IMO the WaPo is signaling the WH it's time for a change in strategy.
Susan Rice is damaged goods. She may have been a pawn sacrificed by the Obama campaign or a willing accomplice in spreading a lie. Either way, the GOP is going to hold this administration accountable and their target is Susan Rice. If she wasn't adept enough at dodging this mess, she certainly shouldn't by SoS. And once a moderate like Susan Collins declared she had a problem with Rice you know it's over.
The WaPo is also throwing up the John Kerry balloon. I suppose if we are going to be stuck with this pompous egomaniac doing something in this adminstration, he'd be better off here than in the DoD, where he could do some real damage.
Fight over Susan Rice holds political risks for White House - The Washington Post