AMERICA'S FAVORITE STANDUP
COMEDIAN LOOKS FOR A NEW GIG

The 42-year-old Fleischer, who was recently married, cited the desire to spend more time with his wife and to work outside the public sector for the first time in more than two decades.

"I want to do something more relaxing, like dismantle live nuclear weapons," Fleischer joked as he discussed his surprise announcement with reporters at his morning briefing.

The stress of the White House job in an era of 24-hour cable television and proliferating political Web sites clearly has shortened the tenure of the press secretary. More than a decade ago, Marlin Fitzwater served six years through the Reagan and elder Bush administrations.

Ah, yes. The good old "spend more time" with the family routine. It served Jeff Skilling well for a few weeks, if I recall correctly. In all seriousness, I would say that, while round the clock news TV has probably done a lot over the years to up the stress level of press secretaries, President Bush's wild and weird statements and actions are the bigger stressor. In fact, trying to make sense out of White House antics is what has made old Ari America's favorite standup comedian. I wonder if the next guy will be as entertaining.

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