MONDAY: All's Weld That Ends Weld

WASHINGTON: Pay attention, America: This may be the last you see of William Weld for a while. The former Massachusetts governor announced Monday he has conceded to Jesse Helms in the battle for Mexico. TIME Washington contributor Laurence Barrett believes Weld's attack on Beltway culture had gone as far as it could. "Weld looked a little bored in the governor's chair, and the idea of an ambassadorship must have intrigued him. And once he saw Helms in his way, Weld figured that a fight, whether he won or lost, would raise his national profile."

But he didn't win, and Weld's political resume still makes him a poor fit for anything resembling national office: He's too much a social liberal for a GOP ticket, and too prominently Republican to cross the aisle. Barrett sees Weld "striking out into some genteel private-sector post like a university presidency." Weld is still young, and he's got his wealth. Having started his fire in Helms's living room, Weld seems content to head back home.