WISCREPORT.COM - The White House has announced that President Bush will replace Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld following what President Bush referred to as the Thumping that Republicans received in the 2006 November General Election. Bush is offering former CIA Director Robert Gates as a replacement for Rumsfeld, who is resigning.

President Bush had indicated days before the Tuesday voting that he would not replace Rumsfeld, however, because the people had spoken with the results of the election, it seemed like the time had come to accept Rumsfeld's resignation and move on.

The President says he didn't expect that Republicans would do as poorly as they did when enough seats in the House were lost to Democrats so that Republicans no longer have a majority. He admitted that it seemed that Iraq played a big part in the outcome, but, that other issues played a part in the final tallies as well.

President Bush says he plans to speak with Congressional Representative Nancy Polosi Friday about many matters, including how the Democrats and the White House can work together. Polosi (D-California) became the House Speaker-in-waiting when Democrats won the majority in the House in the election.

President Bush says, now that the Democrats are in control of the House, "people expect us to work together."

Bush points out, that, even though he is replacing Defense Secretary Rumsfeld, enemies of the United States should not take this to mean that this country will become lax in protecting America.

Gates, the man that the President hopes to replace 74 year old Rumsfeld with, is the president of Texas A&M University and a close friend of the Bush family. He served as CIA director for Bush's father from 1991 until 1993. Gates first joined the CIA in 1966 and served in the intelligence community for more than a quarter century, under six presidents.

The Secretary of Defense nominee must be confirmed by the U.S. Senate.