McGurn Headed to White House?

By: E&P Staff William McGurn, longtime chief editorial writer for The Wall Street Journal, will replace Michael Gerson as President George W. Bush's chief speech writer, Newsweek reported online yesterday.

This has not been confirmed by the White House.

McGurn worked as an editor at the American Spectator starting in 1981, went to the Journal three years later, then became Washington bureau chief of the National Review in 1989. He returned to the Journal in 1992, serving as chief editorial writer and member of the editorial board. He now writes a column for the New York Post.

According to Newsweek, Bush aides had tried to hire McGurn twice during the president's first term, without success, but the president won him over this time in a personal meeting.

Gerson is expected to move into the policy arena.