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The departure came at another turning point in Blumenthal's life: on Tuesday night he had a farewell dinner with his wife at Washington's Jockey Club; their marriage of 27 years had broken up, and she was moving to Ann Arbor, Mich. It was her birthday. On Wednesday, Blumenthal moved into a new $200,000 condominium at the Watergate. Next day Carter told him that he had to go because of conflicts with the White House political staff. Said the President: "You've done a splendid job, but I want your resignation." Blumenthal replied that he was "as happy to leave as I was to come" and spent the rest of the session arguing that his successor, G. William Miller, should have full authority over economic policy and should not have to report to the President through Chief of Staff Jordan. Asked later at a press conference whether he had been defenestrated, Blumenthal replied that he had not. Said he: "I took advantage of an opportunity to get paroled with time off for good behavior."
On Friday morning, Carter accepted Schlesinger's resignation. Still seeming to smart from his firing as Defense Secretary by Gerald Ford in 1975, Schlesinger was at pains to point out in his letter of resignation that he had told Carter before the Tokyo summit that he wanted to quit. Schlesinger regarded himself as a political liability. He also was obviously tired of what he called the "onerous and miscellaneous responsibilities falling to the lot of the 'energy czar.' "
He left with a plea that the nation act quickly to meet the energy crisis. Said Schlesinger: "This nation will in the 1980s face shocks with regard to energy present and future supply for which we are not yet prepared in an emoional sense. What we must be concerned about is a revolution of declining expectations." Could he himself have done more to push this message in his nearly two years as Energy Secretary? Replied Schlesinger: "My high school physics teacher told me, 'The more I teach, the more I am impressed by the infinite capacity of the human mind to resist the introduction of knowledge.' It takes a while to sink in."
Last to leave was Transportation Secretary Brock Adams, and he departed in a fury. Ham Jordan had always personally disliked Adams, a former Congressman from Washington who has considered running for the Senate. Jordan assured him that he would be kept on, but only if he fired Deputy Secretary Alan Butchman, who Jordan thought was "too low key." Jordan also asked that Assistant Secretary Terrence Bracy be sent to the White House for a "talking to." Said Adams: "I was not going to do that."