Closing Moments at the Bush White House

The Bush Thankathon rolls on!

President Bush rewards a great friend and ally:

Former British Prime Minister Tony Blair (L) receives the Presidential Medal of Freedom from U.S. President George W. Bush during a ceremony in the East Room of the White House in Washington, January 13, 2009. The award is the highest civilian honour that is given in the United States. Also honored were Former Australian Prime Minister John Howard and Colombian President Alvaro Uribe.

Rush Limbaugh, (right) talks with Former Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld at the White House prior to the Medal of Freedom ceremony in the East Room on Monday.

A Goodbye to our Southern Neighbor

President George W. Bush welcomes Mexico's President Felipe Calderon to the Oval Office at the White House, seen in this remote camera view, Tuesday, Jan. 13, 2008, during their joint press availability. White House photo by Eric Draper

The Last Cabinet Meeting

President George W. Bush speaks to reporters during the last meeting with members of his Cabinet Tuesday, Jan. 13, 2009, in the Cabinet Room of the White House, where President Bush thanked members of the Cabinet for their service and for helping with the President-Elect Obama transition.

Bush Administration Officials assist Obama Transition to train for emergency response

White House Chief of Staff Josh Bolten (C) welcomes senior officials from the Bush Administration and the incoming Obama Administration to the principal level homeland security exercise at the Eisenhower Executive Office Building in Washington, D.C January 13, 2009. The exercise provided an opportunity for officials to discuss incident management practices and continuity of government procedures.

Thus far we have seen one of the most gracious transitions to an incoming Administration in history. It's highly unlikely we will read stories about vandalized offices or missing "O"s on the computer keyboards in the White House as we did when the juvenile pranksters from the Clinton Administration were packing up.

And speaking of juvenile Clintonista pranksters, here's incoming White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel being escorted to the microphones by Josh Bolten, current White House Chief of Staff. One hopes the example Bolten sets will sink in with Emanuel but I'll wager it's a long shot at best.