Card quits as top Bush aide

WASHINGTON -- President Bush, under pressure to shake up his administration, yesterday announced he will replace his chief of staff, Andrew H. Card Jr., with another loyal insider, budget director Joshua B. Bolten. But the resignation was widely described as a move Card initiated to leave a grueling, high-pressure job -- not a sign that Bush wants new blood to reenergize the White House.

In a hastily arranged morning ceremony at the Oval Office, Bush said he reluctantly accepted Card's resignation and he praised both men. He hailed Card's ''wise counsel, his calm in crisis, his absolute integrity, and his tireless commitment to public service," and called Bolten a ''creative policy thinker" and ''an expert on the budget and our economy."

Card, a former Massachusetts legislator, did not say why he was leaving on April 15, other than observing it ''is a different season, and Josh Bolten is the right person for that season."

The transition, however, fell far short of what many in Washington had anticipated: a bold remaking of a fatigued staff that would help move the White House out of its doldrums, quell Republican Party unrest, and boost Bush's sagging public approval ratings, which have languished at or near record lows for months.

''They still need men or women of stature and gravitas. They need to bring in some experienced hands to give them a hand," said Senator Trent Lott, Republican of Mississippi. ''I do think they need some more disparate voices over there at the White House."

Some Democrats want the ouster of top Bush aides such as Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld, an architect of the Iraq invasion, and deputy chief of staff Karl Rove, Bush's powerful political guru. Both men remain in their posts.

Democratic leaders said the president missed an opportunity to reinvigorate the White House, suggesting that Card -- who is popular and respected by Republicans and Democrats -- was not part of the problem.

''I have always found Andy Card to be reasonable, professional, and a man of his word," said Senator Richard J. Durbin, Democrat of Illinois. ''If the White House is looking to change course, they picked the wrong person to toss overboard."

Bush and his Cabinet have been under fire recently after a number of stumbles, including the government's response to Hurricane Katrina, the controversy over a deal to let a Middle Eastern company run six US ports, and the increasing unpopularity of the Iraq war. Bush, who is known for loyalty to his aides, has been reluctant to follow the example of other presidents who sought to revive their presidencies by replacing such key players.

Card, considered the ultimate Bush family loyalist and protector, also was on the staff of President George H. W. Bush, and has been with the current president since the 2000 presidential campaign. Card, who reportedly puts in long hours each day, had tendered his resignation from the job weeks ago but the president refused to accept it, according to two of Card's friends. This time, they said, Bush agreed to let Card go and picked Bolten, who had been Card's deputy chief of staff before becoming budget director in 2003.

As budget chief, Bolten has garnered mixed reviews; though he is widely praised for his intellect and financial knowledge, his political skills are untested on such a large stage. He helped lead Bush's failed effort to overhaul Social Security using private investment accounts, and he is not expected to push for changes in Iraq war policy.

White House press secretary Scott McClellan said yesterday that Bush doesn't see Card's resignation and Bolten's promotion as a shakeup. When Card informed the president he wanted to leave, the two spoke at length over the weekend at Camp David, and Bush reluctantly accepted Card's decision, McClellan said.

But leaders in the president's party expected more. Lott has complained since the embarrassing withdrawal last fall of Supreme Court nominee Harriet Miers, Bush's chief counsel and longtime friend, that the White House needs fresh perspectives. Given the intensity of high-level White House jobs, he said, one or two Cabinet secretaries should get the opportunity for a ''private life."

Senator John E. Sununu, Republican of New Hampshire, said that if the White House was under pressure to make broad staff changes, ''this isn't it." And Senator Chuck Hagel, Republican of Nebraska and a contender for president, said any changes must be more than cosmetic.

''It's not just a matter of shaking up the staff. It's policy. It's direction. It's leadership," Hagel said. ''Just changing personnel doesn't necessarily change perception or policy," he said.

Card may be best remembered for the way he handled the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, one of the most difficult periods of the Bush presidency. As Bush was reading to second-graders in Florida, Card interrupted the president, whispering the stunning news into the president's ear: ''America is under attack."

Massachusetts GOP lobbyist Ron Kaufman, Card's close friend, said Card probably has offered his resignation ''more than once. I think it was hard for the president."

Andrew Natsios, the former Big Dig chief administrator who resigned in January as administrator of the US Agency for International Development, said Card ''has been under enormous stress for five years. He handles stress better than any person I know, but no matter how good you are there is a limit."