"When the president traveled the country this week, it was Ridge who was out there with him, touting the program and the department," says a White House political operative. "The president isn't going to be rushed into a decision, but it's pretty clear to a lot of people that Ridge is the man barring a major screwup on his part."
Apparently, though, even Ridge isn't so sure about his standing. Another White House staffer says there was grumbling out of Ridge's office that Bush wasn't more definitive in his address that Ridge was in fact going to be SecHomeSec. "You can't make everyone happy, but there were basic logistics reasons, Washington reasons why Ridge couldn't be nominated," says a White House legislative liaison. "The president couldn't nominate someone to a position that doesn't exist, to a department that doesn't exist. I'd expect that once the legislation creating the department is passed by Congress, you'll see the nomination up there the next day and it will be Ridge."
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