1115.org

To me, the real story in the resignation of Lt. Gen. Kevin C. Kiley, who came out of the Walter Reed scandal smelling like the emphatic opposite of a rose, was the absence of fig leaves. The quotes around the word resignation weren’t put there by people writing about Kiley’s comeuppance, they were put there by his bosses.

Although he had clearly been disgraced — “disgraced himself” is probably more accurate — we have a hallowed tradition in public life of allowing disgraced folk to make their exits clad in a fig leaf, no matter how flimsy or transparent the leaf may be.

None of that s*** here, and I’m more than willing to give kudos to Defense Secretary Robert Gates again.

The Army’s top medical officer was forced into retirement yesterday, yet another aftereffect of the disclosure of shoddy conditions for outpatients at Walter Reed Army Medical Center.

Continuing with my Robert Gates adoration, it does appear that the credit for holding senior officials to account belongs squarely to him.

A senior White House official, who requested anonymity discussing the president’s private conversations, tells Newsweek that Gates called President Bush and said: “I’m going to hold people accountable. I don’t know how high it will get. But it will be high.” Bush responded, the official says, “Do what you need to do.”