# Karl Rove Bails Out!!!! **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [August 13, 2007, 9:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/karl-rove-bails-out/415411 "2007-08-13T09:04:48Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 9
**Author:** ![CarnalK](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnalk/32/486_2.png) [@CarnalK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CarnalK)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2007, 5:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/karl-rove-bails-out/415411/161 "2007-08-18T05:37:37Z")
[QUOTE=Rilchiam] Okay, now [Tony Snow](http://www.cnn.com/2007/POLITICS/08/17/whitehouse.snow/index.html) is resigning. Maybe something really is going on. [/QUOTE] Bye, bye mashugana! ---
**Author:** ![OneCentStamp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/13edae/32.png) [@OneCentStamp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OneCentStamp)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2007, 6:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/karl-rove-bails-out/415411/162 "2007-08-18T06:01:55Z")
[QUOTE=Rilchiam] Okay, now [Tony Snow](http://www.cnn.com/2007/POLITICS/08/17/whitehouse.snow/index.html) is resigning. Maybe something really is going on. [/QUOTE] He’s just stepping aside to make way for [Baghdad Bob](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mohammed_Saeed_al-Sahaf) , the former Iraqi information minister. Now _that’s_ a guy who knows how to tell the big lie with a straight face. And he’ll have you know, there are _still_ no American tanks in Baghdad. ---
**Author:** ![JonScribe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/3be4f8/32.png) [@JonScribe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JonScribe)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2007, 6:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/karl-rove-bails-out/415411/163 "2007-08-18T06:10:51Z")
[QUOTE=levdrakon] Dude, he’s got cancer. You can’t pick on him. [/QUOTE] Except, it appears from the CNN report, it’s got nothing to do with his cancer; it’s because the position’s $168,000 salary isn’t enough for him. > [@](#): > > “I’m not going to be able to go the distance, but that’s primarily for financial reasons.” Snow said. “I’ve told people when my money runs out, then I’ve got to go.” As always, don’t let the door blah, blah. blah. ---
**Author:** ![stolichnaya](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bcef8e/32.png) [@stolichnaya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stolichnaya)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2007, 7:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/karl-rove-bails-out/415411/164 "2007-08-18T07:27:17Z")
“when my money runs out”? I would expect that this is a medical expense thing. I’m no big fan, but I’ll leave the guy alone. ---
**Author:** ![VinylTurnip](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/b2d939/32.png) [@VinylTurnip](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VinylTurnip)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2007, 2:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/karl-rove-bails-out/415411/165 "2007-08-18T14:15:14Z")
If the Lord, in his infinite wisdom, ever decided to visit serious illness on those making _less_ than six-figure salaries… thankfully that never happens, but can you imagine the crisis we’d face? ---
**Author:** ![Cartooniverse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cartooniverse/32/3084_2.png) [@Cartooniverse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cartooniverse)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2007, 2:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/karl-rove-bails-out/415411/166 "2007-08-18T14:32:43Z")
I find it quite horrifying that he would use that as an excuse. I suppose people in this Administration do not understand the concept of “stooping too low”. Tony Snow now has a job. It pays $ 168,000.00. He is a full-time US Government employee. As a former dependent of a US Government employee I am here to tell you that the health care plan was quite excellent. Mr. Snow does indeed have cancer but the fact that he uses the excuse, "When the money runs out " is simply disgusting. He is worried about money running out and yet he is quitting a job with one of the largest healthcare coverage groups ( USA Gov’t Employees ) in the world? Who would hire a man with cancer? Where will he find steady work opposed to fumfering along on the lecture circuit ( Freelancers have to pay their own health care insurance ). No, I think he’s being thrown out. Dubyah is loyal? Good. I hope in this particular case he really is, and has set Tony Snow up with a full-time job with benefits. Funny thing about being a new employee. You can have the most powerful ex-boss around and the new insurance company will give exactly one shit about who is former boss was. A few little words will make him rue the day he quit working for Dubyah: Pre-Existing Condition. My two cents? He’s being thrown out and shuffled off to a six-figure puppet job. Cartooniverse ---
**Author:** ![Count\_Blucher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/c5a1d2/32.png) [@Count\_Blucher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Count_Blucher)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2007, 3:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/karl-rove-bails-out/415411/167 "2007-08-18T15:05:49Z")
Rats? Sinking ship? Or maybe they just all have to be out of the Whithouse before the pre-emptive pardons, to help fight terrorism, can be launched… (any chance its a Springer Toss-up between which of the two really knocked up Jenna? “C’mon Jenna, I may be fat & ugly, but your kid will be smart.” “C’mon Jenna, I got cancer. Throw me a bone before they have to be lopped off.”) ---
**Author:** ![stolichnaya](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bcef8e/32.png) [@stolichnaya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stolichnaya)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2007, 4:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/karl-rove-bails-out/415411/168 "2007-08-18T16:01:47Z")
I’m wondering if the cancer was a pre-existing condition for the purposes of the WH job. ---
**Author:** ![choie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/choie/32/7829_2.png) [@choie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/choie)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2007, 5:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/karl-rove-bails-out/415411/169 "2007-08-18T17:59:12Z")
> [@](#): > > I’m wondering if the cancer was a pre-existing condition for the purposes of the WH job. Only cancer of the soul. ---
**Author:** ![levdrakon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@levdrakon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/levdrakon)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2007, 7:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/karl-rove-bails-out/415411/170 "2007-08-18T19:02:51Z")
[QUOTE=Cartooniverse] I find it quite horrifying that he would use that as an excuse. I suppose people in this Administration do not understand the concept of “stooping too low”. Tony Snow now has a job. It pays $ 168,000.00. He is a full-time US Government employee. [/QUOTE] $168K is good money, but then he lives in DC I’d imagine, where that money probably doesn’t go as far as you think. He might be able to make better money going back to the news commentator thing, plus it would give him more flexibility. I’d sooner believe he’s fleeing a sinking ship, rather than being shuffled off one. ---
**Author:** ![Tuckerfan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/eada6e/32.png) [@Tuckerfan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tuckerfan)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2007, 7:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/karl-rove-bails-out/415411/171 "2007-08-18T19:20:22Z")
[QUOTE=levdrakon] $168K is good money, but then he lives in DC I’d imagine, where that money probably doesn’t go as far as you think. He might be able to make better money going back to the news commentator thing, plus it would give him more flexibility. I’d sooner believe he’s fleeing a sinking ship, rather than being shuffled off one. [/QUOTE] Yeah, as an ex-WH official, he can bring in the _big bucks_ working for Faux News and the like, plus, with that kind of investment in him, the company will happily shell out all kinds of money to pay his healthcare expenses. Of course, it might be difficult to _find_ a commentator job if the administration he worked for suddenly imploded in massive scandals. I don’t know how it works for executive branch employees, but for members of Congress, you only have to successfully serve one term to qualify for lifetime pension and health benefits, perhaps the same is true for WH employees, in which case, Snow will be living on the dole quite comfortably, I’d say. ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2007, 7:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/karl-rove-bails-out/415411/172 "2007-08-18T19:21:36Z")
[QUOTE=levdrakon] $168K is good money, but then he lives in DC I’d imagine, where that money probably doesn’t go as far as you think. He might be able to make better money going back to the news commentator thing, plus it would give him more flexibility. I’d sooner believe he’s fleeing a sinking ship, rather than being shuffled off one. [/QUOTE] I lived in DC 20 years ago on 15k a year. It’s not THAT expensive, no more so than NY, SF, LA, CHI, etc. ---
**Author:** ![Tuckerfan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/eada6e/32.png) [@Tuckerfan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tuckerfan)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2007, 7:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/karl-rove-bails-out/415411/173 "2007-08-18T19:34:56Z")
[QUOTE=Boyo Jim] I lived in DC 20 years ago on 15k a year. It’s not THAT expensive, no more so than NY, SF, LA, CHI, etc. [/QUOTE] Yes, but you’re _not_ a WH executive who _must_ maintain a certain standard of living. :rolleyes: 😉 ---
**Author:** ![levdrakon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@levdrakon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/levdrakon)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2007, 8:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/karl-rove-bails-out/415411/174 "2007-08-18T20:30:58Z")
[QUOTE=Boyo Jim] I lived in DC 20 years ago on 15k a year. It’s not THAT expensive, no more so than NY, SF, LA, CHI, etc. [/QUOTE] I was living in and around DC ten years ago and saw the prices of housing skyrocket during the dotcom boom. $15K/year might pay for the parking space under your condo, if you’re lucky. I have no idea where he lives, but he’d probably live someplace close and trendy and desirable. Like maybe 20007, or 20008 from this [Washington Post article](http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/03/24/AR2006032400841.html): > [@](#): > > Some of Washington’s most famous neighborhoods – many of them west of Rock Creek Park – experienced more muted price gains. Zip code 20008, home of Woodley Park and Cleveland Park, saw prices that were 15 percent higher than a year ago, bringing the median to $1.15 million. > > In Georgetown, Glover Park and other parts of Zip code 20007, the median price was up 15 percent to $900,000. ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2007, 8:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/karl-rove-bails-out/415411/175 "2007-08-18T20:44:25Z")
FYI, I lived in Adams Morgan from 1980 to 1992. ---
**Author:** ![Cartooniverse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cartooniverse/32/3084_2.png) [@Cartooniverse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cartooniverse)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2007, 9:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/karl-rove-bails-out/415411/176 "2007-08-18T21:01:08Z")
[QUOTE=Tuckerfan] Yeah, as an ex-WH official, he can bring in the _big bucks_ working for Faux News and the like, plus, with that kind of investment in him, the company will happily shell out all kinds of money to pay his healthcare expenses. Of course, it might be difficult to _find_ a commentator job if the administration he worked for suddenly imploded in massive scandals. I don’t know how it works for executive branch employees, but for members of Congress, you only have to successfully serve one term to qualify for lifetime pension and health benefits, perhaps the same is true for WH employees, in which case, Snow will be living on the dole quite comfortably, I’d say. [/QUOTE] A few things. Agreed, he would be offered large dollars for a year or two until the Elections are over. Would a network be able to strong-arm a health insurance company? Perhaps. Perhaps not. However, US Gov’t employees are eligible for their healthcare for life. ( Or they were as of 1994 or so when Dad retired. He and Mom had full coverage, and as a surviving spouse, Mom still has 100% health coverage.). I’d WAG that after his value to Fox News or somesuch has waned he would be cut loose…to face…what? $ 168,000 does not go very far in the greater D.C. area. Snow is not an elected official, he is simply another hired hand. ( No offense to him in saying that.) He gets no lifetime payroll payments. Thought I must admit I cannot cite that only members of Congress get this benefit. Perhaps WH employees DO, but I doubt it. He’s just another civil servant like many other civil servants, and his income will drop precipitously once the term ends. Just to be clear, I’m not trying to be meanspirited towards the man because he has cancer. Hardly. I’m just commenting upon what he is or is not due in terms of compensation, and what his value would be to outside employers as of September 1, 2007. ---
**Author:** ![levdrakon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@levdrakon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/levdrakon)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2007, 9:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/karl-rove-bails-out/415411/177 "2007-08-18T21:24:53Z")
[QUOTE=Boyo Jim] FYI, I lived in Adams Morgan from 1980 to 1992. [/QUOTE] You should have bought a house there. Gods, I wish I had. ---
**Author:** ![asterion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/4da419/32.png) [@asterion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/asterion)\ **Post date:** [August 19, 2007, 3:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/karl-rove-bails-out/415411/178 "2007-08-19T15:31:31Z")
I just saw a picture of Rove from 35 years ago. My God, I almost wanted to throw up. Who knew the man would actually be more pleasant to look at bald and fat? What the fuck was wrong with people in the 1970s? ---
**Author:** ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2007, 2:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/karl-rove-bails-out/415411/179 "2007-08-20T14:32:17Z")
[QUOTE=Tuckerfan] Who was the guy who helped Bush 1.0 smear his way into office, only to express deep regrets for the things he’d done on his deathbed a year or so later? Maybe Rove’s got some kind of serious health problem and isn’t long for this world. [/QUOTE] You mean “Ashcroft”, and “sickbed”. What they were doing on Ashcroft’s sickbed I’ll never know 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2007, 6:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/karl-rove-bails-out/415411/180 "2007-08-20T18:03:07Z")
[QUOTE=Tuckerfan] Who was the guy who helped Bush 1.0 smear his way into office, only to express deep regrets for the things he’d done on his deathbed a year or so later? Maybe Rove’s got some kind of serious health problem and isn’t long for this world. [/QUOTE] I believe you are speaking of [Lee Atwater.](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lee_Atwater) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/karl-rove-bails-out/415411.md?page=8) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/karl-rove-bails-out/415411.md?page=10)