"Andy Card at that time asked me if I would serve out the term," Thompson said, adding that he agreed to do so. But he said he "always intended to leave," so when he went over more recently, "it was pretty perfunctory that I was going to resign."
Thompson's announcement brings to eight the number of departments changing leadership, more than half of the 15 seats, making it clear that Bush wants to signal a relaunch of his government for the second term. Bush aides said they expect the departures of Treasury Secretary John W. Snow and Transportation Secretary Norman Y. Mineta, which would bring the replacement rate to two-thirds.
Paul C. Light, an authority on presidential appointments at New York University, said Bush's Cabinet makeover is now "the fastest shake-up in history, turning over more -- and more quickly -- than at any time in modern history," an average of two Cabinet secretaries a week since the election.
"This is compact, it's quick, it's bloodless, there's not been a lot of public posturing and angst, like you often see," Light said. "This White House learned from history to get it done quickly and get past hard feelings." He said the rapid changeover suggests that Bush wants "a redo" on domestic policy, "as if there had been no September 11th, since first-term presidents have more political opportunities than second-term presidents."
Thompson, a former Wisconsin governor, said in a two-page resignation letter, dated yesterday and signed "Tommy," that he will serve until Feb. 4, or until the Senate confirms his successor. "I thank my family for their love and support and look forward to spending more time with them as I move to the private sector," he wrote.
Under Thompson, the administration won passage of a prescription drug benefit for Medicare, one of Bush's prime political objectives. But 5 million more Americans were uninsured in 2003 than in 2000, and Sen. John F. Kerry (D-Mass.) said in his presidential campaign that the administration should have acted to head off the severe shortage of flu vaccine that the nation now faces.
A senior administration official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, told reporters late yesterday afternoon that Bush met with Rumsfeld on Monday and "asked him to remain in his position." The discussion occurred during a regular weekly meeting the two have in the Oval Office, the official said.
"The president believes very strongly that Secretary Rumsfeld is the right man during these challenging times," the official said. "We remain a nation at war and it is critical that we win this war, and Secretary Rumsfeld has shown himself to be a proven and capable leader." Rumsfeld agreed to continue in the job, officials said.
Several Pentagon officials said they expect Rumsfeld to remain in his post at least until the end of 2005, to oversee the Quadrennial Defense Review, a congressionally required assessment of the size and shape of the military.
Historians note that in the U.S. approach to war, it is common for some senior military leaders, either civilian or uniformed, to be let go during the fighting. In their view, the Bush administration is unusual in leaving all its top generals and civilian defense officials in place, particularly given the mixed results in Iraq, where the postwar occupation has been far bloodier than Pentagon planners expected.
Rumsfeld won praise for the swiftness with which his forces unseated Iraqi President Saddam Hussein, but he is widely seen as having ignored the State Department's postwar planning.
Bush ran in 2000 on a platform of modernizing the military, and Rumsfeld has pushed to transform forces into lighter and more agile units that rely more on technology. But the secretary has faced resistance from Capitol Hill and from the military leadership, and experts on military reform say that so far his track record in this area is mixed.
Staff writers Thomas E. Ricks and Jim VandeHei contributed to this report.
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