Headlines We Like: Bush Resigns

United States President Steps Down* (via LA Times):

George W. Bush, whose administration was marred by scandal, cites dwindling support.

By DinStL, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer
September 12, 2007

President George Bush announced today that he would quit his office, saying he lacked the necessary support to pursue the agenda that drove his political career.

Bush, 61, had vowed as recently as Monday to carry on as President, despite the crushing defeat delivered to his governing Republican Party in elections for control of Congress in November.

But with his support in polls stuck at 30% or lower and the opposition signaling it would obstruct his plans to govern in defiance of the will of the public, Bush faced the prospect of trying to lead with ever-diminishing influence. "The people need a leader whom they can support and trust," Bush said today in a nationally televised news conference.

The trigger for his resignation was the awareness that he would not be able to renew an illegal and unconstitutional anti-terrorism law that allowed the Executive Branch warrantless surveillance of American citizens. The opposition Democratic Party, which now controls Congress, had promised to block any extension of the law, a crippling blow to a President who had repeatedly broken his pledge to the commitment of preserving civil liberties.

"The United States needs a new leader to fight against terrorism," Bush said.

*If only this article was not about Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. <sigh>