Tags: Benedict XVI  The Pope and American Political Cynicism
One brief note about the Pope’s resignation: Those of us who
dwell in the political world are so conditioned to look for the
“true” reasons behind sudden resignations that some among us
almost instinctively dismiss the entirely plausible explanation
given — that an 85-year-old man felt that the duties were too
much for his slowly deteriorating physical and mental condition.
So many politicians have offered the “I’m resigning to spend
more time with my familyexplanation, so implausibly or so
freshly after a defeat or setback, or amid the whiff of scandal,
that it’s just instinctively dismissed by the Washington crowd.
Of course, every once in a while, a political figure really does
want to retire, and really does want to stop making the work-
life balance sacrifices that their job requires.  Of course,
we’ll still get at least one Dan Brown knockoff novel over this.
Tags: Benedict XVI , Politics   Subscribe to National Review