Top Bush aide leaving White House By TERENCE HUNT, AP White House Correspondent 
 

WASHINGTON - Dan Bartlett, one of        President Bush's most trusted advisers and his longest-serving aide, said Friday he is resigning to begin a career outside of government.

The move was announced on Bartlett's 36th birthday. He has been with Bush for nearly 14 years, from Bush's first campaign as governor of Texas, through two races for the White House and more than six years of a presidency marked by costly wars in        Iraq and        Afghanistan and an ongoing battle against terrorism.

As counselor to the president, Bartlett has been at the center of White House decision-making, stepping into the public eye in times of trouble to defend Bush on everything from the unpopular war in Iraq to the government's bungled response to Hurricane Katrina and the Republicans' loss of Congress.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070601/ap_on_go_pr_wh/bush_aide_resignation_1