Lieberman would not be. There can be little doubt that Joe Lieberman is a Zionist neocon in the Benjamin Netanyahu mold. For all of his faults Rummy was never a card carrying neocon. Lieberman is a dangerous man and the world would be an even more dangerous place with him in charge of the DOD.

Update
Well Rummy says he's not going anywhere.

WASHINGTON, Dec 8 (Reuters) - U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, the craftsman of U.S. Iraq war strategy and a magnet for criticism, said on Thursday he had no plans to retire from the post more than 2-1/2 years into the conflict.

Take this with a grain of salt. If Bush is to gain any credibility on the war in Iraq Rumsfeld must go. Regardless how you may feel about the war in Iraq unless you are totally delusional you have to see that Rumsfeld's tenure has been marked by incredible incompetence. Supper hawks like Bill Kristol agree.