If the Prowler is correct (he usually is) in his report today that the White House considered replacing AG Gonzales with Chris Cox, but then balked because Cox has worked too well with the Dems at the SEC…that just shows again how politically obtuse the White House is. The fact is that Cox has worked with the Dems there, yes, as he worked with Dems on Capitol Hill–and in doing so, has brought the Dems more in his direction, as is reported well in the latest issue of The American, the AEI publication. He has steadied a leaky boat at the SEC, moved it to the right, and done so in a way that most from all sides of the spectrum have applauded (even though the NYTimes still criticizes him, which obviously means he’s doing something right!). Moreover, if anybody thinks that Chris Cox won’t be a solid and responsible conservative at Justice, that person is just not in his right mind. What does the White House want, its own fears about lacking a sycophantic team player, or 25 years of a solidly conservative record? Cox offers the latter. The fact that he has a bit of independence, and unimpeachable integrity, should be seen as a good thing, not a bad one. But this White House is crazy, I mean nuts, about loyalty, to the detriment of competence (and even more to the detriment of brilliance, which is what Cox offers). I swear, I keep wanting to rally around this president for reasons I outlined in a column a couple of months ago, but he continues to act in an insular, arrogant, self-absorbed,m short-term-thinking manner. The question for DoJ should be simple: Who will best serve the American people? Anybody who doesn’t think Chris Cox will do that better than Alberto Gonzales is living in a fantasy world, at best.