The White House this morning announced its most significant staff change to date -- counsel Greg Craig is leaving and Bob Bauer, President Obama's personal lawyer, is replacing him.

Obama issued a statement praising Craig: “Greg Craig is a close friend and trusted advisor who tackled many tough challenges as White House Counsel. Because of Greg’s leadership, we have confirmed the first Latina justice on the Supreme Court, set the toughest ethics standards for any administration in history, and ensured that we are keeping the nation secure in a manner that is consistent with our laws and our values. I’m indebted to Greg not only for leading the Counsel’s office but for his many decades of service to this country as well. He has been a huge asset in the White House, and he will be missed. I will continue to call on him for advice in the years ahead.”

But there have been widespread reports of disenchantment with Craig's handling of issues, most notably Obama's pledge to close the Guantanamo Bay detention center by early next year.

Craig's departure, which follows the announcement earlier this week that White House communications director Anita Dunn is stepping down, appears timed with the declaration this morning by Attorney General Eric Holder that self-proclaimed Sept. 11 mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and four other Guantanamo detainees will face trial in a civilian federal court in New York, and five other suspects will be tried by military commissions.

That is a key step in plans to close the prison, but Obama is not expected to meet his self-imposed deadline of Jan. 22.

Bauer, a prominent Democratic attorney, will begin serving as White House counsel by the end of this year. He, it turns out, is married to Dunn.

“Bob has served as a trusted counselor for many years to many elected officials and is known as a tough and widely respected advocate,” Obama said in a statement. “Bob is well-positioned to lead the Counsel’s office as it addresses a wide variety of responsibilities, including managing the large amount of litigation the administration inherited, identifying judicial nominees for the federal courts, and assuring that White House officials continue to be held to the highest legal and ethical standards.”

Republicans have criticized the Democratic health care overhaul in a lot of ways: as a government takeover, as a huge tax increase, as a job killer, as rationing by death panels.

But worse than terrorism?

That's a new one -- and it came out of the mouth today of a Republican congresswoman from North Carolina.

"I believe that the greatest fear that we all should have ... to our freedom comes from this room, this very room, and what may happen later this week in terms of a tax increase bill masquerading as a health care bill," Representative Virginia Foxx said on the House floor. "I believe we have more to fear from the potential of that bill passing than we do from any terrorist right now in any country."

The Democratic National Committee quickly pounced: "It is outrageous that anyone would compare the action of terrorists to efforts to help American families get secure, stable and affordable health insurance," said DNC spokesman Brad Woodhouse.