New York Times reporter Anne Kornblut takes a look at criticism surrounding White House Chief of Staff Andy Card. She points to two critical events – the response to Hurricane Katrina and the selection of Harriett Miers – that fell under Card’s stewardship. Kornblut writes:

“The confluence of crises, all running through Mr. Card's suite just steps from the Oval Office, has some critics asking whether he needs to clean house or assert himself more forcefully - or at least consider a course correction before Mr. Bush is downgraded permanently to lame duck status.”

David Frum says, “The lesson of both Katrina and Miers is that the system of decision making in the White House no longer meets the needs of the president.”

And Bill Kristol implies Card is less influential than his predecessors.

So, with Karl Rove under the microscope of Patrick Fitzgerald, is Andy Card up to his increased responsibilities? As the New York Times reminds readers, Card helped coordinate FEMA’s response to hurricanes while the first President Bush was in office, an effort that won universal accolades. And Card has been with President Bush since day one, finding particular success in coordination efforts between Rove, Condoleezza Rice and Josh Bolten. In fact, Rice says Card has been instrumental in making sure competing voices get the president’s attention:

“Andy is not just completely comfortable with, but has encouraged, the president's four or five key advisers to feel that they can walk into the Oval and just talk to the president," Ms. Rice said. "There have been chiefs of staff who want to control access all the time; that's just not Andy.”