Bush's Downward Slide

Meet Susan Ralston

Baker and Grimaldi write in The Post: "As right hand to the president's most important adviser, Ralston was closer to the center of the Bush operation. She was a key organizer of presidential events, coordinating with White House political, scheduling, advance and public liaison offices."

For the first four years of Bush's term, Ralston had the relatively lowly title of executive assistant to Rove. But after the election, and Rove's own short-lived promotion to deputy chief of staff for policy, she was given the much loftier title of "special assistant to the president and assistant to the senior adviser." Her salary shot up from $67,600 in 2004 , to $92,100 in 2005 , to $122,000 in 2006 . Her latest perch at the White House was just steps away from the Oval Office. (See my White House floor plan .)

Peter H. Stone wrote in the National Journal in 2004: "As presidential adviser Karl Rove set up shop in the West Wing in 2001, he was looking for an assistant to serve as the trusted gatekeeper of his new fiefdom. Superlobbyist and Republican fundraiser Jack Abramoff was happy to lend a hand. Abramoff knew just the right person for the job: his own assistant, Susan Ralston. She interviewed with Rove and got the position."

Ralston told Filipinas magazine in 2004: "Working for Karl Rove is like being at the center of the Bush universe -- I am fortunate to be where I am, and be involved in much of what goes on at the White House."

Anne E. Kornblut wrote in the New York Times a year ago: "At the nexus of two high-profile investigations roiling the nation's capital is an unlikely -- and largely anonymous -- figure known for fiercely safeguarding her bosses.

"Susan B. Ralston, 38, has worked as an assistant and side-by-side adviser to Karl Rove since 2001, helping manage his e-mail, meetings and phone calls from her perch near his office in the West Wing. That has made her an important witness in the C.I.A. leak investigation, as the special prosecutor has sought to determine whether Mr. Rove misled investigators about his contacts with reporters about Valerie Wilson, the undercover operative whose identity was made public in 2003."

Kornblut wrote that Ralston functioned "as Mr. Rove's own chief of staff, coordinating the five groups within the West Wing that he oversees."

Opinion Watch

From a Washington Post editorial : "You might think a White House worried about honor and integrity would want to look more closely at Mr. Abramoff's dealings. You might think it would be concerned about whether Ms. Ralston violated the rules that prohibit administration officials from taking gifts valued at more than $20, though there is an exception for gifts based on preexisting friendships. You might think it would want to make clear that -- whether technically permitted by the rules or not -- this is unacceptable behavior from government officials.

"Not this White House."

From a New York Times editorial : "The White House spin is that Mr. Abramoff had a well-known affinity for exaggerating the impact of his lobbying efforts. If so, full disclosure of relevant records by the White House could help support that claim. Meanwhile, the idea that Mr. Abramoff exerted no influence with the administration seems about as believable as Mark Foley's early claim that his only interest in 16-year-old pages was 'mentoring.'"

From a St. Petersburg Times editorial : "The more the Bush administration denies any past relationship with convicted lobbyist Jack Abramoff, the hotter the trail gets to the Oval Office. Abramoff's fingerprints have now been found in the White House. . . .

"It may not be so easy to keep distancing President Bush from Abramoff. . . . Only a full investigation of Abramoff's connections to the White House can close this case."